Akaiso Akaiso, Uyo
Tuesday, September 22, 2026, will remain unforgettable for thousands of Akwa Ibom residents who had lived for years in the shadows of blindness. On that day, light returned.
It was the flag off of the NEPL/Seplat Energy Joint Venture’s – Eye Can See medical intervention, a week-long free eye care programme targeting more than 6,000 people across Uyo, Eket and Ibeno.
From as early as 7am, the venues were filled. Elderly men led by grandchildren, market women with wrappers tied firmly, teachers, students and artisans, all waited patiently for their turn to see again.
For many, it was not just a medical outreach. It was, in the words of Governor Umo Eno, a divine intervention.
Represented by his deputy, Senator Dr. Akon Eyakenyi, the Governor urged beneficiaries to see the intervention as God’s hand upon their lives.
“This is not by accident. God has remembered you. See this intervention as divine. What money could not do for you for years, grace has done today. Go and use your sight to glorify God and serve humanity,” the Governor said.
His words drew a loud amen from the crowd, with many raising their hands in worship right at the screening hall, Flairmore Event center, Edet Akpan Avenue, Uyo.
One of those who took the Governor’s words to heart was Mrs. Rose Nkeruwem Edenteghe, a teacher whose story has become the face of the programme.
For years, deteriorating eyesight robbed her of the joy of teaching. She could not read her lesson notes, could not see her pupils clearly, and could not move around independently.
She had managed to pay for surgery on one eye, but had no money for the second. “I thought I would go blind in one eye forever,” she said.
After her free surgery in Uyo, she broke down in tears. “They did not just give us surgery, they gave us back our sight and our joy. Thank you for giving us our dignity back,” she said.
Rose’s testimony is one of thousands. A – 68 year man, Peter Uye who was the first to speak appealed to Governor Umo Eno to give him a grant to restart his cloth business robbed by blindness.
The Chairman of Seplat Energy Plc, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma, said the outreach was a promise kept.
“After the acquisition of the MPNU assets in Akwa Ibom, I led our delegation to visit the Governor and explained that Seplat Energy believes in contributing proactively to the development of the communities where we operate. I specifically mentioned the Eye Can See programme and promised that we would extend it to Akwa Ibom. We are here today to fulfil that promise,” Udoma said.
He added: “Good vision supports learning, work, independence and dignity. Professional eye care addresses an immediate health need, but it also helps people regain opportunities that may have been lost.”
The Chief Executive Officer, Engr. Effiong U. Okon, reeled out impressive statistics to show the programme is not a flash in the tea cup.
Since 2012, he said, Eye Can See has screened 130,771 patients in Edo, Delta and Imo states, distributed 67,491 free glasses and performed 5,350 sight-restoring surgeries.
In 2025 alone, it reached 13,726 beneficiaries, shared 7,074 glasses and completed 471 surgeries.
Okon explained that Seplat has moved from outreach to institution building. In Delta State, the JV built the Sapele Eye Centre, equipped with two surgery rooms, four examination rooms, two wards, a laboratory and solar power for year-round service.
In Edo, the 2025 edition was hosted at the Palace of the Oba of Benin. In Imo, the Sight First_ programme at ANOH Gas Plant screened 2,789 people in 2025 and placed 1,309 on hypertension drugs.
“An outreach answers an immediate need. Permanent facilities build the local capacity to keep answering it,” he said.
Beyond eyes, the medical teams in Akwa Ibom are also screening for glaucoma, hypertension and diabetes, conditions the Governor noted are silent destroyers. Cataract alone, he said, accounts for about 43 per cent of blindness in Nigeria.
As the week-long exercise continues, the mood in Uyo is that of a revival. Songs, prayers and dances took over the Flairmore Event screening centre, Uyo.
Governor Eno, through his Deputy, counseled the beneficiaries on the need to see the eye treatment as divine. For them, Seplat did not just bring doctors and drugs, it brought light. And with light, they say, they can dream again.
For a better society
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