* Orji





By Tony Icheku, Abuja

Ahead 2023, some are not just overheating the polity, they are starting bushfires, they may not be able to quench. And they are elders.  An Igbo proverb reminds us that: 'Okenye anaghị anọ n'ụlọ ewu amụọ n'eriri/ọgbịrị', or an elder does not sit at home and watch a goat in labour be delivered while tied to a stake.

But it is the eight wonder of politics that certain Abian elders are doing exactly that. They know themselves: Hon Cosmos Ndukwe; Don Ubani, Eze Chimkamnayo and Reagan Ufomba, these foursome are now holding court as  experts in  interpreting the constitutional  Executive-Legislature relationship.

It would have been a worthwhile quest if their agenda was sincere, in the interest of Abians and meant to set wrongs aright. Alas, they are fighting for their tummy

Concocting an argument from a faulty premise, the Four want the Speaker, House of Assembly, Hon Chinedum Orji to resign. His offence?  He visited former governor of the State, and current Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu

Beyond the visit, Eze Chikamnayo  alleged that Hon Orji told Sen Kalu: “…Forget about political platform, there is a leadership vacuum in Abia State…you are the authentic leader, come back and lead us”

This innocous statement which should have been allowed to fade away in our dynamic political  discourse have been made a mountain by these quartet, and  others creeping up from their dark and hidden holes with forked tongues ready for mischief.

These Foursome have yet to show which specific sections of  the 1999 Nigerian Constitution as amended Hon Chinedum Orji flouted.

These quartet who belong to the  Any Government In Power, AGIP tribe of politicians are obviously  fishing for trouble. They are setting the stage for a storm going by the series of appeasements they demand of  Hon Orji.

These quartet pretend ignorance that there exists neither a written code nor  convention stipulating that  the Speaker of the House of Assembly must live in the shadow of the State Governor,  conforming to his whims and caprices

In our setting, determinants of  harmony in Speaker/Governor  relationship include mutual respect, adherence to Principles of Separation of Power and dialogue. The two offices under our  democratic setting compliment each other.

Having said that, one is not unmindful that the furious four: Ndukwe, Ubani, Ufomba and Chikamnayo are simply goading Governor Okezie Ikpeazu to enter a dicy dance of rancor, acrimony and brawling with the legislature.

As they do, let them also educate him of the cost in terms of finance - because certainly as buccanneers, they will demand for money for xyz project. Let them remind him too of  loss in valuable manhours and overall bitterness in the polity.

Let these mercenaries, angels from hell, tell Gov Ikpeazu about former  President Olusegun Obasanjo; His woes, frustration and embarrassment in his first term, as he fought tooth and nail, unsuccessfully,  to impeach,  then Speaker, Hon Garba Na'Abba. Na'abba was not just made of sterner stuff, he was ready for battle.  Like Na'Abba, Chinedum Orji may prove a tough nut to crack, let these political jobbers also tell Gov Ikpeazu so.

The Four are masking the fact that the Speaker and Governor must not enjoy a cordial relationship to co-exist. The constitution already fixed that.   Indeed, it is Egbe bere, ugo bere, nke si ibeya ebele, ka nku kwaya, says an Igbo proverb, meaning let the eagle perch, and let the hawk perch, the one that says the other should not perch, let its wings be broken.

 In President Muhammadu Buhari's first term, Bukola Saraki, against party directives emerged as the Senate President. 'It is the senators that determine who they want to lead them, not party', he declared. As President of the Senate, his relationship with  Buhari was similar to that of  a cat and  mouse, but they co-existed. Such is the beauty of democracy. Both were of the same APC

Some pertinent questions here would shade more light on this issue. Are the two offices, governor and leadership one and the same thing? Definitely not. A governor is an elected  executive, in our instance of a state, for a fixed term.

And  leadership?  Leadership, pure and simple is influence wielding. An abstract reality.

Leadership is vision that draws seekers. Charisma that magnetises admirers.  Mentorhip that mobilises mentees. A leader holds no office, rather enlists followership. Leaders are salesmen or women who motivates and endows followership to a higher cause.

Leaders are never elected. Followership endorses leadership. Leading is a process,   emotional maturity nurtured by experience, vision seen beyond the ordinary. Leaders are  innovative and result oriented. They are hope builders

From the foregoing, can we therefore say a leadership vacuum exists in Abia? It is not a tough question. One only needs to walk through the streets of Umuahia or Aba to answer this question. The absolute stagnancy in the affairs of Abia says it all. The despondency, the hopelessness, the reign of anarchy on our streets, the lack of sense of duty among political appointees. Take Ndukwe for example, who for six months has been renovating Isi Gate, Umuahia for six months. A project that could be completed in a week.

Hon Orji only exercised his fundamental basic  rights:  freedom of association, and freedom of expression. Too bad if some feel offended by his axiomatic submissions. If he had breached any protocol, let members of Abia House of Assembly call him out, certainly not the likes of Cosmos Ndukwe; Don Ubani; Eze Chimkamnayo and Reagan Ufomba, honourable gentlemen all!

These Four - AGIP politicians -  are part and parcel of the rot in Abia. It is about them and others carpetbaggers in the corridors of power that  the American writer and journalist wrote: "Look at our city government in the hands of the ignorant and carpet baggers".  Let them know that this latest 419 project is DOA - Dead On Arrival!