The Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Senator (Dr) Akon Eyakenyi, has denied reports claiming that she sponsored a bill currently before the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly.
A statement issued by her Press Secretary, Omen Bassey, described the report as false and misleading, adding that the claim was wrongly credited to Senator Eyakenyi.
The statement followed several enquiries from members of the public over a message widely shared on social media claiming that the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly would, on Tuesday, 13 January 2026, pass a law prohibiting women from sleeping with married men.
The report alleged that the bill was sponsored by the Deputy Governor and that any “young girl, lady or woman” caught sleeping with a married man would face 10 years’ imprisonment without an option of fine, while the man involved would pay a fine of N2 million.
According to the statement, the office had received enquiries concerning “a certain Bill purportedly pending in the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly and falsely credited to the Deputy Governor as the initiator or sponsor”.
The statement categorically denied the claim, saying: “Her Excellency, Senator (Dr) Akon Eyakenyi hasn’t sponsored any Bill in the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly or anywhere else currently and she’s not even aware of the existence of the said Bill.”
It further explained that the Deputy Governor cannot personally sponsor a bill.
“The attention of the Office of the Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State has been drawn to a fake social media post falsely claiming that Her Excellency, Senator (Dr) Akon Eyakenyi, Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State, sponsored a Bill before the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly. For the record, this claim is entirely false and misleading,” the statement read.
“The Deputy Governor has not sponsored any Bill in the State House of Assembly or elsewhere, and she is completely unaware of the purported Bill circulating online.
“As a member of the State Executive Council, the Deputy Governor does not possess the authority to sponsor Bills independently. Any executive Bill must first be deliberated upon and approved by the Council before being transmitted to the Legislature by His Excellency, the Governor, or a duly authorised representative.
“It is also noteworthy that the false report did not originate from the official communication channels of either the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly or the Akwa Ibom State Government.
“Members of the public are therefore strongly advised to disregard this fake news in its entirety and to rely solely on official, verified government channels for accurate information.”
