Ndigbo, a needful facelift

The last time I was intellectually stimulated by a South-East governor, was when ex-governor Chimaroke Nnamani started his lecture series. I followed the publications, thinking a philosopher king has emerged in the Nigeria political climate. But this flash in the pan, sizzled out before I could understand the ideological populations and solutions he was offering to the hydra-headed problems confronting the Igboman and Nigeria. As they say, the rest is history, as ebe ano has a pyramid of EFCC allegations to clear, which obviously will not give time to articulate intelligently. A man, whose house is on fire, does not run after a fleeing rat, except he is a Tiv man!

At the twilight of Nnamani lecture series, came Kalu Leadership Series. It still runs fortnightly in sun newspaper, ‘written’ by ex-governor of Abia State, Orji Uzor Kalu. Kalu’s series is more of an infantile column than what the younger generation of budding leaders would have loved to read.

Leadership has been blackmailed as the of Nigerian’s problem, yet those who have held leadership positions have not deemed it fit to dust this bad image of leadership. I expect Orji’s series to focus on leadership, drawing from his personal experience as governor of Abia State for 8 years.

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Ikedi Ohakim vs Sir Victor Umeh - It’s Over!

When the Governor of Imo State, Ikedi Ohakim declared in his recent Aka Ikenga lecture at NIIA, Lagos that ‘It’s over’ he was not un-mindful of elements like Sir victor Umeh.

In his lecture as reported by Ochorome Nnanna in the Vanguard he opines that some people within Ndigbo are acclaimed ’marginalisation cryers’ who have perpertually refused to see that the war was over decades ago; he observed thus

They have not accepted us back after the war. The war is still going on in their minds; it’s only the shooting that stopped. They are cheating us. They are killing us. They have enslaved us. We are marginalised. They have given us inferior ministries. They are doing this to us. They are doing that to us. 

I have no doubts, it is the likes of Sir Umeh that have not yet realised that ‘it is over’; Umeh’s purported reaction in today’s Vanguard leaves a lot to be desired. As much as one allows oppostion to his/her views, one does not just oppose for the sake of doing it , in other to be heard. Umeh still re-echoes the same old lines that Ohakim had earlier outlined. Sir Umeh, get it, it’s over! Just like Ohakim said;

It’s their fault. Fingers were pointed into the air, at them. But as it happens, when you point one finger at others, three are pointing back at you, telling you to search yourself first and be sure whether the fault is not really yours. Look at the mirror first. Are you sure the main problem is not that person who is staring back at you?

How many fingers are pointing at you? How much have you been searching yourself lately? Probably, you do not have a mirror to examine yourself.

The time has come and indeed, it’s time we start listening to the likes of Ohakim and other liberated Ndigbo sons/daughters out there so that we all can help deliver Igbo land from the defeatist physic that have beleaguered it since the war ended. We have what it takes to get ourselves out of this doldrums. We need to look inwards and rid ourselves of the marginalisation mentality as preached by our jobbers and buccaneers ( Ori na Crisis people ) representatives. They have not helped our cause and quest in the past nor present and the future holds nothing for them in Igbo affairs.

Let us rise above the defeatist mentality and invoke the Igbo unsuppressible spirit of enterprise and self preservation, with which we shall overcome and together we will establish the Igbo nation of our dreams. 

You may not agree with the messenger in Ohakim, but let us listen to him. He has got a lot to say. ( Okpu okwu n’onu! )

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PDP Convention & Ndi Igbo

Written By: Ashimole Felix.

This esteemed democratic five star Generals were on parade during the build-up to the just concluded Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Convention at Eagle Square on Saturday March 8th. Some names we thought were democratic war weary, dusted their younger days picture and printed posters. That reminds me, they should remove these posters that are defacing the beautiful city centre.

I never knew Ndi Igbo can assemble such galaxy of heavy weights.

I congratulate all of you. Igbo kwenu!! I also wish to congratulate Ayim Pius Ayim, who was shrewd enough to jet to Katsina for condolence once it was obvious that the horse trading did not favour him. I hope he made political gain with this visit to Katsina for the burial of the late emir.
Another contestant worthy of congratulatory wishes is Sam Egwu, the mature ex-governor of Eboyin State. Although it was glaring that OBJ was the backbone of his campaign, the ex-governor carried his campaign with dignity and sense of propose.
Between Sam Egwu and Anyim Pius Anyim, there is no victor no vanquish. Both benefited from the imperfection in and garrison structure of the PDP. Pius rather than suffer defeat at the PDP primary unceremoniously eased himself out of national discourse and “retired” from PDP. Kites flying around had it that the ex-Senate President had gotten a call to be a Pastor, and have waved goodbye to politics. It should also be remembered that there was a burning war between Egwu and Pius over who controlled the PDP machinery in Eboyin. Elders of the party from Abuja partially intervened and “peace” was restored in Eboyin.

Sam Egwu having won the “war” pocketed Pius and become the mouth piece of constitutional adulteration aka thirdterm. Nigerians were wondering if the “born again” Pius will see a vision of solutions to Nigerian problems and document same in a book, were dump founded when Pius emerged on the stage to via for PDP chairman.

Without much ado, both Egwu and Pius were paid with their coin. Egwu lost for sporting third term, Pius for keeping dangerously quiet during the headed debate, taking solace in religion. I guess the governors felt they can’t trust a Pius leadership, as he did not take stand. In a decisive point, a man must take a stand, even if not popular. Your enemies may disagree with your stand but will respect you as a man of principal. This is one cardinal rule most fair weather Nigerian politicians are yet to understand, despite having copies of Machiavelli’s The prince, Robert Greene’s 48 Laws of Power and Luzuin port of war on their self gathering dust.

I congratulate Vincent Ogbulafor, not for being the consensus candidate but as an epitome of the ephemeral anti third term forces in PDP. I do not envy him for he is in for a rough ride. He has a President who is not firm and constantly revising himself. I pray his “I am neutral” support for Ogbulafor will last. He has a president who supported third term as Governor of Katsina States a President ; whose SSG died while defending Hon. Olubumi Patricia Etteh; I hope the governors who chose him did not do so as a result of the weak platform on which he will operate or did the governors choose him to enable them consolidate as the new power base in PDP? But the victory dance by the Owo king maker once Obulafor’s name was announced gives me the glitters that the old fox may have had the last laugh
Whenever it tilts, Vincent Ogbulafor will be cultivating a mine field. The spikes will soon start flying. The muted detonations have started vibrating.

The forces that favoured an election to test the might of the governors on the battle field against the secrete endorsement/support they gave Pius and Egwu in their government Houses are rocking the boat. As is typical with disenfranchised PDP renegades, one won’t be surprised to see them contesting the Chairmanship of one of these social clubs masquerading as political party. Egwu should stop crying over spilt milk, he should have known how treacherous a sitting governor’s endorsement is. No governor stabbed him in the back. They just obeyed simple human instinct-self preservation.

Every tribe in Nigeria has its Judas but Ndi Igbo often express political naivety brazenly. Instead of jumping off a sinking boat, they should bate and reposition themselves. With the party Chairman in their kitty, arm wrestling should start to get the party to zone the presidency to the south East. The current shadowy PDP division of the country into South and North is a calculated fraud, for there are six geo-political expressions in Nigeria. As Oracle, I see into the future. Should Yar’Adua survive the 18 grounds of appeal of Buhari at the Supreme Court, the south-South will wage a war to succeed Yaradua in 2015. The argument will be tailored after American’s system, where except the VP rejects the party ticket, it falls automatically into the waiting hands of the VP (Regan to Bush Clinton to Al Gore).

The generals from technocrat Izuogu through the feather weights to the timber and caliber, should stop splitting hair; crying about marginalisation of ndi igbo, close ranks and re-position themselves for the party’s presidential ticket, once Yar’Adua’s tenure is over. They should not go into habitation but harbinger towards an Igbo president. Ndi Igbo and her socio-cultural groups-Ohana Eze, Aka ikenga, igbo professionals, should know that eme ngwangwa, emara odachi, anu bu uzu na awu nmiri oma. Furthermore they should start now to fine tune strategies to capture power, economic revival and repositioning as the North had started courtesy of Leadership Newspaper Groups conference tagged DE-INDUSTRIAL OF NORTHERN NIGERIAN: which way out.

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