By Onyebuchi Emenaka
When Senator Orji Uzor Kalu was elected first Civilian Governor of the current Abia State in 1999, history and posterity placed him in a critical position to determine several issues.
One of the issues that posterity placed in his hands was the interpretation of the power equation in Abia State, or, put differently, the interpretation of the Abia Charter of Equity.
As Governor then, OUK knew and understood clearly the make up of Abia State. He knew that Abia may have been administratively and politically divided into three Senatorial Districts like every other state in Nigeria, the reality is that Abia has two main groups of people – the old Aba Division and the old Bende Division. This is beyond any arguments.
He also understood clearly that unlike other states in Nigeria, the two main blocs in Abia jointly own the three Senatorial Districts in the State, with each of the blocs owning one and half Senatorial Districts.
OUK knew and still knows that while Old Bende owns the entire Abia North District and one half of Abia Central, the old Aba owns the entire Abia South and the other half of Abia Central. In other words, Abia Central Senatorial District is owned equally by both the old Bende and old Aba with each of them controlling 3 LGAs each.
This is why the Senatorial seat of Abia Central oscillates equally between the two blocs without any misunderstandings at all.
So, when OUK was to hand over to a new administration in 2007, after his 2 tenures, he was faced with a big decision, namely, WHICH OF THE TWO BLOCS IN ABIA SHOULD SUCCEED ME? OLD BENDE OR OLD ABA?
It was a fundamental question which needed a pragmatic answer. This is because the founding fathers of Abia State envisaged a situation where no part of the State will hold on to power for too long to the exclusion of the other.
Therefore, in seeking to find an answer to the question of which side of the State will produce his successor, OUK had two clear options. First to allow another Old Bende person to succeed him or to ensure the emergence of a successor from the old Aba.
Please note that any of the options he chose was correct but had clear consequences.
First, if he had chosen a successor from the old Aba which meant someone from either Abia South Senatorial District or the Ngwa half of Abia Central, he would have cemented a clear and definite pattern of power shift in Abia State, meaning that each of the two main blocs will hold power for 8 years and hand over to the other bloc.
Secondly, if he chose a successor from Old Bende, that is, from the Old Bende part of Abia Central, he would be correct also but would have clearly defined power shift in Abia to mean that each of the two blocs will hold power for 2 consecutive terms of 16 years each.
The demarcation was crystal clear and OUK understood this clearly in 2007.
He chose a successor from Old Bende, namely, Senator TA Orji from Umuahia North LGA of old Bende extraction. He was correct by so doing. He had the prerogative and discretion, and exercised it in the way he thought best.
When Senator TA Orji completed his two tenures of 8 years, he did the right thing by ensuring the emergence of a successor from the old Aba Zone, and in particular, from Abia South Senatorial District. That was the start of the 16 year turn of the old Aba Bloc, just like the old Bende bloc did.
The present clamor that power should jump the other half of Abia Central and go to Abia North is disingenuous and self serving. It seeks to entrench inequity and inequality in the power equation in Abia State.
The same people who are vociferously pushing this unjust clamor kept mum when power moved from Abia North which is old Bende to the Old Bende half of Abia Central.
Have you wondered why OUK has been silent on this issue? He knows the truth. He set this template and cannot come out to deny it.
God willing, the next Governor of Abia State will come from the Umunneato half of Abia Central Senatorial District and by so doing, a permanent power equation in Abia State would have been cemented, namely OLD BENDE- (ABIA NORTH AND HALF OF ABIA CENTRAL, 16 YEARS OF 8 YEARS EACH. OLD ABA- ABIA SOUTH AND HALF OF ABIA CENTRAL, 16 YEARS OF 8 YEARS EACH)
That is the real meaning of Equity and Justice.
