Elliot Ugochukwu-Uko
Not long ago, just after the rearrest of Nnamdi, our leaders gathered at the Enugu Government house and affirmed their belief in one Nigeria.
I commented that they would have gone a step further to present the truth :That the suffocating and unprogressive unitary structure, offensive and sickening dichotomy, impunity, and nepotism, coupled with the refusal to invite and engage the agitators in order to note their grievances, would have been a more sincere response.
As usual, they didn’t like my presentation of the truth.
Governor Dave Umahi, in a telephone conversation, insisted that they added restructuring of the country to their communique, I told him he knew they didn’t mention restructuring. In one breath, he angrily said I was blind and couldn’t see it, and in another breath, he told me that he isn’t a fan of restructuring, because he believes, restructuring wouldn’t benefit his state.
The age old format of political leaders, making decisions along their whims, has done irreparable damage to the psyche of Ndigbo and to the relationship between the masses and their leaders.
Leaders, choosing self serving routes as opposed to group interest, has remained the bane of post civil war Igboland.
Blind pursuit for individual advancement and personal accommodation, made silence and tolerance of this strange unhelpful format, acceptable over time.
Seducing voices that would have complained, with certain offers, and the general post civil war mentality of placing personal interest above group interest, helped in no small measure to establish the new normal, as the way things are done.
Nobody was willing to take the risk of insisting that the right thing be done the right way. So group interest suffered, as the leaders, developed strategies of rail-roading every one into line with every of their decisions.
Healthy decisions and self serving decisions were deliberately twisted to look like the same stuff.
Raising your voice in descent could be very risky. Soon, it became, if you can’t beat them, join them.
The land lost its soul, self serving choices, could no longer be opposed or challenged. The cost of standing up to them was enormous.
Moreover, the leaders would take offense, and they had the resources and the muscle to blackmail anyone they choose to destroy.
So keeping mute was accepted as the “wise” thing to do.
Everyone jostled for his needs. The culture of me, myself and I, reigned. Things gradually turned from bad to worse.
Horrible infrastructure, beaten-down schools, unemployment, and steady migration to the North and the West of Nigeria, became the accepted way of life of the people of the region.
Either Isolo or Ikeja industrial estate in Lagos, each housed more industries and job opportunities than the entire South East. Aside Onitsha, Aba and now Nnewi, folks of the region, survived and depended on diaspora remittances.
Terrible roads, epileptic power supply and recent reality of kidnapping and agitations, defined the image of the region.
Political leaders, ensconced in the comfort of the state houses, meditating on their next political aspirations, seemed to live in a different world.
Their decisions, hardly reflective of the stark reality of the zone, nor the excruciating frustrations of the masses.
Activism of any sort, turned very risky venture.
Because the elite, opinion leaders and other influential members of the society, need assistance and care of the political leaders, it becomes almost impossible to ever criticise the leaders.
Raising your voice in criticism, becomes a mortal sin, as the leaders took decisions that may not always encompass or reflect the genuine need of the masses.
Overtime, these state of affairs, concretized into the people of the region’s new way of life.
It became accepted tradition, that self serving decisions could be gotten away with, because nobody would be crazy enough to challenge the absurdities, that have been unconsciously condoned and accepted over time.
The political class and the elite club would form a cabal and take any decision whatsoever that suited their fancy, because they know, nobody would complain. And the beat goes on.
Carpet baggers, compradors, imposed vassals and quislings of all shades strutted about the landscape in cocky strides, as the owners of the universe. The masses were helpless, hurt but marooned. They were unimportant in the equation.
Strange and quite nauseating developments that wouldn’t be accepted in other regions happened in Igboland time and again and nobody complained.
One time, a sitting Governor was kidnapped, government buildings burnt down, and nothing happened. Aside the fact that the legendary Chinua Achebe, in utter disgust, mentioned the absurdity as one of his reasons for turning down national honours.
Crazy, unacceptable humiliating conditions were tolerated, nothing happened because nobody was willing to risk their necks.
Cabals did as they wished, drove around in bullet proof SUVs and Security escorts.
The country serially disrespected the orient. They lost a war and they can hardly speak with one voice. That was the blackmail.
But this painful situation was made possible because, the comfortable elite club, never imagined that the hapless masses reeling under this abusive conditions, could ever, ever organise themselves and form a critical mass that could stand up to them.
That is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
Subconsciously at the back of their minds, the elite believed that even if such a critical mass arose to challenge the status quo, that they would always be able to subdue and control the uprising either through coercion or through financial inducements, which they had effectively deployed to sustain the status quo for decades.
They weren’t bothered. They were so sure that nothing could rock the boat.
The complacency and the boldness in embarking on outrightly self serving decisions, as opposed to articulating and promoting group interest, was established as a new way of life, simply because nobody complained.
When the agitation began to brew, they couldn’t discern the eventual direction. They had already gotten used to having their way without opposition from any quarters.
For example, when Ohanaeze Ndigbo gathered at the palace of Abilikete of Umunze, Igwe M.N. Ugochukwu, forty years ago, and endorsed all the policies of the Shehu Shagari NPN central government, while ridiculing the NPP controlled governments of old Anambra and Imo states, they knew they weren’t representing Ndigbo.
They knew that over ninety percent of Ndigbo stood solidly behind Zik’s NPP. They knew that they were sucking up to the central government for self serving ends. They knew that nobody would challenge them or stand up to them. They knew they were in the terrible minority, but they also knew that the central government would be happy with their hustle and reward them.
E don tey wey this problem start.
When, Eze Onuegwu Nwoke and co jump into the airplane of one Anambra born government contractor and landed in Aso rock as Ohanaeze delegation twenty five years ago and assured General Abacha that Ndigbo were solidly behind him, they knew they weren’t representing Ndigbo, they knew their side hustle was designed to grease their palms as they take advantage of General Abacha’s battle with NADECO to embark on self serving trip in the name of Ohanaeze Ndigbo. But they also knew that there was no critical mass in Igboland to challenge their self serving decisions and solidarity visit to Abacha.
When Igbo leaders invited and hosted President Buhari four years ago, assured him that operation python dance has finally crushed the agitation, and honoured him with a chieftaincy title in Ebonyi state, they knew that ninety percent of Ndigbo were appalled and confounded. They knew that the masses were shocked at the celebration of a man who tagged them five percenters, but they also knew that they have successfully pulled this stunt since 1970.
They weren’t bothered.
Suddenly the inability of the political leaders to rein in the Monday shutdowns, finally exposed the truth. The masses have had it upto their nostrils and they are saying so in no uncertain terms, “we identify with the agitators”.
It has become impossible to continue to manipulate the people.
End of the road.
This hardened post civil war gambit of substituting cabal’s interest for the masses’ interest, seems to have arrived at a cul de sac.
The final bus stop.
Ignoring the agitators for 22 years, has deeply hurt the aggrieved masses to the point that they have resolved to make their point for the world to note. The numerous arrogant mistakes of the elite club seem to have finally and forcefully changed the dynamics.
1 Since 1999, the agitation raged, growing from a mild storm to a devastating cyclone, these folks obstinately refused to invite and engage the aggrieved youngsters to note their grievances, rather they tagged them miscreants.
2 The silence at the brutal application of lethal force as the only response. Every plea that adopting lethal force as the only response could backfire, was dutifully ignored. Instead they proscribed and tagged them terrorists.
3 The assumption that the later day leadership of the agitators would be easily compromised as the earlier leader, who fell in love with property development and acquisition, and worked very well with the political class who became willing donors to his appeal for funds to build memorial libraries and accommodation for ex Biafran soldiers etc. These derailment blinded every one to the great need of addressing the underlying frustrations driving the restiveness.
The political class erroneously believed the storm was over.
4 Stubbornly rejecting all entreaties to dialogue with the agitators in order to stave off difficult days ahead, and trusting that the central government will definitely crush the agitation instead.
5 Preferring blackmailing the activists who insistently pleaded they engage the agitators in time, before the agitation overwhelmed the land. Choosing instead to brand him the mentor of the agitators and turning Security agencies on him instead.
6 Waiting until Monday sit-at-home shutdowns, completely proved to the world that they have lost control of the region, before finally bracing up to raise their voices in support of addressing the underlying causes of the agitation. Something they would have done years ago. Waiting for 22 years the agitation raged, was damaging.
7 Still dilly-dalliying on the urgent and great need to build synergy with the South West, Niger Delta and the Middle Belt, to present the only viable roadmap to closure: Reconstructing the structure of the country, engaging the agitators and enthroning level playing field for all, through power devolution and true federalism.
8 Understanding the importance of rejecting self serving decisions and adopting a new template of placing group interest above cabal interest because the people are woke now. It is not impossible to heal the land, but truth must replace manipulation and group interest must supersede self serving decisions.
The cost and damage these avoidable mistakes wrecked on our consciousness will resonate for a while, but healing is possible if we remove hubris and conceit.
The damage done by enthroning and condoning self serving decisions, for too long, instead of placing group interest above all, is the meat of the matter. It is certainly not enough to suddenly find your voice for the very first time in 22 years and finally admit the need to address the root cause of the agitation.
Sincerely pushing for resolution and closure, should be the way to go.
Pretence or living in denial will not help one bit.
Truth is usually inconvenient and unpleasant.
To be CONTINUED.
