Open Letter To My Ngwa Brethren In Abia State
When a few months ago at the inception of the Alex Otti campaign to be the next Governor of Abia State I heard about the controversy amongst the Ngwa people regarding his heritage , I dismissed it as an issue not worthy of political discourse. My dismissive attitude was borne from the fact that I could not imagine that one's heritage could in any way constitute an impediment or obstacle to one's political ambition in this new millennium. Knowing our political culture and our way of practicing the game of Politics, I guess I was very naïve to think we have changed. At some point I thought such thoughts regarding Dr Otti's heritage must have gained ascendancy only amongst people with less education and exposure but I was totally shocked and disgusted when a good and highly regarded Ngwa friend who has lived here in the United States as long as I have or even longer than me and who has had the benefit of advanced western education and political exposure repeated the same sentiments regarding Otti's heritage. It suddenly dawned on me that if this young who should know better was of that mindset then we as a people still have a long way to go towards achieving the kind of unity we all desire as an Ibo nation.
For what it is worth, I too, like Dr Otti, had grandparents who a very long time ago migrated and settled in a part of Ngwaland where my late father Dr A. K Ijomah was born and raised. Just like Dr Otti, my father went to school in Ngwaland until he left for College. Years after his education as a medical doctor, he worked in Aba and most notably at OKpuala-Nwga general hospital where his services was so appreciated by the community that he was offered a large piece of land to build a hospital when it was revealed that the government was about to transfer him to another town. My father regarded the Ngwa
communities he served as his own people and they treated him as their son. My grandparents, all my uncles and aunts were buried in this Ngwa community where they had settled for years. Till this day I still have family members who live there. To them that was and still is home. For me it is home also. So if my father were alive today to hear what is said about Dr Otti's heritage , I am sure he will not only be disappointed but also outraged. The truth is that Umuehim is where he was born and raised and that gives him as much right as any other son of the soil. Not to think of the fact that he had brought a couple of development projects, including, a bank, scholarships and electricity to the community long before Politics became part of a possible career choice. That some Ngwa people would want to deny him his heritage now just for the sake of politics is not only unfortunate but also will be setting a bad precedence which they may all come to regret in future when other communities start doing same. Today it is Dr otti, tomorrow it may be a young , bright gifted man in Umuahia, Isikwuato or Ohafia of Ngwa ancestry.
It is true that old habits, practices and prejudices are difficult to abandon but times have changed and we must move with the times, if we want to survive as an ethnic group . People are leaving behind old ways of doing things and embracing modernity. With all the prejudice and discrimination here in the United states, I never thought a black man from an African father would ever become president. At least not in my lifetime. But it happened and this country and indeed the entire world was better for it. Here in the United states your place of birth is your hometown. I have friends whose parents were from Texas but who claim New York as their hometown because New York is their place of birth. They are entitled to every right and privilege accorded to other New Yorkers whose ancestry could be traced to 4 generations of New Yorkers. All you need in this country to contest for any political position in any community ,city or state is to establish residency in that place for one year. I will give a few instances. Former first lady Hillary Clinton was born in Chicago, lived in Arkansas when her husband was Governor there and contested for Senate in the State of New York after her husband left the presidency and moved to reside in New York. President Obama himself was born of an African father from Kenya, in the state of Hawaii and after college in New York, settled in Chicago from where he ran for senate and the presidency. Former Governor of California, Arnold Swazinnneger was born in Austria, migrated to the United States already an adult, became a U S citizen and ran for governor. Even in Zambia , an African country, as recently as a few months ago, a white man of Scotish ancestry was appointed acting president after the sudden death of the sitting president pending the next elections. These are only but a few examples. This is exactly what makes the United States of America great. The willingness of the people to accept and let assimilate people from different parts of the country and indeed the world into their communities and letting them thrive and manifest their destinies.
AS Ibos we fought a war of survival as one people and despite state creation should remain as one people, hence it was a thing of shame when we read about Ochendo sending back to their home states our Ibo brothers and sisters in Abia civil service just because he could not pay the new minimum wage and also because others had done it in the past as he claimed. For our Ngwa brethren to start discriminating and denying Dr Otti his Ngwa bonafides for the sake of political expediency is not only wrong but counter- productive. Which begs the question, what if he wins as he is most likely to, will those who now reject him want to claim him back as their own? Instead of rejecting him, will it not be best for all Ngwa communities to embrace both Dr otti and Ikpeazu and let the best candidate win.? Rather than deny Dr otti as one of you, he should instead be accepted with open arms in proud recognition of his intellect , accomplishments and potential for all the world to see .He should be held up as a trophy, a shining example of the type of citizens , Ngwaland can produce. But be that as it may, all is not lost yet . there is still ample time for us to change our attitudes, prejudices and way of thinking and vote for the right candidate. As an Ibo man and indeed a Nigerian I look forward to the day when a person's place of birth does not hold much or greater significance than one's place of residence. I look forward to a time when a Yoruba man can live ,work and even run for political office in any other state other than the state of his birth. I dream about a time when virtue, honesty , experience are the ultimate qualities required in a candidate rather God-fatherism and the size of one's bank account. When intellect and past record of achievement will not be sacrificed on the alter of mediocrity, incompetence and zonal arrangements
Just like the Abia elite stood by and watched as political liliputians and malcontents took over the political arena in past elections , the ngwa elite must not stand by and let some people question Dr otti's heritage for political gain. They must speak up and condemn what is going on. Silence they say is golden. In this case ,I think it is criminal and negligent. They must not stay silent and act as if it is no concern of theirs. In most communities these elites command positions of respect and as such what they say hold a lot of sway. There is an Ibo saying that “an elder cannot stand by and watch a goat get strangled by the rope around its throat”. The Ngwa elites must speak up and speak loudly to all those who care to listen that those who are rying to deny Alex Otti of his Ngwa heritage are not doing the Ngwa people any favors. As the late philosopher Karl Popper warned,' If we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed and tolerance with them”. As a people we must be ready and willing to support those ngwa citizens who are out there defending Dr Otti's heritage as an ngwa man. The naysayers must be informed like Martin luther King once stated that 'non-cooperation with evil is as much a moral obligation as is cooperating with good”. It is the duty of all rational minded citizens of ngwa land not to continue to cooperate with PDP's intent on keeping this issue alive for political gain or history will not judge future generations of young people well for no fault of theirs. Today it is politics, tomorrow it may be your rights to land or property bequeathed to you by your late grandparents, your right to establish a business or even your desire to marry a girl or man of your choice. This nonsense has to stop. We are one people who speak the same language but with different dialects. Our strength and our ability to survive and prosper as an ethnic group in a multi-ethnic country like Nigeria lies in unity, love and respect for one another. Here in the United States any Nigerian you meet, be it Hausa, Ibo, Yoruba, Efik etc is considered your brother or sister, yet when we go home, our prejudices takes over our sense of a better judgment. Lets all resolve to end all this political dichotomy and vote our conscience and for the best candidate.
NNANNA IJOMAH Bsc, MA (International Relations)
A former Assistant to late Emeka Ojukwu (Ikemba Nnewi)
Teaches Political Science in New York City