A story of humble beginnings, enterprise, resilience and a new imagination of what public service can become
~John Effiong
Every remarkable journey has a beginning. Some begin in privilege; others begin in obscurity. Some are written in the language of inheritance, while others are built painstakingly from little more than courage, determination and an unwillingness to accept limitation as destiny.
The story of Rt. Hon. Unyime Josiah Idem, Ph.D., belongs to the latter category.
Long before the National Assembly, before the awards, before the committee chairmanships and before his name became associated with constituency development and human-capital investment, there was a young man in Usung Atiat, Ukanafun, learning the difficult lessons of survival, enterprise and perseverance.
Born on January 14, 1975, Idem’s early years were rooted firmly in Ukanafun. He attended QIC Group School, Ikot Akpa Idem, before proceeding to Western Annang Secondary Commercial School, Ikot Akpa Nkuk. His later academic journey took him to the University of Uyo, where he obtained degrees in Business Management and Business Administration.
But the most instructive part of his story was not written in a classroom.
It was written in the marketplace.
THE BOY WHO REFUSED TO BE DEFINED BY HIS BEGINNING
Long before becoming a businessman and politician, Idem had experimented with entrepreneurship from a remarkably young age. Available accounts of his early life describe him starting a small barbing salon while still in secondary school. He later moved into foodstuff trading at Akpan Assiek Market in Ukanafun, reportedly beginning that venture with just ₦45,000.
That small beginning became an important chapter in a much larger story.
He understood early that enterprise was not simply about making money; it was about identifying a need and creating value around it.
And then came telecommunications.
At a time when parts of Ukanafun had limited access to telephone services, Idem saw an opportunity where others saw a limitation. He travelled to Aba, acquired an antenna and a Samsung phone, and began providing a means for people in the community to make and receive calls. What began as a modest venture eventually became the foundation of Idems Ultimate Limited, a telecommunications business that expanded significantly over the years.
In his own account of the journey, Idem attributed his progress to focus, diligence and consistency. By 2007, the telecommunications operation had moved from Ukanafun to Uyo, where it encountered a much larger and more competitive business environment. He nevertheless persisted, building partnerships across the telecommunications ecosystem and establishing a reputation as a successful indigenous telecom entrepreneur.
The lesson was already becoming clear:
He did not wait for opportunity to arrive. He learnt to recognise it, pursue it and create more opportunities from it.
FROM BUSINESS SUCCESS TO PUBLIC PURPOSE
Idem’s emergence into politics did not happen in isolation from his business experience.
His journey in political organisation had actually begun years earlier, including service at ward and local-government levels. But it was his growing reputation as an entrepreneur, employer and community-oriented businessman that eventually positioned him for elective public office.
In 2019, he won election to the House of Representatives to represent Ukanafun/Oruk Anam Federal Constituency. He was re-elected in 2023 and subsequently became Chairman of the House Committee on Public Procurement in the 10th Assembly.
The transition from entrepreneur to legislator could easily have produced a politician focused primarily on speeches and ceremonies.
Instead, Idem increasingly built his public identity around a philosophy that had been evident in his private life: create opportunities, develop people and leave something behind.
His legislative record includes bills and motions on matters of national importance, while his committee responsibilities have placed him at the centre of discussions around public procurement, accountability, transparency and value for money. The Federal University Lokoja’s 2026 alumni profile notes that he had sponsored more than 22 bills and moved over 28 motions as of the period covered by the profile.
THE POLITICS OF POSSIBILITY
Perhaps the most distinctive feature of Idem’s political journey is the emphasis he has placed on human capital.
From skills acquisition programmes and entrepreneurship support to educational interventions, scholarships and international training, his constituency initiatives have increasingly been framed around one central question:
What can be done today to make a young person more capable of succeeding tomorrow?
His empowerment programmes have included vocational training, business support and start-up assistance. The Federal University Lokoja records that thousands have benefited from skills acquisition, digital training, grants and other empowerment initiatives associated with his constituency work.
His foreign scholarship and training initiatives have taken another dimension of that philosophy beyond Nigeria, exposing young Akwa Ibomites to educational and technical opportunities abroad.
And perhaps the most compelling element is the philosophy behind it.
For Idem, a young person who acquires a sustainable skill is not merely receiving assistance; that person is gaining an instrument of independence.
A student who receives quality education is not simply receiving a scholarship; that student is acquiring a platform from which an entirely different future can be built.
That philosophy explains why his interventions have increasingly moved beyond immediate relief toward education, skills, enterprise and professional development.
FROM ONE COMMUNITY TO A NATIONAL STAGE
The symbolism of Idem’s journey is particularly powerful because the story has never completely abandoned its point of origin.
The boy from Usung Atiat became an entrepreneur in Ukanafun.
The entrepreneur became an employer and investor.
The businessman became a legislator.
The legislator became a committee chairman.
And the representative of one constituency gradually became a voice participating in national conversations about procurement, governance, accountability, technology, economic opportunity and institutional reform.
His public profile has also been reinforced by a growing collection of recognitions. Among them are the Leadership Newspaper House of Representatives Member of the Year 2025 on Constituency Development, the Blueprint Legislator of the Year, and OrderPaper Nigeria’s Most Valuable Parliamentarian Award.
In 2026, he also received the Outstanding Legislative Impact Award on Representation and Grassroots Empowerment from Inspiration 105.9 FM, adding another recognition to an expanding list of honours.
Yet awards, important as they may be, do not fully explain the phenomenon.
The deeper story is about evolution.
THE MEANING OF THE JOURNEY
There is something profoundly Nigerian about the trajectory of Unyime Idem.
It is the story of a young man who knew what it meant to start small.
It is the story of someone who encountered limitation but responded with enterprise.
It is the story of a businessman who did not remain satisfied with personal success, but entered public service carrying with him an understanding of what opportunity can do to a person’s life.
And it is the story of a politician who has increasingly sought to turn representation into measurable interventions.
Today, as he prepares for another electoral contest after emerging as the APC candidate for the 2027 House of Representatives election in Ukanafun/Oruk Anam with 36,768 votes at the party’s primary, his political journey has entered another chapter.
But perhaps the most important chapter is not about elections.
It is about inspiration.
For the young barber who once worked with his hands, the entrepreneur who started with modest resources, and the businessman who built a telecommunications enterprise from a simple local opportunity, public life has become another arena for the same principle that defined his early journey:
Start with what you have. Recognise the opportunity before you. Work relentlessly. And when you rise, create room for others to rise with you.
That is why the story of Unyime Idem resonates beyond the boundaries of Ukanafun and Oruk Anam.
It tells a young Nigerian that humble beginnings are not a life sentence.
It tells the entrepreneur that today’s small business can become tomorrow’s institution.
It tells the student that education can open doors that geography and circumstance once seemed to close.
And it tells the aspiring public servant that leadership is ultimately measured by what happens to the lives of the people entrusted to one’s care.
From the barber’s chair to the boardroom, from the marketplace to the telecommunications industry, from entrepreneurship to the National Assembly, Unyime Idem’s journey is a continuing story of transformation.
And perhaps that is the most enduring part of his emergence—not that a man rose from humble beginnings to occupy positions of influence, but that his journey continues to remind others that where you begin does not have to determine where you end.
The story began in Usung Atiat. The ambition grew in Ukanafun. The enterprise reached beyond Akwa Ibom. And the vision now sits at the intersection of constituency representation and national service.
The journey is still being written.
- Effiong sent this from Ukanafun LGA, Akwa Ibom 8
