Akiba Bassey Ekpenyong

Bassey Akiba is a Nigerian politician born on December 12, 1969, and serves as the Member of the House of Representatives representing Calabar Municipal/Odukpani federal constituency.

He previously served as two-term chairman of Odukpani Local Government Council from 2004 to 2010, where his tenure focused on effective service delivery, peace, security, and infrastructural development.

Akiba also held the position of a member in Cross River State House of Assembly from 2015 to 2019, representing Odukpani State Constituency.

Born in Akpap Okoyong, Odukpani Local Government Area, he is married with four children. His early education included primary studies at Bishop King Memorial Primary School in Calabar and secondary school at Government Secondary School Creek Town, both in Cross River State.

His further academic journey involved obtaining a National Diploma in Forestry Management from Ibrahim Babangida College of Agriculture (1992) and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mathematics/Statistics from the University of Calabar (1999).

He began his political career as a Personal Assistant to the Commissioner for Agriculture and Works in 1999 before becoming Chairman of Odukpani Local Government Council.

In the 2023 House of Representative elections, Akiba contested under the Labour Party and won, defeating Etta Mbora (PDP) and Edim Inok (APC). As a member of the Federal House of Representatives, he serves as Deputy Chairman of the Health Care Services Committee and is part of key committees like Public Accounts, FERMA, National Security, and Environment.

In 2024, Akiba introduced The Bridge Cooperative—a community-driven development initiative aimed at empowering local communities through elected ward leaders.

He has sponsored three bills: one to establish the Chartered Institute of Econometricians Data Analysts, another for a National Institute of Vocational and Technical Education in Okurikang Okoyong, and a third bill to establish the Institute of Health Service Administrators of Nigeria.