Recently and specifically, Sunday August 18th, it was vividly reported that His grace, the most respected Archbishop Obinna said that he will not back any governorship candidate or political aspirant for any elective public office as he hopes to go on sabbatical during the period of electioneering during and after 2015 general elections. Furthermore, it was reported that he will be less involved in the electioneering period before, during and after the elections.
His grace, the highly respected Archbishop was reported to have made this disclosure to a tumultuous faithful at Assumpta church service.
The Archbishop’s statement has raised a lot of questions for which average columnist or journalist must be interested in. such questions include “is this by implication the admission of the Archbishop that he has in the past supported politicians particularly governorship candidates”?
By implication is the admission by His Grace that he supported the election of Rochas Okorocha which His Grace has not come out to own or admit. Those of us who have been in this state for so long know that His Grace has been active in the election of who became the last governor of Imo State since emergence of civilian regime from nineteen ninety nine. Certainly from the election of Achike Udenwa, His Grace played vital roles in Udenwa’s election. For example, during series of Catholic Council Meetings within that period, a decision was taken to ensure that “a Catholic was elected Governor of the State”. Many believed that that was the reason Prof. Anwuka did not cancel the election of Isialla Mbano reported to have been heavily rigged and compromised. Furthermore, that was why even the State returning officer, Professor Jude Njoku, a devout Catholic failed to cancel the result from Mbano said to have compromised when he knew to do so would have allowed Ezekiel Izuogu a free ride to the Douglas House.
Later, two years on, His Grace had a frosty relationship with Achike Udenwa to the point that it was reported that Udenwa reported His Grace to the then Cardinal in Abuja that His Grace was interfering in his administration. The soured relationship reached its peak that Udenwa was for a time not attending church service at Assumpta Cathedral. The frosty relationship was a matter of knowledge.
The emergence of Ikedi Ohakim an Anglican took His Grace by surprise because of “unseen political hands which manipulated the election” in favour of Ohakim. Even before the incidents which brought Ohakim as Governor of Imo State, it was a matter of public knowledge that His Grace supported the candidature of Agbaso, a catholic relation of His Grace by the stretch of the concept of “brotherhood”.
Even while Ikedi Ohakim’s regime lasted, His Grace did not show much interest in his administration. He merely tolerated it and when the so-called incident of Ohakim flogging and assaulting a Rev. Father, the incident was over dramatized by those who had the influence to teleguard the voting behavior of Catholic faithful.
Those who knew what happened prior to the election of 2011 could still recall that His Grace tactly backed and supported Rochas Okorocha. The so-called debate arranged by His Grace, many believed till this day was ingenuously contrived to use the debate to sway Catholic Faithful in favour of Okorocha whom the Archbishop did not know very well then as he now knows. Then he was interested in getting a Catholic Governor. Today, some of Okorocha’s actions must have stunned His Grace.
During the election of 2011, almost every Catholic group was under instruction to vote against Ikedi. This instruction was largely adhered to not in Owerri zone but throughout the State but did not have much impact in Mbaise.
Ordinarily, what His Grace has expected from Rochas regime is not what he is getting hence he is disturbed.
Admittedly, everybody in the State who has an open mind must admit that His Grace Archbishop Obinna is a lover of justice, truth and fairplay. He is in fact a defender of the poor. His political antecedents in the State could reveal that his interest more than any other thing else was to ensure that anybody that becomes the Governor of Imo State is a Catholic if he could have his way.
Thus, his recent outburst is understandable. Certainly, having helped Okorocha to become the Governor, he did not like what he has seen as anti-justice stances by the Okorocha regime. Many journalists in the State strongly believe that Okorocha by implication has rubbished His Grace in many ways which His Grace could not withstand. From time to time he has come out grudgingly so to take swipe on at the regime. But his weakness is the fact that people still remember that he does not have the right to condemn the person he largely helped to install as the Governor of the State.
On his part, Okorocha does not care about religious matters and has done one or two things to anger His Grace and people are talking. Therefore, by bowing out of political activities in 2015, His Grace is looking for safe landing space if only to avoid another linkage to the 2015 elections. But when we come to take a hard look at the whole scenario, we must ask, why is it that His Grace is often connected with political issues in the State? Is he the only Catholic Bishop in the State but who has taken the census? We are merely assuming. With the emergence of so many Pentecostal faithful, do we still have that unsubstantiated assumption valid?
The simple truth is that perhaps, if His Grace, Archbishop Obinna has not become a Catholic priest he would have been an active politician in one of the political parties because, no matter how one takes a close look at his activities, he may be referred to as “Political Cleric” with all the niceties of a patriotic citizen.
Thus, we see how much out of politicking he would be before, during and after 2015 elections.
Can he do that? We watch and see.
