Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Ini Ememobong, through his foundation, has given grants to 39 small and medium scale businesses to mark his 39th birthday.

The beneficiaries, drawn from the 31 councils of the state, include 13 male and 26 female youths, who are into hairdressing, paint production, catering services, fashion design, fragrance production, baking, shoemaking, farming, soap making, among others.

Ememobong also donated a worship centre to the Church of Christ, Edem Iyere in Ikono Council.

Also, he offered scholarship to Mr. Ukeme Ikot, who graduated with a CGPA of 4.90 in the Department of Electrical/Electronics Engineering, Akwa Ibom State University (AKSU), to study in any university in the world for his Master’s degree.

Earlier, the commissioner has taken up the responsibility of payment of fees for all students in the Church of Christ, AKSU, Obio Akpa campus, who maintained a CGPA of 4.50 throughout their study in the university.

The best graduating students of St. Mary’s Senior Science College, Ediene Abak, have also benefitted from the Foundation’s financial support. Ememobong is an ex-student of the school.

Speaking on Ememobong’s humanitarian services and contributions to educational development in the state, his immediate past Director for Education and current Director of Humanity, Mrs Uyai Edidiong Francis, said the Commissioner picks a minimum of 100 school fee bills every session.

On a message tagged “Seeing Forward by Looking back” to mark his 39th birthday, Ememobong said: “As I clock 39 today, a year shy of the famed 40, which is generally seen as the beginning of life, I look forward with great expectations to that great milestone by looking back to the many blessings that the Almighty bestowed on me in the past 38 years.

“This retrospection gives me a firm assurance that the God, who has been my foundation, guide and guardian these past years, will certainly be my compass in the journey ahead.

“As it is my disposition on days like this, I appreciate all whom the Lord has used to decorate my life and bring me to my current state. I trust the Lord to abundantly bless and reward them.”

He added: “My life travel partner Chi and our travel assistants, Ekemeini-Uloma, Ini-Onofiok and Iniekom have made this daily journey to self discovery and purpose fulfillment a pleasure trip and I owe them a debt of gratitude.

“Today is indeed an excellent time to postulate on the future, by reminiscing on the past. This is indeed the time to redouble our efforts at ensuring that we humanize politics and not politicize humanity.”