OHANAEZE IS DEAD – IKOH, COMMUNITY LEADER

By NBF News

Ohanaeze and Jonathan's endorsement
I will describe the Ohanaeze Ndigbo as paper tiger. Ohanaeze has lost focus before now. Even recently whatever they say turns out to be the opposite of the aspiration of ordinary Igbo people. It is like a circus or a small club of privileged Igbo retirees that will come up with a statement in the morning and the next day you find out that statement does not hold waters.

How can the organization say that Igbos have adopted Jonathan. What do we stand to gain in Jonathan's presidency? Was it not the same thing the leadership of the organization did when Obasanjo was campaigning for a third term, the leadership then said that Igbos supported Obasanjo's third term when it was not so and when other ethnic groups had rejected the Obasanjo's third term project. This is worrisome, where can it lead us?

The ordinary Igbo man has gone beyond that kind of deceit; we are realistic, practical and pragmatic. The statements of Ohanaeze do not even influence the Igbo man in any way. They are not organized and galvanized to make any impact on the Igbos concerning their thinking. Some of them play politics of the stomach; they just want to satisfy their personal needs by embarking on certain ego trip to make somebody happy somewhere. But that is not the true position of Ndigbo.

Ohanaeze Ndigbo does not represent the aspiration of Igbos in recent times, they have lost focus and nobody should believe them and take them seriously even the President should not take them seriously in whatever statement they come up for his support. The Igbos have a direction they take in issues, which is the direction of interest. How does the position of Ohanaeze affect the ordinary Igbo man in the streets, in their market, work places and in their private endeavours that is what we are talking about?

The Ohanaeze to me only exists on pages of newspapers.

The right thing they should say they don't say it but keep saying the wrong things. They don't comment on bad governance in the Southeast, have you ever heard Ohanaeze coming out to criticize any governor in the region even the governor that has come out openly to say he didn't perform well. Did you hear Ohanaeze commenting on the kidnapping and the insecurity in the region and how it could be stopped, why didn't the organization hold a conference to articulate ways to curb the menace of kidnappings?

Have they made an official statement to the striking universities teachers that have led to the closure of states owned universities in the region, which is affecting education in the region? They don't think of things that are favorable to the people but only things that are favourable to them.

The Igbos must have their interest protected not just for today but for future and take the right direction. By now, if Jonathan wants the support of the Igbos on salient issues like the abandoned properties in the South-South should be revisited and addressed. What is the interest of the Igbos in his presidency and what will be their interest tomorrow in the same presidency. What is the promise that has been made whether secretly, let the president come out and say what he will do for Igbos so that we know our stake.

Abia State govt
Abia State government under Chief T. A. Orji has been adjudged one of the worst in terms of performance in the country. The governor has also personally accepted that at various fora. He has said it time without numbers even in the media that he is sorry that he failed and could not deliver as expected. When a man comes out to apologise for his failure, I don't think there is other way to say that he has failed. He has failed in security, which is very clear to the entire country.

He has also failed in the provision of basic infrastructure, which is also very clear because if you go to Aba, the commercial centre of the state, it is like the place never existed. Education in the state is pitiable, the school buildings are in terrible state. He has failed in every aspect of governance. Come to think of it, for the same person that has acknowledged failing wants to come back to continue in governance is very laughable. You know the tradition of politicians in Nigeria, the first term is normally the time for them to perform and the second term is to come back and prepare for retirement.

For somebody who didn't do anything and who failed in the first term, which is a crucial term for performance to say that he wants to come back to do things he did wrong to me is absurd. The governor is playing survival politics and cannot do better than what he has done so far. He has failed and I'm sure he won't come back. He is a big moral liability to Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the sense that he has not impacted positive governance to the people and has admitted that he failed. I don't know why the PDP wants to carry such a moral burden in T. A. Orji's candidature.

Distractions
Dancing about reasons or otherwise for non- performance is not the issue at this point. In fact, it is laughable for a governor to say that he couldn't perform because he was undergoing litigations arising from his election. That is a big indictment, because it means you have used your time and also the state resources to gain victory at the court. What you need to perform is money - you have your vision, you have your commissioners, you have your structure. From what he has said, it means the money was diverted to personal or party affairs and you said that the state should forgive you.

This is not acceptable in any way. How much did you spend in the court - Tribunal and Appeal Court to retain your election? If you spent Abia people's money to retain your mandate, it means if we return you back to the Government House and another candidate takes you to the Election Tribunal you will spend our money again to validate your mandate. It is not tenable. Abia people are saying that the governor didn't perform and that shouldn't be an excuse and that Orji Uzor Kalu interfered is also not an excuse because Kalu was not the chief executive of the state at this time, he is just somebody on the fringe.

What Governor Orji did in moving from Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA) to All Grand Peoples Alliance (APGA) and then to PDP why didn't he do it in the first few months he mounted the saddle, if he was sincere and wanted to break away from the shackles of Kalu. There is no sincerity in his statement that Kalu was on his neck. At various media interview when he was asked if Kalu was influencing him, he had always answered that there was no way Kalu could influence him because he was a man of his own and could not be influenced by anybody.

Third term for Uche Chukwumerije
Honestly, Senator Uche Chukwumerije has been a person I look up to with a lot of respect because of his antecedent. I have read so much about him and I have seen him speak but to me, the way the country is structured is the same way the state is structured as well as the senatorial zone. At this point of our democracy, I think rotation of political offices should be viewed with seriousness. Chukwumerije is not the only person from that zone; other areas should be given a chance. There are five local governments that make up the zone. He is from Isuochi council; another zone should go to Senate. Before him, Senator Ike Nwachukwu from Isiukwuato had its slot and now the other three zones should be given the chance.