Before I proceed, I will say a million thanks to my readers both at home and in Diaspora who followed me on www. innocentonyeukwu.blogspot.com. I also commend those who sent me several SMS to my e mail reacting to last week piece titled Imolites And The Hands of Esau.
I learnt that readers, probably Imolites, outside the shores of Nigeria such as South Africa, United States, Germany, United Kingdom and surprisingly India logged on to have a look at the site and explore the harvest of ideas expressed on this column. I urge you all to read on and keep on reading Imo Trumpeta
Does today’s topic for discourse appear abstract and sounds apt. Well, I will quickly say that the State was drab last week as the State Governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha was said to have travelled overseas. 26 Members of the Imo State House of Assembly followed suit with a trip to South Africa. One can now imagine the lull in the executive and legislative Arms of government in the State as our elected officers cruised to Whiteman’s land in search of instruments that will improve the lot of the citizenry in our dear Imo State. I believe our State will get better when they return.
At the same time, I develop goose pimples whenever His Excellencies and Honourable members travel the same time. I do so because I fear they may be led into temptation. My memory easily recalls when over 10 State Governors and some Senators in 2006 travelled abroad under the pretext of seeking for foreign investment for their various States only to end up in the expansive mansion of one Nigeria’s big boys in the UK, Terry Waya, to attend his birthday bash. Nigerians were fed with cock and bull stories about the trip before Dele Momodu’s Ovation Magazine revealed glossy pictures of Waya’s bash with the His Excellencies and Distinguished Senators frolicking with women of easy virtue at the owambe.
Now, to the crux of the matter. I must admit that today’s article has two dimensions. One, It is prophetic and secondly, it is based on political permutations that may influence the political direction of Imo State, nay the nation in 2015. It is purely a political exercise orchestrated by a well known political guru from Imo State whose predictions and postulations are anchored on the pattern the political wind is blowing in our beloved Imo State. It is the prediction of a political seer, a respected Imolite whose was a political titan in his days.
I had a chance meet with this ‘political seer’ at the weekend and I promised him that I will not disclose his identity after he pleaded that he will only speak to me on the condition of anonymity. We spoke extensively on what we should expect in the political terrain in Imo State and the nation at large. I must admit that it was a worthwhile experience for me as I enriched my knowledge from his vast reservoir of wisdom.
‘Rochas Okorocha will return as Imo State governor in 2015’ he fired. I was taken aback. ‘How do you mean sir’ was my subtle and short reply after I have carefully sipped a glass of Baron De Val wine he offered me on my arrival. He continued ‘you see, you journalists in the State find it difficult to read in between the lines. You fail to do a thorough research on issues before you write. Have you asked yourself which alternative the people of Imo State have after Rochas? Where are the alternatives? …Where.
I paused and pondered over his question, suspecting that he is a core APGA man and a die hard Rochas follower. I managed to reply ‘Sir, are you saying Imo State are short of men and women that will not perform better than Owelle. Are you saying that we are doomed if Okorocha is not re elected as governor in 2015? Do you not think he will not be better off if he is elected President in 2015? And besides, the seat of power is like the chair of the barber, after barbing the hair of a customer, the he leaves for another customer’
He roared a loud laughter and said ‘I have been in politics for decades; I will tell you what you do not know. I will tell you that the PDP in the State is weak and besides, the people will prefer the devil they know than the angel they have not seen. The PDP shot itself in the foot in the last dispensation. Remember the Imo electorate is sophisticated and it will take someone that has the magic wand to convince Imolites that they need a change of leadership. The question is can the PDP be relied upon. Much as we know that the present administration has made silly mistakes, if there is an election tomorrow, APGA will win’.
‘You may be wrong sir’ I replied him boldly. I told him that the political terrain in the State is dynamic and who wins what in the next political dispensation is not certain until the tape of victory is braced by the eventual winner. I recounted briefly to him how the PDP has roundly defeated APGA after last year’s governorship election. I referered him to the re run election in Ahiazu/Ezinihitte Federal Constituency where Hon. Nnanna Igbokwe floored Chidi Ibe of APGA and lately, the Oguta re run Assembly election which PDP’s Eugene Dibiagwu defeated other contenders from other political parties.
I was not done yet, I went further. I reminded him the political episode in 1999 when the much fancied Engr. Ezekiel Izuogu of the then All Peoples Party (APP) was roundly defeated by the little known Achike Udenwa of the PDP at the elections. Besides in the PDP, I continued, one had expected the likes of Humphrey Anumudu, Greg Mbadiwe and Rochas Okorocha to pick the PDP guber ticket then, but the party hierarchy led by Ahiazu Mbaise born technocrat cum politician Innocent Diala Nwoga selected Udenwa for the ticket.
‘Times have changed my son’ The political terrain is now different and dynamic’ he cut me short and adjusted his easy chair to gain more comfort.
He continued ‘The PDP was embraced by Imolites in 1999. Remember no one thought that the Abdulsalami Abubakar Transition Programme will succeed. We all thought that it will be another experiment or contraption put in place by the military. That was why there were a lot of political morons that came to public office then. The masses never believed in the military guided Transition To Civil Rule Programme then and political the contest was not as fierce as it is now’.
He went on ‘Now, the electorate is suspicious of those who govern them. If they goof, they will kick them out. This is applicable to incumbents who fail to deliver. Democracy is all about the power of the people to elect and reject leaders. That is the stage our democracy has attained. It is no longer nascent, but has come to a level where the people cannot be taken for granted. It was not so in our time. In the first republic which I participated in under the auspices of the NCN, it was characterized by blood letting and violence. Now such incidents are beginning to dwindle in the polity, though elections in the country are still fraught with gory tales. Anyway, it is not yet uhuru’
He was emphatic that the present Administration of Rochas Okorocha in the State has made a lot of policy summersaults and cautioned that if he fails to take urgent steps to address the anomalies, public confidence on his government will dwindle.
He said ‘Despite the fact that he appears on the surface to be the only alternative for Imolites now, if he fails to change gear and stop some of the silly mistakes and summersaults, he will be pay dearly for it. If the free education initiative which he attracted us to his aspiration is not effectively managed for the overall benefit of imolites, he will be shocked to see how his government will loose acceptance. So, I caution him to be careful’
The race for the 2015 presidential race was not left out in our discourse as he told me that Nigeria is on the verge of precipice if the 2015 presidential election is not properly managed. He said ‘mark my words the political landscape will be charged in 2015. It is going to be tough. It is going to be so because President Jonathan will contest for a second term. His body language for now indicates he will do so. And if that happens, it will generate so much uproar especially in the North. Igbos will backdown on their quest to get the presidency. They will support Jonathan. Most of the South East Governors will rally round the presidential aspiration of Jonathan and because they are leaving office after completing their tenure, they will do the bidding of the ruling party to avoid being probed and hounded around by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
I tried to deviate from politics, but ecah time I did, this political Nostradamus will redirect our discussion to political issues. In his words he said ‘I eat and drink politics. When I was in the NCNC, I was among those in the Think Tank group. I was among those who brainstorm on the way forward for the party. Then, politics was politics and not what we see today’
He predicted that one of the opposition parties will in the country will grow in leaps and bounds, cautioning the PDP to conduct an internal surgery if it intends to continue to be the ruling party.
