|
Igbo President Will Be The First To Be
Impeached In Nigeria
By
Uzoma Ahamefule
Newsdiaryonline
Wed July 20,2011
The
2011 general election in Nigeria
has come and gone and from my personal point of view it was the
most keenly contested election in the annals of Nigeria’s history. The awareness was
very high, the heat it generated prior to the campaign and
during the campaign proper was like a bomb ready to explode on
the voting days. History was made because there were not many
political killings in comparison to what was obtained in
previous elections except in few states, otherwise it was very
peaceful. It was also very historical because heavy weight
politicians lost their positions from the State of
Assembly, the House of Representatives,
the National Assembly and as Governors. These results would have
been unthinkable in 2003 and 2007 especially if you were in good
terms with Aso Rock. Congratulations to Mr President and INEC
Chairman. However, it was not the freest and fairest election in
the Nigerian history as the freest and fairest election still
remained the June 12 1993 election when the people from north,
south, east and west overwhelmingly voted for the late Chief MKO
Abiola. Nevertheless, it was a huge improvement to what we had
in 2003 and 2007. I also made the experience that if an
incumbent wins any election in Nigeria it is
seen to have been rigged but if the opposition to the incumbent
wins, that election is adjudged free and fair.
The
Imo state governorship election was the most interesting, the
most controversial and in the chronicles of Nigerian elections
it could perhaps pass as the most historical. The awareness of
the Imo election was awesome. It was intrigued that pupils of
about 3 years of age could tell names of candidates, mamas and
papas at the village turned into political analysts. Even those
that had never been to Imo state before could tell what was
happening in Imo, whether what they were saying was right or
wrong was another ball game. It was very historical because it
was the first time in the Nigerian history that a state
governorship election was declared inconclusive and
supplementary elections scheduled in four local governments and
one ward. One of the local governments rescheduled supplementary
elections ‘Oguta’ again did not hold. It is no longer a news now
that Chief Rochas Okorocha is the 14th and the 5th
elected Governor of Imo state. He defeated the incumbent
Governor Chief Ikedi Ohakim with the difference of 46,363 votes.
Therefore, I encourage all Imolites, friends of Imo to support
Chief Rochas Okorocha for the success of Rochas is the gain of
Imo and Igbo land. We should do away with our pull him down
syndrome that Imo state and Igbo people are noted for against
their fellow Igbos. So, all the jobless politicians and good for
nothing praise singers and sycophants should give gap from
Rochas and his cabinet. The time of politics is over, therefore,
falsehood or campaign of calumny that followed Chief Ikedi
Ohakim’s administration will not be accepted by progressive
minds or patriotic Imolites.
Chief Rochas Okorocha has got the potentialities of being the
man that may give us the much sought Igbo presidency considering
his philanthropic works and his acceptance in the north, south
and east. Therefore, Igbo political elites especially in Imo
state must unite and do away with greed, selfishness and myopic
politicking and support Chief Rochas Okorocha.
I
made the above statement because David Mark has been the senate
president for two terms now without any impeachment taken place
and Oladimeji Bankole served out his term in the House of
Representatives. But we were all witnesses to how Igbo men were
disgraced out of office as senate presidents one after the other
during Obasanjo’s regime. We equally saw the brouhaha that
followed the disgrace of Pius Anyim out of office as PDP
chairman. I am not a pessimist or a prophet of doom, I am not a
soothsayer, neither am I a partisan politician but I foresee
that AN IGBO MAN MIGHT BE THE FIRST ELECTED PRESIDENT TO BE
IMPEACHED IN NIGERIA, if Igbos ever get there.
It
is however pertinent to say that this current political
dispensation seems to be the first time the Igbos as an entity
are politically speaking at the national level with one voice
even though their stand or what they agreed with President
Goodluck Jonathan is not clear to us the masses for now. It also
looked like the first time Ndi Igbo appeared invisible in the
political terrain of
Nigeria, not even their usual
spare tyre position (second position). Nevertheless, we are
waiting for them in 2015 with the hope that this common front
will last and that their silence at the look of things now is
golden.
Chief Rochas Okorocha must be commended for the patriotism of
slashing his security vote from 6 billion naira to 2 billion
naira and I challenge other governors to follow suit. Enough
respect for this courage, His Excellency! At least we now have a
little idea of how the Governors siphon billions into their
accounts every month. I must also commend Chief Rochas Okorocha
for the free education which he has already started
implementing. Because education is the beginning of stardom and
moulder of personalities, because it is the determining factor
of how rich or how poor a society is, thank you for giving the
next generation future.
However, it will amount to sycophancy if I do not point out some
of the unguided and military brigade approach Chief Rochas
Okorocha has adopted in executing some of his policies. The
sacking of the LG chairmen is one of the most unfortunate steps
he has taken so far. Irrespective of how fraudulent Chief Rochas
Okorocha considered the election that brought the chairmen to
office, the fact remains that they were elected, because no
competent court has said contrarily. If Chief Rochas Okorocha
had discovered any irregularity during the election and he could
not do anything because he felt that the then governor would
influence the judgement, how about now that he is the governor?
Why not take the case to court and allow justice to prevail? Why
take laws into his hands?
How
will Chief Rochas Okorocha or those supporting this arbitrary
use of power feel if President Jonathan sends military men to
Imo state forcing Chief Rochas Okorocha to step down because the
election that brought him in was a charade in his judgement and
that another election would be conducted and he could
re-contest? That is exactly what Chief Rochas Okorochas has
done.
Why
are we too sentimental or emotional in such a sensitive issue
like this one that has got the capabilities of hindering the
progress in Imo? The litigation that followed the past
administration is what we do not want again. Why create
unnecessary hatred with this illegality? How am I sure that
Chief Rochas Okorocha is not trying to foist APGA members as
chairmen, the same thing he accused Ohakim hence he ignored due
process and militarily sacked the chairmen. Politics is really a
dirty game and I could never be a good politician. What Chief
Rochas Okorocha did was using his muscle against the chairmen
and such rascality of power is an abuse to due process that will
not stand test of time.
On
the 10,000 jobs I must reflect that during the campaign period
the Okorocha’s camp said that Ohakim never employed any youth
that he was only using that for political votes and now that
Chief Rochas Okorocha is the Governor the music has changed
again to be that Ohakim gave the jobs three weeks before the
election. These are two sharp contradictory statements. Please I
am only a concerned Imolite with progressive mind. Even though
Chief Rochas Okorocha was not my candidate before the election
but now that he is my Governor especially having impressed me to
a very large extent so far I will now be one of his ‘Vuvuzela’
as long as in my judgement he is doing well. Therefore, my
candid advice to Chief Rochas Okorocha is that he should not
waste much of his time trying to rubbish Ohakim because he has
got enormous responsibilities on his shoulders that he can not
afford to fail. These youths that he disengaged from their
respective duties, some of them also stood by him during the
election and made it possible for him to be where he is today
politically. I will also not believe or agree that the youths
that were employed three weeks to the election according to
Chief Rochas Okorocha’s camp were employed with bad intent to
make it difficult for Chief Rochas Okorocha because Ohakim did
not go into that election as an incumbent with the hope that he
would lose. What it also means is that Ohakim would have
maintained the employed youths for the next four years if he had
won. How can I now comprehend the above saying that it was a
trap for Chief Rochas Okorocha to fail?
In
consideration of all these political manoeuvrings, I am
appealing to Chief Rochas Okorocha to please not to play
politics with the future of the youths he said he came to
rescue. I know of a lady that left Lagos
state after securing this job and never thought in her life
again of going back to
Lagos as she settled already down in
Owerri and now this rascality of power has kept her in a state
of misery.
Because Chief Rochas Okorocha was supposed to have done his
investigation first before the suspending or sacking of the
youths and not the other way round, therefore, I am appealing to
him once more to recall the youths to duty immediately while his
investigation is still on. I also urge that his investigation
should be free from sentiments, biasness and vindictive in
nature because what is involved here is the future of our youths
and not Chief Ikedi Ohakim. I equally in my opinion suggest that
Chief Rochas Okorocha should embrace all sons and daughters of
Imolites irrespective of their political affiliation or stand
during the last election, because he is now the father of all.
Let
us support Chief Rochas Okorocha and pray that God protect him
and guide him. His success is the growth of Imo state and Ndi
Igbo.
Uzoma Ahamefule writes from
Vienna,
Austria.
uzomaah@yahoo.com
+436604659620 sms only
|
