Martin Niemöller, a prominent Protestant pastor and an outspoken critic of Adolf Hitler who spent the last seven years of Nazi rule in concentration camps, gave the world this famous quote:
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First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.
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Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.
Who can speak for Imo state citizens now? Nobody…. Just nobody!
The once powerful Catholic Church has been silenced. The labour union has been brow beaten. This was after the emperor reduced the salaries of its members to seventy five and fifty percent respectively, cut their working days from the traditional five to three and threatened to convert the arrears of their unpaid salaries into projects if their whining continues. Exasperated, exhausted and tired, some of its members are now contemplating whether to swallow the emperor’s bait of forty percent pay off of their total salaries arrears. The usually vociferous Imo State University students are still recovering from a prolonged lockout. The state’s opposition party, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP is in disarray, disorganised and unable to get its house in order, with each of its five factions claiming supremacy. The state’s APC is under the emperor’s firm control. Seasoned Imo politicians, Sen. Chris Anyanwu, Arthur Nzeribe, Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, Ifeanyi Araraume, Emmanuel Iheanacho, Emeka Ihedioha, Ikedi Ohakim et al, have all been cowed down, gone into hiding or silenced for good, which goes to support the emperor’s boast that he has caged all Imo politicians. Gone are the frequent press releases by human right organisations about human rights abuses when former governor Ohakim was in power. Imo State House of Assembly, which could win an award as the best rubberstamp legislature in the world, is perpetually on recess. The emperor demoted its Speaker to the humiliating post of the Chairman of the Motor Park Touts – sorry, Task Force – turned his Deputy and other legislators into errand boys, who report directly to him while collecting their salaries both as staff of the executive and legislature, which gives new meaning to the separation of powers clause. The Nigerian Bar Association, known for mounting spirited legal defence against any abuse of powers, has been humbled. Imo State press known for its intrepidity has been muzzled. To burnish his profile for a possible presidential run, the emperor first divided the state Nigerian Union of Journalists, NUJ, later humiliated it when it bribed its National Correspondent’s chapter with a furnished office flat and a Hummer bus.
Traditional Rulers, known for their outspokenness, are now living and ruling with fear. Fear of being dethroned and their staff of office taken away or have their autonomous communities balkanised. The power and influence which these Ezes wielded in the past have been whittled down by the emperor. Eze Njemanze of Owerri Nchi Ise community watched as the emperor balkanised his kingdom into five autonomous communities, setting in frustration which arguably led to his eventual demise. How about the Eke Ukwu market, Owerri? The gods did not intervene, after all, despite all the huge, repeated sacrifices and incantations to forestall its relocation. The emperor is still here and soldiering on.
So, who will speak for Imo now? Nobody. None!
Perhaps, only the market women and widows! Yes, the Oru Owerri women and widows. They are the only MEN standing in Imo now! All the men have gone into hiding.
In 2010, I wrote in the much circulated article entitled, “Imo State Is On A Comatose Bed” that revealed how the then Governor Ikedi Ohakim lost direction in governing Imo. Many opined that that write-up was the last nail that closed the coffin of the Ohakim government, while some accused me of being a paid goon to the then governorship candidate, Owelle Rochas Okorocha. But those who have followed my antecedent in journalism since 1975 stood by me and voted Ohakim out. It was a good riddance to bad rubbish. Ohakim’s rule was unquestionably a period of unmitigated disaster and unbridled malversation for Imo.
Since Owelle Rochas Okorocha became the governor of Imo State, I have written two articles which paid glowing tributes for his indefatigable efforts to change the face of Imo. He is now in his second term but regrettably what we are seeing today is the exact opposite of what we saw in his first term. Except for the demolition of houses and structures in Owerri to make way for the expansion of some roads, nothing is going on in this second term. Being of the same of Orlu senatorial zone with the governor, many would expect me to be writing only encomiums and tributes about the governor. But that is not my kind of journalism.
Journalism is history in a hurry. Since today’s news and write-ups will eventually become tomorrow’s history, journalists are expected to be as objective as possible in their reporting. As the watchdog of the society, they should commend leaders when they do well and hold their feet to fire to insure that they fulfill their campaign promises. Journalists must strive tell the truth to the power no matter whose ox is gored and be able to pinpoint when things are not going well in any given society. Attorney Mike Ahamba (SAN) once told me when I was a reporter with the NTA News, that being a good journalist is one thing but being a courageous one is another, because one can be a good journalist, but lack the courage to present such facts. My modus operandi is to report truth and nothing but the truth. What you are reading is simply the naked truth about the state of Imo State today.
After four years of a “Do nothing” government of Ikedi Ohakim, Imo voters yearned for a change. They wanted anybody but Ohakim. They found that in the person of Anayo Rochas Okorocha a.k.a. Owelle. The euphoria that greeted his arrival was ubiquitous and incredible. His election was a breath of fresh air. The governor quickly capitalised on that rhapsody to coin the catchy phrase of “My People, My People,” to which the obviously excited citizens and enthusiastic admirers responded, “My Governor, My Governor”. The interaction was ecstatic. He was very popular. But that was then. Today, that greeting appears to have gathered dust and only good for the history books. The governor’s approval rating has tanked. His magical greeting to people who have not received many years of salary or are finding it hard to eke out a living is now returned with, “Our Salary, Our Salary” and “Maltreating My People”. The virtually frustrated governor once returned this mockery with, “Nne unu”, “Nne unu” meaning “Your Mama”, “Your Mama” to the shock and disapproval of many distinguished guests who gathered at one of his public outings in Nkwerre Local Government Area.
Here’s a tip of how far the governor’s rating has gone down the drain. In the past, when his convoy breezed through Orlu town on his way to his village, Ogboko, many abandoned all they were doing and ran out to the street to cheer him, “Owelle! Owelle! Owelle!” The feeling was indeed palpable and electric. But early last month, when the governor of Enugu State passed through Orlu, many sat tight on their seats, cursing, spitting spittle, yelling and shouting unprintable vitriol at the governor only to sigh when they found out that the convoy was that of Enugu State Governor and not Okorocha. How did the relationship between the governor and Imo people, go so sour? Many who voted for Okoroacha and even risked their lives to defend their votes for him now hate him with passion. It appears the governor has squandered his political capital and the list of his haters grows by the day.
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More troubling is that Imo, once a model state, is on the spiral, downward trend but unlike in the days of Ohakim when people spoke out, this time, seasoned and unseasoned politicians, renowned critics, analysts, lowly and highly placed, etc, appear to have been doused with a spraycan of fear and are enduring everything with a high dose of stoicism. Only the market women, precisely Oru Owerri market women and widows, are standing and speaking for Imo today! All the MEN have gone into hiding or are scared. They are not willing to speak up against the mess that the governor has created for fear of retribution. They forget that “The man dies in all who keeps silent in the face of tyranny,” as written by Wole Soyinka in his masterpiece prison notes, The Man Died or that “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter,” as Martin Luther King, Jr., advised and that “The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing,” as Edmund Burke added.
Imo under siege
Imo is clearly under siege. The governor has assumed a larger than life image of an emperor. Like a runaway train, he is unstoppable. He appears to have lost his way in the woods. He is accountable to no one. He listens to no one and takes no advice. His exasperated aides confessed that instead of wasting their precious time giving him advice that he will not take, they prefer to mimic his sartorial elegance (?) of hanging Scarves and Mufflers on their suits as a mark of false obeisance if only to keep their jobs even though they know that the emperor has no clothes.
How powerful is this emperor? A close but anonymous confidant of the governor once confided in me how the governor came upon a project after scribbling something, an idea on the ground with his fingers. “Do it that way, that’s what I want and that’s how I want it done,” he once told a contractor and pronto, the contract was signed, sealed and ready to go. No professionalism. No protocols. No due process. No provision in the budget. No bill to the house. No more bureaucracy. “I don’t believe in the use of files or due process. Due process is due corruption; whenever I wake up, I move where my mind directs me,” he once bragged. The governor is now in charge of everything. He is the only signatory to the state’s Internally Generated Revenue, IGR. He hires and fires. In fact, he has fired, changed and recycled more employees than any other governor that ever ruled Imo. He is the boss, he is the conceiver, he is the controller, he is the planner and he is the executor. No commissioner dares sign a contract of more than N20,000 without getting his approval. He does things his own way. It’s his way or highway! The governor has become the Igbo’s proverbial Eze onye agwalam… the King that takes no advice. He awards and cancels contracts at will. There is no advertisement for any contract or Tender Board. The only contractor working in Imo today is, “ROCHAS IS WORKING” sign.
Who dares challenge him or say a word? Nobody. Perhaps, only the market women!
Which governor in Nigeria can declare a state public holiday for his daughter’s wedding? Only, the emperor! Which governor spent N600,000,000 to decorate Imo with buntings during the Christmas while the masses starve and suffer? The emperor! Which governor personally supervised the demolition of a home owned by his political opponent? The emperor! Which governor appointed his wife, who has no experience on security or hostage negotiations, as the Chairman of the State Committee on Amnesty? Only the emperor!
If former Governor Ohakim did half of what Rochas is doing today in Imo, he would be roasted like corn on the street. Let’s take a look. The governor created a scene during the celebration of the former Vice President Alex Ekwueme’s birthday, when he punched the Protocol Officer of the Enugu State Government, because a seat arrangement did not favour him. He once ordered his guards to shoot Senator Chris Anyanwu due to a minor traffic scuffle. Yes, Ohakim allegedly flogged a Catholic Priest, Eustace Okorie, and manhandled Citizen Samuelson Ikenna Iwuoha, an unrelenting social critic, but Governor Okorocha and his supporters have done far worse than what his predecessor did. His security men and women have manhandled more elected officials and ordinary citizens than that of Ohakim. They destroyed a podium set up for a gubernatorial election debate between him and his opponents and manhandled the officiating Catholic Priests … and got away with it.
Just recently, he wrestled a gun from his Orderly and shot at a demonstrator who closed in on him during the demolition of buildings and structures at Orji area of Owerri. If not for the quick intervention of his fast-thinking Orderly, who held up his hand to redirect the fusillade, there would have been bloodshed. The governor drives himself around town with or without his security details and one may add, very uncouth and rough to other road users when he drives. When he is on the wheel, he punches any erring driver who blocks his way and spoils for a fight.
One Monday morning, yours sincerely was on a news assignment along Orlu road and the governor was breezing back to Owerri after a weekend retreat in his village. In this day and age when every Dick, Tom and Harry have sirens fitted in their cars, I nevertheless obeyed the ceaseless blaring of his convoy’s siren and respectfully pulled over by the roadside, waiting for the emperor to pass. But my obedience was not enough. His convoy of power-hungry, gun-trotting policemen and stern-looking soldiers took a painful swipe on me as they passed with such a Sputnik speed. In the process, they broke my gold plaited $2,000 Fred Lunnete frame and eyeglasses. To say that the cane was very painful is to underestimate my agony and misery. The last time I was flogged this painfully was in my primary school days. Many people have far worse tales to tell about their nightmarish experiences in the hands of this emperor and his hangers on.
This emperor is getting away with murder. When the Catholic clergy took a potshot over some of his misconceived and draconian policies, he rebuked them, to mind their pulpits and leave politics for politicians. Not done with reprimanding them, he went after their offertory plate. Knowing that Owerri has a good number of Catholics, he bulldozed the State Library built by the then East Central State in 1976 and erected a non-denominational “Government Chapel” aimed at cutting down on the Catholic congregation and offertory. This was before he issued a N50 million dud cheque to the same Catholic Church. In his 2013 homily, outspoken Archbishop Obinna of Owerri Catholic Diocese told Okorocha pointblank that his government was the most corrupt since Imo State was created.
It is not the outrageous things that Governor Okorocha does that are troubling to many, it is how he responds to them afterward. At least, his predecessor, Ohakim, had some remorse and had directly or indirectly apologised for some of his shortcomings, wrongdoings and ineptitude. Not so with Rochas! He is not fazed. Remorse and apology are two words that are not in his dictionary. Like USA President-elect, Donald Trump, he does not only like controversy; he revels in it. He once berated Sen. Chris Anyanwu, a wife and a mother, in public, calling her names unprintable.
As if to worsen his already battered image in the media cum public, the governor appointed a full time newspaper publisher as his Chief Press Secretary, CPS. His CPS, Sam Onwuemeodo, who doubles as his CPS job with his newspaper publication, could easily win an award as the worst Press Secretary any governor could have. Not only that he hardly knows the job of selling the governor to the press, he is as controversial as the man he serves. Diminutive, short and truculent, he makes up for what he lost in height and weight with his unnecessary airs and graces, can and fopperies, arrogance and pomposity all mixed together. He has not seen a controversy that he did not relish. Instead of building bridges and good relationship with his colleagues, he shortchanges them.
Expectedly, he has stepped on many toes. He is currently facing a libel suit filed by a Senior Advocate of Nigeria. He hardly gets along with the media and avoids the Nigerian Union of Journalists, NUJ Press Centre, like a plague. Unlike his predecessors, his idea of press secretaryship is to churn out press releases rather than have a press conference with journalists.
Once, this writer went to introduce my Government House Correspondent to him. On entering his office, he took my letter of introduction and disrespectfully threw it into his “Keep in View” files. With no greetings, no courtesy, no protocols, and no exchange of banters even as colleagues, he told us blandly and pompously that we have to wait for the emperor’s approval before my correspondent could start. Really? One year later, we are still waiting patiently for that governor’s approval. I covered former civilian and military governors of Imo State, from Commander Ndubuisi Kanu, Commander Adekunle Lawal, Col. Sunday Adenihu, to Chief Samuel Mbakwe, etc., I can’t recall anytime that NTA sent a letter to these governors to introduce me or anyone as their Government House correspondent. How times have changed with our new CPS!
•Watch out tomorrow for Part 2 of this insightful article. McLord Obioha, a veteran journalist, is the publisher of Igbolive.com. Photo shows Governor Okorocha.
