I intended to migrate to another issue or topic this week on Harvest, but I had to shelve the idea considering the litany of responses to the first part of this piece published on this page last week
The flow of response which came through phone calls and text messges was unprecedented. In all, I counted over 20 text messages. The Phone calls were also endless. My phone kept on beeping with text mesages and ringing with calls that I decided to opt for the second part of the above subject ostensibly to reply thorny issues raised by some readers in the first part of this piece.
At the same time, may I remind numerous readers that it is not in my character to publish responses to issues earlier written on this colunm. But I have to break this rule to proffer answers to inquiries, questions and comments from well meaning Imolites and Igbos who reacted differently to last week’s piece titled “Igbos, APC And 2015”.
Due to space constraints , I will not reproduce all the text mesage except those that touched on the crux of the matter.
Majority of the texts and calls centered on the impression conceived and nursed by our kith and kin who are finding it difficult to forgive the Yorubas for Awolowo’s role towards the Igbos after the civil war. A prominent traditional ruler From Isiala Mbano in his submission was furious with the merger of opposition parties in the country, describing it as a ploy by the Yorubas to grab the presidency on the APC platform after the North must have held sway for sometime.
He claimed he was a veteran of the war who saw Igbos die in their millions because of the impoverishment policy introduced by Awolowo after the war. He added that the APC is not the right political platform for the Igbos to get the presidency, suggesting that the ruling PDP still offers the Igbos the sure route to the exalted seat. He suggested that Igbos should stoop low and wait for the ruling PDP if it is desirous to get to the top. In otherwords, he contended that Igbos should be patient with the PDP.
If the traditional ruler was lenient in his submission, a text message from 08023184238 was more furious with the merger and the coming of the APC. He did not spare Rochas Okorocha whom he questioned his political pedigree to drag Igbos to the APC. His text read thus, ‘Mr. Onyeukwu, i have read almost all your articles since the inception of Trumpeta. I must confess that you have clear perception of the political terrain in Imo State and the country, but i must say that i totally disgree with you on your views last week which tend to support the need for Igbos to embrace the APC. Rochas is too small to drag Igbos into that merger. What is his political pedigree in Igboland to tell us which direction Igbos should folow politically? Who is he in Igboland to enter into an unholy alliance with the North or the Yorubas. That he speaks Hausa does not mean he can trade us away. He is blinded by ambition and because he is blind, he can never see the folly that awaits him in that merger. He has fallen into the trap of the Yorubas, who will just use him to climb to the presidency. What a shame’
Another text from 08095877556 read’ I agree with you Onyeukwu, that the merger is good only to promote and enhance political competition in the country.But it is a contraption by the Yorubas. History has shown that we have nothing in common with them. They are traitors who have neva done us good. We cannot work with dem. Rochas is politically naive by joining the merger. He thinks he can be President by joining the APC, i assure you he will not suceed. Watch out
From 234023121300 came a doubel barrel response . The first text read“ Sir, your piece On Igbos ..APC and 2015 will hardly convince an Igbo man who clearly understand Youruba politics of deception and vices which they are good at, it is said once beaten twice shy. APGA leadership is very much aware of this, Rochas blundered by going ahead with the merger without consultation and collective agreement. if what Uche Onyeagocha, the national VC said on network news is correct. I see the merger as a gang up which if sucessful will benefit the Yorubas, remember 1966-1967, June 12, 1993 which led to the emergence of Obasanjo in 1999 . In all these they benefited and now they are at it again, pls have it in mind that your interest will not be considered especially with the likes of your governor as eggehead cos he will betray. This is not Imo Affair.
The sender of the text who goes by the name Hon Sab was not done yet, he had more in his arsenal. Few minutes after his first text message, he fired another which read“APC is a Yoruba agenda to wrestle power from PDP in 2015 and let it not surprise you that Yorubas in this adminstration are part of the game.. if they suceed, those in this govt will be the first to give support while other tribes will have anointed appointess, you ask Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife.
For purposes of ensuring that I did not digress from the bone of contention in this article I will resist the temptation to reply text messages that were constructed to insult my person.
At the same time, i will not respond to those who lack understanding of the issue by resorting to name calling. Their posture is totally not in conformity with the crux of the matter of this piece. Afterall there is no meeting point between a lunatic and a sane person. There is no basis for interaction and exchange of ideas between a stable and an unstable person.
I will also refuse to respond to the myopic submissions of a section of respondents whom I believe were driven or propelled by lack of understanding of the issues in discourse and are blinded by selfish partisan interests. They do not deserve mention, not on Harvest where ideas are harnessed and harvested for the good of the society and not for some greedy politicians who deceive the people for a pot of porridge!
For those who say I am an agent of Rochas Okorocha simply because I wrote in the first part of this article that the coming of APC is not his creation or making, I will say I am a law abiding citizen of Imo State who did not cast his vote for Rochas at the 2011 guber elections.
But as governor of my State whose policies considerably affects the well being of my family, kindred, community, local Government, I have a duty as a practicing journalist in the State to advise him, clap for him on areas I consider necessary he has done well and at the same time sharply criticize some policies and actions that I consider are not tandem with the overall happiness of the people,
For clarity purposes, may I remind us that I am not an advocate of the APC or any other political party or anyone as some people attempted to portray me.I am a journalist with no political leanings bent on advancing and championing those ideals that will be for the overall betterment of Imolites and Igbos. It is unfortunate that in our clime, it is difficult for some people to understand the fact that a Journalist can stand and defend what is right and at the same time condemn what is wrong. If they believe there are no such journalists in the State, well let me inform them that there are journalists in the State they belong to this category.
While I commed the diverse responses to last week’s topic, those who say the APC is a Yoruba contraption are missing the point. And I ask, is the APC an extension of ACN or AD? Are the Yorubas the only ethnic tribe involved in the merger? Is Bola Tinubu the only political leader in the country involved in the formation of APC? Are we physcological naive or scared of the presence of the Yorubas in the APC? Is not defeatist and a confirmation of our political naivety if Igbos reject the APC simply because the Yorubas are part of it? Should we continue to regionalize our political interests and remain in the cocoon of a regional political party and expect Igbo Presidency to be a reality? Or should we continue to be weeping child in the PDP political family where we only get the crumbs from the master’s table?
Since it has been proven to be Herculean for other ethnic tribes in Nigeria to go their seperate ways, it is expedient Igbos keep on perfecting ways and measures that will uplift the Igbo nation politically. We need it desperately as long as we remain part of this great country. This was why I suggested in the first part of this article that we should explore the options in the APC and see if it offers the right platform for Igbos to politically rediscover themselves. If it does, we should stick to it , if it does not, we can part away with it. It is against the grain of commonsense if we sit down, fold our arms and coclude that it is strictly designed by the Yorubas and for the Yorubas.
For those who say the APC is an extension of the PDP,I only wonder if they have saints or those who behave like Jesus Christ in their homes and families. Who is a saint in Nigerian politics, I appeal to them to give me answers.
However,it is amazing and stunning that we harbour such shallow political convictions. In a nation with diverse ethnic and cultural diversity, how do we come out of the economic quagmire and political sorry condition we have found ourselves many years after the Civil War if we continue to play politics of regionalism and exclusion or politics of second fiddle?
If the Yorubas aggravated our woes after the war, must we allow them to continue to taunt us with it? Must we run away by mere the sight of the Yorubas in any political arrangement in the country? Why didnt Igbos in the PDP take to their heels when they saw Yorubas as part of the party in 1998? Why did Igbo leaders in PDP not dump the party when it gave it’s presidential ticket to a Yoruba, General Olusegun Obasanjo despite the fact that Dr. Alex Ekwueme was the choice of thousands of delegates at the Jos Presidential convention?
What has happened to the Igwebuike mentality which the Igboman is noted for? Or rather, have we become political lameducks that are scared of confronting and overcoming political challenges when we see them? If Zik was intimidated by the political gimmicks of Awolowo, would he have suceeded to become Nigeria’s first President? There is an Owerri proverb that says “e ji la ujo eje ogu”(You do not go to a fight with fear) and this has been the political and overiding philosophy of the Igbos.
We are known for daring the odds and getting desired results. Can’t we beat them (the Yorubas) to the game of politics or rather use them to deliver ourselves from the political slavery Igbos have been in after the war? Can we politically co exist alone? Can we realize our dreams and expectations in a multi ethnic nation without “politically parleying” with the North and the South West?
I must remind us that as long as we remain part and parcel of the Nigerian statecraft, we cannot continue to isolate the Yorubas or any other ethnic tribe if we intend to capture the Presidency now or in the future. Those who hold strong opinions against the involvement of Igbos in the APC have painfully forgotten that history has revealed that ethnic tribes that were politically humiliated in the past have risen above their such predicament.
Today, they are celebrated. Despite what the Jews suffered in the hands of the German Nazis, have they not overcome the humiliation and anihilaition to become leading players in the global economy? Today, a Jew, Ted Turner is the owner of one of the world’s biggest tv networks, Cable News Network.(CNN). The blacks who suffered humiliation in the United States in the past have produced a black man as President in the person of Barack Obama. Similar tales abound all over the world.
Our never say die spirit have made Igbos to rise above whatever ordeal they underwent after the war. Even the Yorubas have not excelled better than the Igbos. Lagos State which is in Yorubaland and ranks among the fastest growing cities in the world is economically propelled by Igbos. Is it in education, sports, entrepreneurship and commerce that Igbos are not leading players? Which field of human endeavour has the Igboman is found absent?
Today, Igbos hold commanding positions in various sectors of the global economy. Have we forgotten the globally recognized exploits of the Phillip Emeagwalis, Ngozi Okonjo Iwealas, Oby Ezekwesilis, Emeka Anyaokus,Leo Stan Ekehs and lately the man described as the Obama of British politics, Anambra State born Chuka Umunna. Umunna has injected style in UK politics and currently is Shadow Business Secretary in the British Labour party.
Politics offers a unique opportunity for a people, tribe to rediscover itself. We must rediscover ourselves politically in the Nigerian statecraft. If the APC does not offer Igbos the platform to strategize on the way forward for the realization of Igbo Presidency now or in the future, is it the PDP that denied us that opportunity for 14 years that will give us political solace and comfort?
If President Goodluck Jonathan secures a second term as President in 2015 and completes it in 2019, the PDP as expected will zone the Presidency to the North which will complete its term in 2027(two terms of eight years). Where does this equation or political calculation place the Igboman? It then implies that we would have waited for the PDP for 26 years before getting the presidential ticket!
And besides,what guarantess Igbo political emancipation in the year 2027 when it is expected the PDP will offer us the presidential ticket? I am begging for answers. What is the guarantee that Igbos will be politically liberated by the PDP then? I will be glad if I can be convinced. Besides, I am curious to know what has happened to the promises upon promises Igbos were enticed with before the 2011 elections. And I humbly ask where is the second Niger Bridge, international airport, state of the art roads, refineries in the South east (mind you, except the one Emeka Anyaoku built in Aguata), railways, jobs, power stations, additional states that were promised us by the PDP during electioneering? Where are they?
