Let me spare you the time to think if this is a paid write up- it is paid by my love for Igede. It is not a news that social media personages are clamouring for a replacement of Right Honourable Samson Okwu coming 2023. I may not know who this MR RIGHT will be, but before he will come if it is the will of God who is the sole king maker; there are issues we must understand. These are personal observations and not emanating from any source.
Most of us think that the world exists pretty much as it looks and sound and feels to us. We justify many of our opinions with information collected through our senses, but because our senses a times deceive us or is beclouded by prejudices, many of the beliefs that we justify on the basis of sensory evidences do not mostly meet high standard. Honourable Samson’s doggedness in operating in an unfavourable environment like ours should be admired and celebrated. I don’t know if the incoming MR RIGHT will be able to perform in such an environment for eight days as compared to the eight years of Honourable Samson.
Let me classify these environments into two: the internal and the external.
INTERNAL– We are not strangers to the ugly moral renewal in the land, where brotherliness is turned for inhuman purposes. The very meaning of morality and the binding proclamation that was based on love and fairness is thrown into the gutter of compromise for a temporary selfish gain. We will not forget in a hurry the lingered legal fight about elections that took them to appeal court two times. We will not also forget that relevant stakeholders folded their hands and allow the fight to go the unnecessary length. These same set of people are the ones complaining after less than four months of quality representation and never mentioned the waste of time and resources. When the boat of Igede greatness is rocked by divisive tendencies and pull him down torrent. Backstabbing has occupied a comfortable seat in the hearts of relevant stakeholders, and we hardly speak with one voice; we expect the representative to wave a magic wand and attract development. Moses in the Bible is not only a friend of God but also a great leader, but he needed the support of Aaron and Hur to win a battle. Honourable Samson never complained, but I doubt if he enjoyed the maximum support of well-meaning Igede people with the aim of development of the generality of Igede land. I am almost sure, that some got close to get some personal help and will never mentioned a culvert in their own village. These set of people have no moral justification to complain about representation; because they failed to represent their village in a first place. Recently, instead of Idoma stakeholders crucifying their Senator, who was a formal minister and other HOR members, they delegated people that went with their political office holders to complain about roads in Otukpo and some parts of Zone C. That is genuine support, they avoided calling their representative names and calling them to move a motion in the house, as if a motion without the consent of the Executive will release money for any project. We remember how Barrister Ocha Ulegede in 2007 won the appeal after a protracted legal battle for the restoration of Oju II state constituency and the kind of discouragement he received and how he refused to quit until it was restored in 2011. He did not allow it to the then HOR member nor crucified the then political office holders- that is how a society operates. It is only when we cooperate that we will collectively attract development, not when we are specialist in undoing ourselves. Whoever the MR RIGHT may be, he will not survive in this kind of suffocating internal environment like Hon Samson did. Like I said, he never complained to me, but I am very sure he is not having a sweet cooperation and necessary support from necessary quarters. Your MR RIGHT will suffocate if we remain the same and act the same.
EXTERNAL: One of the heart breaking problem militating against the proper development of Igede land is external marginalisation which is not caused by Hon Samson and the MR RIGHT we are clamouring for will not resolve it. Your incoming MR RIGHT will not turn Igede to a majority tribe in Nigeria and Benue State and Zone C. The power that be within the State and outside usually deny and deprive Igede people their rights, entitlements, placement, position, recognition needs a collective will of the people to confront. We have series of complains about appointment of commissioners, head of parastatals, and recently the appointment in the Voice Newspaper. We have endless complains about the oppression in Zone C and in the State and it is not caused by Hon Okwu and your incoming MR RIGHT will not change the external marginalisation. So the new person will make no serious difference as we are currently drumming. When new present it as if our solution is found in the MR RIGHT that is coming in 2023; between you and me, we know we are not truthful to ourselves. We have a fundamental issue to address as a people and it will be unfair to put it in one mould of poor representation from only one person, as if one person can make a forest.
We should also know that we voted Hon Samson Okwu from a minority constituency in the zone and in the state, we don’t expect him to reach Abuja and turn our minority status to majority with a magic wand. The only option for him is to relate, negotiate and lobby which he had often times revealed is his strategy. Even at that, you need heads of parastatals and ministries to support and other political stakeholders, which we know we lacked as a nation. Hon Okwu knew he will not achieve enough through propaganda, loud baseless utterances, hatred for majority ethnic groups and blackmail, so did not toe that line. Your MR RIGHT will not make Igede to be recognized like the Hausa’s and the Yoruba’s. We had in the past self-acclaimed vocal political office holders that ended up causing problems for themselves and Igede nation and never attracted a tube well to the land. As a minority tribe in Nigeria and Benue and Zone C, we can only go far with relationship, partnership and lobbying instead of noise making and blackmail of perceived oppressors from majority tribes. That I think Hon Okwu understood and is very good at, or will your MR RIGHT go and do karate or Khufu to attract development. In National politics, the minority position, minority-majority ultimate exchange and regional compensation dynamics are better negotiated.
No meaningful peace and unity can thrive when we allow people to perpetuate a system they know to be a lie and respectable people are indoctrinated by false propaganda and become incapable of recognizing the truth. When lies are proclaimed as truth, honesty devalued, when statesmen allow themselves to practice deception with impunity and natural integrity broken. Because we are getting close to election year, we are clamouring for MR RIGHT as if we no SABI ourselves.
We are trying to restore Igede soul on its journey to self-destruction. As much as we cannot stop certain people throwing themselves into the fray because of some monetary benefits, we will not allow their shattering, divisive politics to make Igede nation vulnerable, weak and basically tottering on the edges of the cliff. I admire Hon. Samson Okwu for his golden silence, not stooping low to join issues with the people he is leading. Even in the midst of malicious, selfish, childish and false claims about his performances in the National Assembly, he has not stopped to do good to the people of his constituency. You are a real Igede leader true to type, thanks for your maturity and leadership qualities. Is a pity, I have only one vote, but in case you wish to continue; you can count on that one vote.
Dated: January 28th, 2021
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