Category: Opinion

[OPINION] Re: Tension Grips Ugwuanyi, Enugu PDP, Following Edeoga’s Emergence As The Labour Party Guber Candidate

By Sam Nnamani

The above is the title of a rather jaundiced article being circulation on social media, claimed to have been written from Lagos by one Chimex Bright, a name further searched on which revealed it to be a sobriquet meant for deceit and to force down numerous lies and presumably, to mischievously send wrong signals to the camp of unsuspecting but burgeoning Enugu PDP faithful. A cursory glance at the piece suggests bigotry and clannishness by no other but a few pretentious irredentists from Nsukka Cultural Zone, who have been crying foul since the run-in to the recently concluded Enugu PDP guber primary.

Having woefully failed with their cheap antics of populating pages on social and prints media spaces, organising rallies and issuing communiqués, wherein they alleged that the present-day Enugu state is comprised of two zones namely, Enugu and Nsukka zones, and according to them, it is the turn of the said Nsukka Zone to produce the next governor of the state; supposedly to balance power between the two zones, the defeatists have resorted to throwing tantrums, vituperations and all manners of lies from the pit of hell at the lofty personality of the amiable leader and father of Enugu State, His Excellency, Lawrence Ifeanyichukwu Ugwuanyi; insinuating the existence of crises within the Enugu PDP.

In correcting some negative assertions geared towards maligning Ugwuanyi and the Enugu PDP as portrayed by the piece under review, it’s noteworthy that since Ugwuanyi shot into political fame, never has he been seen or viewed as a weakling in political calculations and permutations by those who understand the nitty-gritty of solving the ever-treacherous political equations. This is a leader who has masterfully navigated the murky waters of National politics as a Member House of Representatives, overseeing the HOR’s all-important committee on maritime transportation, from where he, through sheer humility, dint of hard work, collective bargaining and uncommon tenacity in negotiations, manoeuvred his way to become the number one citizen of the state. It’s understandable and equally true as Michael Essien, one of the finest African footballers once put it: “the enemies will broadcast your failure but keep silent to your success”, that Ugwuanyi’s adversaries will never see him as a trailblazer and a grandmaster who is seamlessly enjoying a meteoric ascension unto the pinnacle of his already illustrious political career; and whose conspicuous successes in Enugu should be celebrated. Beclouded by their sentiments and hate, they have failed to see the Machiavellian dispositions in Ugwuanyi’s tact in identifying traps, as a fox, and his ability to frighten off wolves, as a lion.

To put the records more straight, Governor Ugwuanyi is not afraid of anybody or gang-ups nor is there any tension whatsoever in the Enugu PDP. These allegations are figments existing in the cloudy imaginations of those naysayers and political marauders, the likes of Chmex-the author of the controversial article, who are hell-bent on destroying the Enugu guber zoning template which thus far has ensured peace and equity in Enugu Politics since the inception of Nigeria’s Fourth Republic.

The nucleus of the matter and the cause of the chaos in the camp of the Edeogas is their failure in the bid to impose their masked third tenure agenda on the people of Enugu State and His Excellency Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi who, masterfully, as it has been his trademark to sense danger and subdue same, sniffed out their ploy by returning the Enugu guber ticket to Nkanu Cultural zone, being the dominant people of Enugu-East  Senatorial zone and whose turn it is to produce the next Enugu Governor in 2023; against the proposition by some power-hungry Nsukka elites to wrestle home the PDP guber ticket through the back door, Hon. Chijioke Edeoga and their “Ka Isi-Uzo Jee” catchphrase. It’s pathetic, however, that out of their shortsightedness, greed and consequent miscalculations, the “Ka Isi-Uzo Jee” mantra and its proponents lost the guber ticket as well as the senatorial ticket, which they could have gotten with ease if they had applied better tinkering.

Going down memory lane, it could be recalled that the same very few elites from Nsukka cultural zone opposed Gov. Sullivan Chime’s anointing of the Ukehe-born lawyer, Barr. Eugene Odo, as his successor, because he is from the Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area, which has the same cultural affinity and historical background (Ojebe Ogene) as Sullivan’s Local Government, Udi, and was perceived as a third-term agenda in disguise. Sullivan, in his wisdom, swallowed his pride and allowed peace to hold sway by supporting the core Nsukka cultural zone to produce His Excellency Lawrence Ifeanyichukwu Ugwuanyi as his successor. The rest, they say, is now history.

On Barr. Chijioke Edeoga resuscitating his failed and inordinate pursuit of his guber ambition through the Labour Party and the purported shockwaves accompanying his moves, while it is his constitutional right to pursue whatever political ambition he has, the good and observant Enugu people are however not oblivious of the fact that he has failed his integrity test as he was hitherto one of Ugwuanyi’s trusted lieutenants, who not only accepted defeat in the recently concluded Enugu PDP guber primaries but accepted without prejudice the landslide victory of Barr. Peter Mbah. For Chief Edeoga to have publicly acknowledged the processes that produced Mr Mbah as free, fair and equitable, further accepting to work for his victory at the polls and consequently collapsing his structures for Mr Mbah; only to join the LP as a guber flag bearer to possibly witch-hunt the PDP. Joining the race to pursue the same dream he claimed to have jettisoned in the interest of peace and equity, makes him no better than a liar, serial betrayer, greedy and one who by this recent hide and seek game does not possess the requisite public integrity which, of course, is the indisputable anthesis of corruption.

More so, it is laughable how some individuals in the name of writing malicious articles massage the egos of their paymasters such as Bar. Edeoga, by descending so low into the hubris of misinformation intended to create more tension in addition to the present precarious security situation throughout the country. If not, how on earth has the Governor’s meeting with the stakeholders – a course of action often applied to solve contentious issues in any saner clime anywhere in the world, become the issue of concern? Have the Executive Governor and the Local government Chairmen no such rights and prerogative to appoint their aides as they are constitutionally empowered to? Chimex bright and his co-travellers should be held responsible as their utterances are not only inciting but capable of misleading the populace into believing falsehood, thereby causing more commotion in Nigeria’s already frail polity.

On Governor Ugwuanyi’s contest for Enugu North senatorial seat, there is no ‘stiffer competition’ anywhere whatsoever. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi is bound to cruise to victory on the platform of his landmark legacies to the generality of the people of Enugu North senatorial zone and Enugu State as a whole. The records are there for everyone to see. The very few Nsukka elites opposing Ugwuanyi for not allowing them to truncate the balance of power in Enugu politics are known for their abysmal failure anytime they mount their scathing attacks. They should embrace peace, fairness and equity to consolidate the breathtaking legacies of the Ugwuanyi-led administration.

Again, throughout political history especially in democracies, oppositions are known for relentlessly picking holes in any policy, programme or arrangement that they consider unfavourable to them. It has to be succinctly stated, nevertheless, that the option of Barr. Ifeanyi Ossai as the Enugu PDP Guber running mate to Barr. Mbah is predicated upon competence and equity, and not on any form of introverted sentiments as being popularised by the opposition. The subterfuge of always crying marginalised by the infinitesimal number of Nsukka elites does not hold water and is long dead and buried. Barr. Ifeanyi Ossai’s emergence represents the majority interest of the Enugu North zone, though through negotiations and consultations as is conventionally done, it was never at the complete behest of the liberal-minded and democratic Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi.

In conclusion, there is neither tension in Enugu PDP nor is Ugwuanyi perturbed by the opposition’s and hater’s raucousness. Though the activities of opposition are welcomed as a way of gauging and checking the activities and the performances of the government, such opposing views should be clamped down, refuted and quickly relegated to the trash bin when they are designed to misinform and trigger unnecessary tension.

Nnamani writes from Amakpu Evu Iyovo in Agbani

[OPINION] London Saga and the Ekweremadu I know 

By Engr. Onyekachi Onu

I cannot claim to know Senator Ike Ekweremadu for ages, but I certainly have a glimpse of his personality. I knew little about him before 2017, except that he was one of the three senators representing my State, Enugu, at the National Assembly. In Nigeria, the distance between our leaders and us is far apart. So, I hardly knew much about the senator representing my senatorial district (Enugu East) at the time, let picking interest in those representing other zones. But encountering Ekweremadu changed my perception about some of our leaders.

As son of a poor widow, I strived with my mother (now late) to see the four walls of a university. She was determined to sacrifice all she had to see her son through the university to fulfil one of the promises she made to her late husband. I was a student at the Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT) and we all know how expensive (to the poor) state universities can be in Nigeria. But together, we were able to push it from 100 Level to 400 Level. But it was at this point that we reached our elastic limit. Yet I had one more year to complete my B.Eng. in Metallurgical and Material Engineering.

Luckily, after lectures one very good day, a student brought an advertisement for scholarship/bursary offers by the senator representing his district. The senator happened to be Ekweremadu. I received the news with mixed feelings and just skipped clicking the action button. But in the evening of that same day, a friend visited me at the hostel and still brought up the previous discussion. He knew the difficulties I had always faced paying me fees.

I was reluctant about it all basically because I felt it was one of those political gimmicks. But my friend encouraged me, assuring me that it was an annual programme that students in Enugu West senatorial zone and two other local governments had been enjoying for as long as he could remember. He explained that the annual scholarship and bursary programme had been expanded to accommodate the whole state. The qualifications were indigence and proof of academic excellence. I later applied and underwent the interview. To the glory of God, I was one of the beneficiaries of the Ikeoha Foundation Bursary Award 2016/2017. Mom shed tears of joy, relived because it actually came at the point I was just about dropping out of school. It was a miracle, more so since I was not even from Ekweremadu’s senatorial zone.

On the day of the presentation of the scholarship and bursary awards, there were many beneficiaries, including persons with disabilities, while a good number of the beneficiaries of Ikeoha Adult Literacy Programme passed graduated, having bagged their First School Leaving Certificate.

To motivate us, Ekweremadu reminded us that education was an equaliser. Drawing from Nelson Mandela, he said it was through education that the child of farmworkers could become the president of a great nation. I saw a man so passionate about lifting others and seeing them manifest their best.

Personally, I am of the school of thought that human capital development is one of the greatest empowerments you can give to anyone in life. Seeing such qualities emanating from him changed my perception of some of our leaders. To think that I was just one of the over 4,000 that have benefitted from the bursary awards, not even among the over 100 indigent students that have benefitted from full scholarships or among the thousands that have benefitted from the Ikeoha Medical Mission, etc., always makes me imagine how profoundly he has quietly touched many lives.

Ironically, today, the same Ekweremadu is on the cross, with his own daughter fighting for dear life. I am not yet a father, by I know an average African would prefer to be buried by his or her children and not the other way round. So, the fate that has befallen Ekweremadu and the wife in trying to help a daughter survive breaks the heart. But such is life.

Although fairer picture of Ekweremadu’s present predicament is beginning to emerge and have substantially changed the public perception and the narrative, so much has indeed been written and said, as an angry nation poured their justified indignations towards a successively failed political class on Ekweremadu, who they see as a symbol of that class. Ironically, many of those venting their anger have never been to Ekweremadu’s constituency to see how much he has tried to transform it, even as a lawmaker. Although I am from East zone, it took his intervention to wipe away age-long hardships caused by unmotorable road in my part of Nkanu East.

Those who want us to believe that the Ekweremadus couldn’t not have been caught in the present predicament if he had built modern hospitals in his constituency forget that it is not duty of a lawmaker to build hospitals. They can only propose bills to that effect. But how many bills for the establishment of all manner of health facilities passed by the National Assembly as frequently reported by the media have been assented or implemented by successive presidents? How well are the budgets passed by lawmakers for existing hospitals funded or implemented by the executive arm? We cannot afford not to blame the political class, but each piece of it should be placed at the appropriate doorstep.

Besides, all said and done, as Christ queried the Pharisees, who tried to indict him for healing a man on a Sabbath, “Which of you, having a son or an ox that has fallen into a well on a Sabbath day, will not immediately pull him out?”

Meanwhile, John 9: 1-34 also records how the Pharisees wanted a man born blind, but healed by Christ on a Sabbath, to declare that Christ was not of God. The man replied them, saying, “Whether He is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!”

Dear Senator Ekweremadu, while you and your wife have your days in court and while everyone is entitled to his or her opinion, I can unequivocally state that you are kind-hearted, a philanthropist, protector of the downtrodden, lover of education, a selfless personality, and a loving father. Sir, I am a beneficiary of your valuable impact. And just as you advised us back then, I have carried on in the same spirit to the few I presently pay their school fees.

Ikeoha, whatever life brings your way – good or bad – just remember that you once saved a drowning young man you never knew and he is forever grateful and will always paint your true picture to the world. Like the squirrel, you have buried many nuts and have since forgotten, but these nuts have given birth to many palm trees today and our hearts and prayers are with you and your family in these trying times. May the compassion you have shown to others locate you.

Engr. Onu writes from Abuja

Ike Ekweremadu: Indulging in Organs Harvesting, Modern Slavery and Exploitation of Minor? Victim or Villain?

By Prince Ejeh Josh

About two weeks ago; precisely 24 June, 2022, the global media space was awash with an unprecedented news involving a high profile Nigerian family in the United Kingdom for the wrong reason. I first saw the distraught news in the (in)famous United Kingdom’s Daily Mail, and subsequently got the comprehensive report from the German-owned London-base Reuters, British Broadcasting Corporation news, and the America’s Cable News Network. While still figuring the material facts amidst the frenzy and confusion trailing wagging tongues, and why the “violent” media rush by the gargantuan foreign media, in scores of minutes, the Nigerian media airway was saturated by the sad news. The news was like the shattering Russia’s supersonic ballistic missiles in Ukraine.

It was Senator Ike Ekweremadu and his family. He was arrested alongside his wife, Mrs Beatrice Ekweremadu, and charged by the UK Metropolitan Police at the Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court, London, with conspiracy to arrange travel of another person with a view to exploitation, to wit; organ harvesting; modern slavery and plot to have a minor (15-year-old) harvest his organs (kidneys), etcetera under the Modern Slavery Act 2015, Human Tissue Act 2004 (Prohibition of Commercial Dealings in Organs and Restrictions on Use of Live Donors)—MSA and The Organ Donation (Deemed Consent) Act 2020 popularly called Max and Keira’s Law. It took me days to review these laws and juxtapose them with the Nigeria’s National Health Act 2014 particularly sections 45 down to 60 that deal with human tissues and the procedures for their procuration.

The dust generated by the sad incident from different quarters, sections and interests in Nigeria and outside was enough to hang the senator and his family. Many spoke and wrote out of sheer ignorance of the real situation and the position of the law. Even opinion leaders, media experts, on-the-air personalities and social media influencers quickly concluded, prima facie, that Ekweremadu was the villain and guilty as charged even without understanding the facts in issue, the alleged offences and the extant laws that apply both in Nigeria and in the United Kingdom.

Many had called for Ekweremadu’s head. Call a dog a bad name. Nigeria is a country where jungle justice is celebrated. A country where most citizens ignorantly believe that the cart must be put before the horse. Ekweremadu was subjected to media trial and convicted to be hanged. Perhaps many were futilely waiting for the hangman’s noose. I watched some media programmes organised to analyze the allegations. I was ashamed at the conscientious display of ignorance supposed experts. They were conclusive and believed whatever comes out of the foreign scene should be taken as fact and truth. I had tacitly responded that “United Kingdom isn’t Nigeria!” If the UK was to be, perhaps, Ekweremadu and his family could have been lynched by an intellectual and self-enlightened mob of ignoramuses. That’s how far our country can go. Some had even alleged of ‘spiritual’ machination by the senator. So much conspiracy theories!

I refused to join issues but allow the Metropolitan Police do their investigation despite some elements of biases springing up during the trial by the prosecutorial team in the face of damning evidence contradicting and weakening the facts they had previously relied on. The prosecutor’s insistence, adamantly, on certain facts in issue, gave him away as swerving from pursuing legal justice to political justice. The law may be blind and cannot see, but justice has two keen-sighted eyes, and cannot only see but can see perfectly well. After all, it’s a timeworn judicial pronouncement as seen in Sir Horace Awory’s R v Banks that the role of the prosecution is not to struggle to secure conviction of the accused at all cost, but ought to bear itself rather in the character of minister of justice assisting the administration of justice, putting forth relevant facts that contradict its case in the fairest manner for the interest of justice.

I convinced myself it was time to drop the garb of politics and political differences and analyse issues from objective setting. I will not join those condemning Ekweremadu for whatever personal reason or interest. It’s time to stand tall with humanity so that history will be kind to us. After all, Ekweremadu and his family may be innocent of the allegations and charges against them, and could have been victims of misfortunes and circumstances beyond their imagination.

The storyline as told by the police and the complainant on his social media page smacks betrayal and snare. It’s a story of Roman Emperor –Julius Caesar and Brutus. Brutus delivered the last stab that sent Caesar to netherworld. The chain of events showed a logical narration of how unwary Ekweremadu was dogged by exploitation in quick succession by those he trusted. Guess what? The UK authority saw the report as an opportunity to hit Nigeria below the belt since it involved a super stakeholder in Nigeria.

The summary of the matter that led to the arrest of the senator and his wife will be produced below. Ekweremadu’s daughter, Sonia Ekweremadu had been sick and in need of kidney transplant. A pretentious willing donor surfaced. On his volition, he volunteered to save the life of the young lady. According to the Nigeria Immigration Authority and his National Identity Card data, he was born in 2000, and now 21-years old. His name is David Nwamini from Ebonyi State of Nigeria.

Senator Ekweremadu was happy and jumped at the offer. At least, Sonia’s life will be saved. She will live a normal life as well as Nwamini. The donor applied for an international passport in preparation for his London trip where the medical checkup would be carried out. Senator Ekweremadu informed the British Embassy of the development and included the name of the hospital. Nothing was shrouded in secrecy.

Medical examination showed the donor’s organ was no match for Sonia’s . It was time for Nwamini to return to Nigeria given the limit of his visa unknown he had already conspired with accomplices on how to perfect their evil plan against Ekweremadu. He dashed to the police station, perhaps with some accomplices, and framed the senator and his wife up. His motive? He wanted to seek asylum and he needed to tell such evil and alarming story to have his way. He alleged that he was 15-years old as against his public records. This led to the arrest of the senator on frivolous charges. One would wonder if the Metropolitan Police had really done a good investigation? Did they invite Ekweremadu as required of every decent legal system and he turned down such invitation? No. The police had it that it commenced investigation months ago but found it unnecessary to extend invitation to the senator. He and his wife were hounded just to make headlines. What did they intend to achieve about that? Any racial colouration to what’s happening? Was the procedural arrest and its media trial discriminatory? Questions.

Evidence has shown that Nwamini misled the UK authority by lying about his age as a minor who couldn’t have consented to donate his organ because of his legal incapability. The senator and his wife got entangled in the trap by the evil plotters and were arrested and charged. The prosecutor has since become hostile urging the court to discountenance applications for bail made in that behalf even as the defendants remain innocent until proven otherwise. Keep the Ekweremadus behind the bar for bailable offences might as well be borne out of judicial malice.

If that be; they’re entitled to bail. I’ve perused the laws under which the defendants were charged and saw nothing that could warrant refusal of the bail applications of the defendants or why the court would tag it a “very serious crime.” The court and the prosecutor must look at the legal justice in the matter having regards to the abundance of evidence springing up against the alleged minor as one who had misled the UK authority, and discharge and acquit the Ekweremadus. Organ donation isn’t a crime. In fact, there’s the UK law that compulsorily provides that every one living in the UK, save few exceptions, is a potential organ donor. Ekweremadu couldn’t have set out to exploit a minor or even anyone of what he could get without belabouring. He couldn’t have indulged in such a low life and would not manipulate anybody for that. His status in the society could have allowed him think towards that direction. He is an erudite, versed legal practitioner and a lawmaker of years of experience who understands the position of the law in that regards. He is just a victim. He fell into the trap as a caring and loving father.

I’m certain that justice will be manifestly done in this maliciously motivated matter, and the Ekweremadus will come out stronger. The timely intervention of the Nigerian government and Enugu state government having ascertain that Ekweremadu is innocent and just a victim of circumstances and trans-border conspiracy is commendable and consoling. My thoughts and prayers are with the sick Sonia and all the sick people for God’s healing. It’s just a matter of time and the storm will definitely be over.

Proffesseur (Episode Two)

By C.V.C Ozoaniamalu

It was actually not the time to press the panic button, probably because it was Friday and Fridays had always come with so much laziness as well as euphoria for the short but meaningful weekend rest. It was just 15 minutes to the end of the class, voices of students making plans of their future yet powerful ordeal at the dining hall filled the block. I held closely a book I had taken from my sister’s bag a night before I left home, I had not read it but I felt that holding it close to me would kind of bring my people close. The noise stopped when a lady entered, it was a dead silence, Ifekandu would have let out a side talk that would bring the whole class to laughter but he had been aloof and quiet since the last incident. He talked to nobody, I tried several times to bring us back to normal but he was not responding. He finally left our hostel, I could remember the day he packed from our hostel, how fear had gripped me, “maybe he was right, maybe it was not something ordinary”, I thought. I could not sleep well that night, so I had made the most little effort to tie both of my legs to the bunk so as to hold me back to a place and prevent any future embarrassment. I did it for sometime and stopped because I noticed I woke up with those ropes loosened and myself neatly coiled to my blanket. So, when that lady entered our class, I didn’t turn to look at Ifekandu, which I would have done in a normal circumstance.

The woman was the best definition of “Ordinary”, she was neither beautiful nor ugly, she was neither tall nor short, she wore neither earrings nor necklaces, except for the wrist watch which looked older than herself, dangling lazily on the left wrist and her long rosary beads on the other wrist. She wore a long skirt, the type that is worn in the Abbey, her big waist lifting the back side of the skirt making it a bit higher than the length in front. Her waist and breasts, recognizably sizeable, were the most noticeable features she had. Her face was blank, she had no makeup, and it showed no emotions, her eyes wandered around the class as if in search of a spy. As she raised her leg to climb the pavement into the classroom, her flowered white head wrap flew up and rested back neatly on her shoulders in the Fatima style as it was called by Catholics. I already knew she was a Reverend sister even before she introduced herself as one. “Bon jour Students, I’m Rev.Sr. Marie, your French teacher”, she said, as she made the sign of the cross. Looking at her, I wondered why God had given a woman such a beautiful accompanying features and left her face blank, neither with beauty nor ugliness. After she said a short prayer in a language none of us understood, she started towards the back of the class and stopped in front of Ogodo, a chubby black boy who seemed to have so much senior students trying to please him by giving him their food at the dining hall.

“Ogodo, Be careful with the senior students, if you allow your friendly fox into your hen house, tomorrow it might get hungry” . The boy shrank, everyone was surprised, was she a prophetess or something? How could she have called the boy by his name?

She moved back to the front of the class, introduced the course and wrote out the scheme. Then she said finally “Beware of the gay people, they would come first bearing gifts.” I felt a hand tap my shoulder, I turned and it was Ifekandu, “Who are the gay people? Is that a club around here?” I felt important at this moment, if anything, he still valued my intelligence. I smiled to myself but I pretended not to have heared him the first time, I needed him to ask again or probably because I didn’t want to feel so desperate to talk to him again. “Who are the gay people?”, he asked again. I honestly did not know what gay people meant at that time but I didn’t want to disappoint so I used the trick I learnt from my elder brother on dodging questions you don’t know the answer, so, I said “It…it depends..on where she’s coming from” I said without looking back. I surreptitiously opened my little pocket dictionary, there it was.. The first definition read “Happy” and second definition read “sexual intimation between two males: synonym- Homosexuals”.

On seeing the meaning, I turned back almost immediately and with deep ineffable pride I downloaded to him what I just found, giving it out as if I had known it a very long time. It was not until he asked “The second meaning? How possible?”, that I realized I had no explanation for that.

As the woman was about to leave the class, she stopped in front of me. My heart skipped; “Are you sure she didn’t hear my thought?”, I said to myself.

“Whats your name?”, she asked.

“Arinze” I said, head bending in respect and at the same happy that she had to ask my name and not surprise me like she surprised Ogodo, if anything, my spirit was too young to be ascertained.

“Okay”, she said as she left.

“Be ready for the next prophecy, light would be shone on your darkest part” , Ifekandu teased.

“I have no skeletons on my cupboard” , I snapped.

II. SOCIAL NIGHT

The auditorium was filled, It was called a social night, a sort of little party organized for freshers. I was behind the stage, getting ready to play the role of the Queen. I had never acted before and now I was kicking off with the role of a woman in an opera, where I would be a mediatrix between the people and the King. Back stage, I held tightly the script, reading and reading over again in order not to miss any line.

“Freeze” The director said. “ The opera is about to start, set the stage, take your role, play it like no one else could”.

I had looked myself in the mirror hanging on the stage, I nearly laughed out, the costume had changed me automatically. I was wearing a whitish blouse, the type my mother wore for August meetings, and on my waist was the material the director called an ntorika George. It was all heavy on me, especially the two round rubber material tied to my chest by a wretched bra from the theatre house, producing a nice shaped breast of an eighteen year ripe virgin. I was looking like a young girl being decorated for an early marriage ceremony.

“Action start”, The director shouted once more.

I saw myself standing alone on the stage behind the close curtains. “Arinze, this is your night, you have to bring all glory to yourself”, I said in my heart.

The curtain tore open, the light in the auditorium had been switched off, the only light there was centered on me, I couldn’t see well. I was tempted to cover my eyes with my elbow to prevent the rays from the light but the only thing I remembered was the directors voice saying “As soon as the light shines on you, give the audience a smile and a profound bow.. take five breaths in and out and pitch the first note”.

So I faked a smile and a bow. The crowd was already in frenzy, I heard voices in the background asking who I was. I heard a voice shout “Arinzendikwunnem, shine on”, I immediately knew it was Ifekandu, and adored that he knew my full name, and wished at that moment that I could give credit to whoever had dreamed up that name, it was calculated to be high tuned enough to appeal.

The Opera had gone well, I was very fulfilled and proud of myself. Ifekandu had run to me back stage to tell me how beautiful I sounded back there and how one of my fake planted breast was sagging while the other stood firm and we laughed out loud. As we were about to leave the stage, a hand held me, it was Kamsi, the assistant director of social, popular in school as D.O.S 2

“That was a wonderful performance out there, you really made the theatre club proud”

“Thanks, I’m grateful for that opportunity”

“I think you deserve a gift”, He fumbled his hands in his pocket and brought out a wrist watch and placed it in my palm. I thanked him as he left.

Ifekandu who had stood a little distance away, came close and examined the gift. “Wow, that’s G-Shock, who gives out such an expensive watch”, He said, moving towards his hostel but stopped as if he forgot something. He moved closely and said in low careful tone “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?, Remember, they would come bearing gifts, na so Dem go chop you ohhh”

...to be continued

NSUDE (Episode 1)

By C.V.C Ozoaniamalu

The first time my belonging was robbed off me, it was Ofoedu, the guy that lived three bunks away from mine, that I suspected. My suspicion had no strong premise nor evidence, but I had rolled my suspicious eyes on him that very day because he seemed to have been, amongst every other person, the most notorious, right from the day other continuing students resumed school.

It was always easy for me to identify him from the older students, not because of his thinly veiled condescension, or his loud nature but because he looked so much like Odenigbo, a boy from my former school, whom I never talked with and whom the whole class avoided eating anything from because he had come from a family that attended Brotherhood of Cross and Star which was mostly known as Sabbath in my neighborhood. He was short, with a shoulder that tilted one side, just like scale, his lips so full that I imagined it heavy on him, probably resulting to his speech impediment. While Odenigbo was just a lamb, Ofoedu was a tiger, or I may have called him gregarious or a hero and not something dangerous like a tiger, if my judgement had not been clouded by the very way the system in my school labels what is to be called good and what is to be called bad.

The very first day I met Ofoedu and his father, it was on a Monday morning in the early days of the month of October, and also the resumption day for the older students. Notwithstanding that it wasn’t the rainy season, it however had rained so heavily a night before that I had taken that as a kind of ritual, washing off my old life and a preparation for the new journey in a new college. I was fueled with so much expectations as much as Ifekandu, a chubby happy boy, who was my bunk mate through the orientation period, who wore his glasses even to the bathroom, spoke in the most nicest accent I had heard, and whom our closeness only lasted for two weeks as we met other people on our way through the college journey. Though, that day was a Monday morning, it had looked more like a Saturday because the atmosphere was dull, and everything had that musty smell of old age. Ifekandu had dragged me to the school avenue just for us to see what the older students coming back were like. The tree lined avenue leading to the school gate stretched out so long that it was impossible for one to see the gate from the first building inside school, which is the chapel, having the gothic old layers and the most sacred ambience. The avenue was flanked in well seated symmetrical form by the school main field, which lay bare on the left side of the avenue with its sandy soil well heated by the sun, and the school orchid, fully alive with the gentle greenness of the many trees bearing the most appealing fruits I have known. Ifekandu and I settled down on the shade of one of the trees. He was looking lost, and I guessed he was thinking. I could see his eyes from his big lenses, soaked with expectations and naivety. From the way he talked, I guessed I was a bit older than he was, if not having more experiences than he had had. He told me about his younger brother, and the sort of game they invented to keep the house warm as they were not allowed to go outside after school. His eyes melted when he said “I know he would be lonely now”, his voice whispering care.

Not quite long, we were jolted up by a fierce sound. The sound came from a car, the name I did not know of, but I had remembered Ifekandu voicing out the words “Mercedes 230 flat boot (1990)”, in the manner I would do if it were to be novels. The car stopped in front us, as cars do at Police checkpoints, or more in the manner a driver whose intention was to ask for directions would. The driver of that car stepped out, he looked like a man in his early forties, but having that gruff impatient manner kids have when they see opportunities to wallow in praise. “You guys are the new intakes, right?”, he asked in the humblest tone. Ifekandu kept quiet, I guess he was observing what he would say later about the man’s outfit. I responded “yes”, as boys on apprenticeship in most of the markets in Onitsha would answer their masters, their voice whispering fear and respect. “That’s my boy in the car”, he said with an effable pride as he pointed towards a boy seated inside the car. He wore a well ironed sky blue shirt that the lines made at the sides were as sharp as blade, “He came the overall first in a class of 150; try to be like him”, he said, as he started towards the boot of the car to unpack the boy’s belongings. I looked at Ifekandu to see if I could make out what he would be thinking at the moment, but his face was blank and expressionless. The boy in the car alighted, picked up a handkerchief from his pocket and dusted his shoes and his navy blue trouser while his father drove off. “Why are you two there watching? Carry my things and follow me”, the boy commanded. He adjusted his collar and the name “Ofo” was written on it boldly, as I would later learn the full version of his name to be “Ofoedu”. At first, Ifekandu and I did not make any move, we had stood there, waiting, watching, unsure of whom the command was made for. It was not until he shouted the second time that we started moving towards his bags, which we carried to Emmanuel and Paul Hostel, as he instructed. The coincidence was that the very hostel we were instructed to carry the bags was also the hostel that we lived in , and that was where the bigger wahala started.

Ofoedu was on the list of every prefect as a defaulter, he would always be the one found outside during odd hours, he would always be the one wearing the wrong uniform for any activity, he missed coming for prayers and masses and if he managed to come, he would sleep all through, so, suspecting him on that first day my belonging got missing was not out of malice. I had wanted to approach him, but I thought maybe, since it was barely two days after resumption, everybody would deem it as a misplacement. Perhaps, he had told everyone that he was the best student in his class and they respected his commands, except for one boy, whose countenance was mild, whom Ofoedu had always exempted when he gave out punishment to all junior students in the hostel. The boy talked to him as if they were mates, but I knew they were not because the boy had been with us since the beginning of the orientation day for freshers. It was Ifekandu who found out the boy’s name was Mgbodile, which loosely translates to “Bullets are real”. Ifekandu had suggested that, maybe, the boy’s father was a soldier, for who would bear such name, and how would Ofoedu, in all his terror, fear his junior? “I would investigate more, and this time more thoroughly”, Ifekandu confided in me.

Two days after, a group of students had gathered at the hanging zone in the morning, a teacher standing beside them. It seemed the teacher was questioning one of them sitting down, who was still wearing his pyjamas. I started towards that place, only to be stopped by Ifekandu’s voice “Arinzendikwunnem, come and hear”, he called my full name as if he had known it for years. “They said Mgbodile is a wizard, he sleeps in the hostel and wakes up at the hanging zone”, his eyes filled with speculations, seeking for more validations and support from me. “Oh, that’s not wizardry. I have read that from a book, it’s called somnambulism, it’s an abnormal sleeping condition”, I said, raising my eyebrow as I always did whenever I used a big grammar I had learnt from a book. “What do you know? Forget your big grammar, Mgbodile is a wizard. Come to think of it, if he had no such powers, he would not be able to speak back to those seniors, even Ofoedu”. The teacher had told the eight of us standing there not to say anything that happened, that the matter would be handled by the school. Nevertheless, before noon, almost everyone had heard the news, and Ifekandu was the chief harbinger of that news that Mgbodile was a wizard. Everyone in class discriminated against Mgbodile, because nobody wanted to be classified as the wizard’s friend. Mgbodile shrank, I saw his courage and braveness melt away like candle-the power of discrimination. I had gone to him during the break time and explained to him that he was not a wizard, but that it was a disorder and could be treated. “You believe I’m not a wizard?”, his tone filled with gratitude. “Of course you are not”. “Thanks”, tears dropping down his cheeks.

Barely five days after that, another set of students had gathered, but now not in the hanging zone, but at the back of the classroom block, with no teacher standing there this time, and I had looked away, dodging the temptation of going there to have a look, but I saw myself moving towards that place. I was shocked at what I saw-it was Ofoedu with his foam, sleeping at the back of the class room block. I bent towards him and tapped him hard, he woke up almost immediately, he was looking confused. “How did I appear here? What’s happening? Please it’s a mistake, it’s not what you think”, he cried.

…to be continued

(Opinion) RE: Malachy Ochie on “RE:Crisis Rocks Enugu PDP over Plots to Impose Aspirant being Prosecuted for Multi-million naira Petrol Subsidy Fraud as Governorship Candidate”

By Nebechi Ogbaji

In the murky waters of Nigerian politics where decency, orderliness, humanness, selflessness, sensitivity to others feelings, morality, truth and the rule of law are often ignored and deliberately substituted with Machiavelli’s amoral principles of the end justifying the means; the politics of anything goes, and is fair as long as desired result is achieved.

It is from this perspective that I want to view the writings of some writers and commentators on the current trend of politics in Nigeria, particularly in Enugu State, where wanton attacks have been directed on some personalities who have patriotically indicated and given notice of their intention to contest elections as Governor of the State.

One aspirant who has become victim of series of jaundiced, mindless and unmerited attack is Peter Mba, one of the aspirants of the office of the Governor in Enugu State.

One of such attacks was the one unleashed by one Malachy Chuma Ochie that has been trending in the social media.  Ochei with infantile authority spewed and conjured up in his article all manner of incongruous and malodorous assumptions and baseless, groundless, unprovable and unsubstantiated allegations against Peter Mba.
At the end and very characteristic of jaundiced people in politics who see everything as yellow, he only displayed hatefulness and unmoderated desperation. The article was not only sentimental, emotional, speculative, illogical and blatantly coming from a jaundiced mind, it was perhaps done for money or other partisan interest rather than any loftier ambition of art.  If you like call it hack writing.

In his propaganda, Ochei said he was reacting to “an exclusive and explosive piece published on-line by Sahara Reporters to the effect that “there is a thickening plot to impose Mr. Peter Mba, the CEO of Pinnacle Oil and Gas Limited, who is currently being prosecuted by the EFCC over alleged illegal financial dealings and misappropriation of funds as the PDP Governorship candidate on the people of Enugu State”. Malachy Ochei is called upon to redeem his reputation by providing answers to the following pertinent questions; Who are the plotters? What are the charges against Peter and in which court is he being prosecuted?  How current is the alleged prosecution? Whose funds has he misappropriated?  These are facts that serious readers may want to know about.

Not done with his groundless allegation, Ochei now told readers that Sahara Reporters has a reputation for investigative journalism and “one would therefore assume that in publishing that piece, Sahara Reporters must have done its home work well and has merely alerted the people”.  Ochei is saying that anything that Sahara Reporters said is irrefutable the Gospel truth;  In other words  Sahara Reporters is always right.  Ochei was so sure of the accuracy of Sahara Reporters that he hatefully, libelously and incitingly called upon the people to resist what he called “barefaced political brigandage” which according to him was “master minded by Chimaroke Nnamani”.  He then denigrated and degraded Chimaroke Nnamani and hatefully, insultingly and brazenly asserted that “the name of Chimaroke Nnamani resonates in the hall of infamy in Enugu State”. One may please ask where is the location of Ochei’s imaginary hall of infamy.  Perhaps it is located in Ochei’s heart.

While we cannot join issues with him in all the things Ochei spewed on the persons of Chimaroke Nnamani, it is enough to acknowledge his strong capacity for innuendoes, farrago of lies, rumour mongering, pedestrian gossips and vituperations.

One curios fact that is worrisome in Ochei’s treatise is his inability to differentiate between the personality of Chimaroke Nnamani and Peter Mba.  His writing implies that Peter Mba has no mind of his own. Ochei also scathingly insulted and degraded the personality of the Governor of Enugu State, His Excellency, Rt. Hon. Dr. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, by contemplating that Peter may be imposed on the Governor under the influence of Chimaroke Nnamani.  This is another way of saying that Ugwuanyi is not independent minded and does not know what is good for a state that he had in the last seven years governed meritoriously with well horned transformative agenda.

To cut the story short, it is pertinent to refer Ochei to another Sahara Reporters publication on Peter Mba, ref.
https://saharareporters.com/2022/05/11/pdp-governorship-aspirant-peter-mbah-was-not-prosecuted-anti-graft-agency-efcc-%E2%80%93-pinnacle the on-line paper published a refutation of its earlier publication on the same matter in which it stated that the case under reference was initiated and fully struck out 10 years ago – specifically on July 31, 2012, by Hon. Justice Candide-Johnson. The report indicated that the EFCC had specifically said that at that time, “that the charges preferred against the defendants in this case were misconstrued by the prosecution and were inadvertently filed against the said defendants”. Unfortunately, a case that was dead ten years is what Ochei is flaunting as current.  But even if it is current, an accused in the Nigerian criminal law jurisprudence is innocent until proven guilty.  It is now left for Ochei to choose and pick which of the Sahara Reporters publications to adopt. He must however note that no one builds anything on nothing, otherwise it will collapse.  Consequently his treatise which only betrayed his partisan and self serving inclination cannot stand.  It may be necessary at this point to let people know a little bit about Peter Mbah.

People who know him and have encountered him are highly desirous of having him as the Governor of Enugu State knowing so well that Peter surely will spearhead genuine, responsible, responsive and meaningful governance in an atmosphere of peace, harmony and freedom. Mbah is a man of honour and scholarship, very cosmopolitan in interaction, highly philanthropic with an empathy and compassion that is borderless and boundless.  He is humility and piety personified but at the same time fearless, strong willed, imaginative and strategic. Even though integrity is a scarce resource in Nigeria at all times Mbah will pass integrity test. Peter Mbah is not a noise maker and does not flaunt his strength. He is also highly educated and attended globally acclaimed Business Schools in Barcelona, Lagos Business School, University of Oxford, Stanford Business School and Harvard Business School where he garnered array of certificates. His contributions to educational development and other Philanthropic gestures are not in the public domain because of his humble and silent nature but it is not for nothing that Peter Mbah is an awardee of a Doctorate degree Honoris Causa of the Godfrey Okoye University, Emene Enugu. Contrary to the unverified and unsubstantiated comments of some people against this dynamic young man, Enugu State will certainly witness a continuation of good governance that is inclusive, fair, regardless of faith, tribe or section any one may have come from, when Peter becomes the Governor of Enugu State.

(Opinion) Ekweremadu @ 60: Born to Serve

By Uche Anichukwu

As an Igbo and a Christian, I am a very strong believer in the concepts of destiny and grace, themes that also run through the names of my children. In Igbo cosmology, for instance, Chi Ukwu/Chukwu and akaraka play very critical roles in the life of every man. Chi Ukwu, the Supreme Being, cuts a preordained path for every man and when a man finds that path and purpose, he ultimately cruises on the wings of grace fulfilling that purpose, despite the challenges on that path.

The function of grace manifests in God using ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary things as can be seen in the biblical stories of Gideon, Joseph, Esther, and David, among others.

When God sent Prophet Samuel to anoint a new king for the Israelites in the House of Jesse, Samuel almost anointed Eliab, for he said in his heart, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before Him!”

But God said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

The same applied to Jesse’s other sons, Abinadab and Shammah, who had the outward appearance of men of war and king of Israel.

Then the prophet asked Jesse if he had no other sons, to which Jesse answered, “There remains yet the youngest, and there he is, keeping the sheep.” They sent for David from the wild; and once Samuel sighted him, the Lord said: “Rise and anoint him; this is the one.”

Born of humble background, there was probably no way, in human estimation, anybody could have imagined that the transformation experienced by Mpu, Aninri, Enugu West, and many parts of Enugu State, including Nomeh Unataeze, my community, would ever come by Ekweremadu. More so when he comes from the smallest senatorial district in Enugu, the smallest local government in that small district, and the smallest community in that local government.

But as already established, God looks at the heart, especially the heart of service, while raising leaders; and this is one virtue even Ekweremadu’s fiercest critics would readily give to him. This, I believe, is the secret of his meteoric rise to power and his political staying power.

For instance, when the priest that conducted the valedictory christian service for outgoing college students asked him to make a request of God, Ekweremadu did not ask for personal riches to “pepper them”. Instead he prayed God to place him in a position that he would be able to lift his people and turn around the fortunes of his state. In return, he promised to build a church for God. Today, that church stands visibly at Mpu, along the Awgu-Ndeaboh-Mpu-Okpanku-Akaeze road attracted by Ekweremadu to wipe away the reproach, tears, and hardship that had been the lot of those communities since the days of their ancestors.

Also, that Ekweremadu was called to leadership at a very early age underscores his call to serve. Born on 12th May 1962, he was elected by his peers as the chairman of their age grade at about age nine. It has been from one service to another ever since, as he later became the President-General of Mpu town union for many years on the insistence of his people. Following the excellent services he rendered to the pressure group that advocated the creation of Aninri from Awgu LGA, the elders of Aninri approached him to take up the responsibility of pioneering the new local government area in 1997. He won the election on the platform of the United Nigeria Congress Party (UNCP) and later won the Best Council Chairman Award, as he built a local government secretariat on a virgin land at Ndeaboh when Aninri’s contemporaries were still performing groundbreaking ceremonies. But he couldn’t complete that tenure because the transition to civil rule was short-lived following the death of General Sani Sani Abacha.

Luckily for him, he lost his reelection bid to return to the council to continue his good work. He almost lost his life in the process, given the avalanche of electoral violence unleashed on him. Yes, he was lucky to have lost that reelection bid because it was God using it to in order to redirect his political trajectory to something better and bigger. Ikeoha, as he is fondly called, joined Dr. Chimaroke Nnamani team and became the Director-General of the Nnamani campaign organisation.

Post-election, he was appointed Chief of Staff by His Excellency, Dr. Chimaroke Nnamani in 1999, and later served as Secretary to the State Government in that administration all from 1999 to 2003. He was elected into the Senate in 2003 and was re-elected in 2007, 2011, 2015, and 2019.

Ikeoha served as Deputy President of the 6th, 7th, and 8th Senate, making him the longest serving presiding officer of the parliament in Nigeria’s history, with his emergence as Senate number two man in the 8th Assembly being by far the most dramatic and tension-soaked.

The Senator was elected the First Deputy Speaker of the Community Parliament in 2007 and the Speaker of the regional parliament in 2011, as he already earned the respect of critical stakeholders in the region given his outstanding performance as the chairman of the parliament’s interventions in the political situations in Niger Republic and Guinea.

He was appointed a founding member of the Malta-based International Parliament for Tolerance and Peace, IPTP in 2018. He is equally the Chief Coordinator for Africa of the International Parliamentary Congress and a member of the Paris-based Climate Parliament.

Although the primary business of a lawmaker is to make laws and carry out oversight functions on the other arms of government, Ekweremadu has taken the parliamentary function of representation a thousand notches higher. He has been silently working, touching lives, and transforming communities, including mine.

Apart from development projects like school blocks, electricity, and water projects he sponsored in his personal capacity, Ekweremadu has attracted more than 26 projects/interventions in Enugu East senatorial district, including the ongoing Ozalla-Obe-Umueze-Agbani-Akpugo-Amagunze-Ihuokpara-Ebonyi and the also ongoing Nenwe-Nomeh-Mburumbu-Nara road project with a spur to Oduma; over 15 projects in Enugu North senatorial district, including the Awka-Ugwuoba-Oji River-Nachi-Udi-9th Mile-Abor-Ukehe-Opi; more than 270 projects and interventions in Enugu West senatorial district, including the Awgu-Achi-Oji River Road, ongoing Ugwueme-Nenwenta-Nkwe-Ezere-Awgunta-Obeagu-Mgbidi-Mmaku road project, Ugwueme-Nenwenta-Ezere-Nkwe-Mgbidi-Mmaku-Awgunta road projects, and Umulumgbe-Affa-Ikedimkpa-Amaozalla-Egede-Awhum road project, just to name a few; and 31 projects outside Enugu State.

These are apart from scholarships, bursary awards, political appointments, employments, and donations to noble causes. For instance, over 4,143 undergraduates have benefitted from the Ikeoha Foundation’s Bursary Awards across the Enugu State, 106 students have received full university scholarships, going on to become successful professionals and businessmen and women, which 12,207 persons have received education through the Ikeoha Foundation Adult Programme. One can actually go on and on.

But perhaps, one of the greatest decisions that underlines Ekweremadu’s commitment to service of his people is his decision to run for the governorship of Enugu State in 2023. Many, including his friends in the international community thought he would gun for the presidency, given his rich resume. But Ekweremadu sees things differently. He believes that with Nigeria’s current state and structure, the country stands a better chance of revival and development by getting the states working.

“In the course of this journey (national and international service), I have met world leaders, business leaders, and made friends in both the private and public sectors of the national and global economies. I have had the opportunity to understand how states and nations are transformed. A good example is a city like Dubai, the UAE, which was a desert, but has now become the world most digitalised city and a global investment hub. I have an insight into the economic transformation taking place in Rwanda and Ghana.

“At this point, therefore, I believe it is time to focus on Enugu State and Enugu people without whom I would not be who and what I am today”, Ekweremadu states in manifesto, “My Agenda for Enugu”.

Explaining more during an interview with some newsmen, he added: “If you go to UAE, it is a federal state like us; like in Nigeria, they were in darkness in terms of governance; nothing was working; it was pure desert with poor people everywhere until one of those emirates just like states in Nigeria decided to think differently in Dubai. Dubai now went ahead in the aviation sector to Pakistan and hired one aircraft and started what is today the giant called the Emirates. They went into housing and started building high-rise buildings and asking the whole world to come and invest saying this is heaven.

“So, if by the grace of God we have the opportunity of doing what we intend to do in Enugu, we are hopeful that, that can inspire the rest of the states and that is how Nigeria can also do well”.

Nations in distress pray for leaders that will turn around their fortunes. Ikeoha stands out, for while others are coming with promissory notes, Ikeoha is coming with verifiable achievements and capacity. He represents a turning point for Enugu State and the South East region.

Undoubtedly, in him, Ndi Enugu now have their own Lee Kuan Yew, who moved Singapore from a Third World to the First World in a generation; Franklin D. Roosevelt, who helped the American people regain faith in themselves in the face of the Great Depression; and their own Park Chung-hee, who charted South Korean transformation from a war-torn, poor nation to one of the world’s leading economies.

As the nation, including President Mohammadu Buhari celebrates this great but silent achiever, patriot, transformational and visionary leader, it is clear that in Ikeoha Ndigbo, God has awarded Ndi Enugu a penalty in their quest for an all-round transformation and a great future. It is now up to them to bury the ball in the net or blow it over the bar, God forbid.

Happy birthday Ikeoha.

Anichukwu is Media Adviser to Ekweremadu’s