"[6] Duke received praise for his contributions to the fields of agriculture, urban development, government, environment, information and communication, investment drive, and tourism, as well as having made Calabar the cleanest city in Nigeria.
[8][9] In 2005, he created a special reserve fund for the state meant to "hedge against economic downturn, and the inevitable rainy day".
This was meant to cushion the effect of unforeseeable economic challenges that may occasion uncertainty in the state's internally generated revenue, and monthly allocation from the federal government.
)[14] Duke announced that he would run for the presidency in the 2007 election, but stepped aside in favour of the eventual winner, Umaru Yar'Adua.
[17] On Monday, 14 June 2021, Duke was officially welcomed back to PDP by the party's leaders after two years of defection to SDP in the presidential race.