Date Published: 10/08/09
As the Anambra drama unfolds By Joe Igbokwe
All things considered, it is now clear that all the struggles we did in
Nigeria for 8 years to free Anambra State from the firm grip of political
predators, destroyers, looters, desperate and confused politicians,
clueless mercinaries and what have you are now almost in vain. The
political traders are back and this time they are more ferocious, vicious
and dangerous. After suffering colossal defeats at the election tribunals
and Appeal Courts in Enugu, the bad boys and girls in PDP are back in a
more formidable and intimidating form and this time they are sparing
nothing on their way. With nearly 50 of them in PDP picking the
governorship forms for 5 million naira each it is obvious that it is a do
or die affair to borrow from former President Obasanjo. PDP leaders in
their ridiculous and comic show of shame have been trooping to Anambra
State to perfect their diabolic and ruthless plans to capture the State by
all means. They first sent Governor Suswan of Benue State and the followed by the peevish boy Speaker of the House
of Reps, Dimeji Bankole and the political contractor called ‘Mr fix
it’ in Nigeria , Chief Tony Anenih, a notorious retired police
Commissioner known for his criminal perfection in election rigging in
Nigeria. The former SDP National Chairman who sold the mandate of his
party for a mere mess of porridge in 1993 which eventually led to the
death of the winner, Chief M.K.O Abiola and thousands of others.
Today Chief Anenih pretends that we do not know this history and throws
his weight arround as if yesterday has been forgotten. These are people
that are raising the stakes very high in Anambra. With stolen billions in
their kittyAnambra is now for sale to the highest bidder. To perfect their
plans, Professor Maurice Iwu, the INEC Chairman is working for the
scavangers using all the machinery of INEC to get PDP to power in Anambra
no matter whose ox is gored. Iwu is returning to do what he failed to do
in 2007 when he stopped Dr Chris Ngige, Mr Peter Obi and Nicholas
Ukachukwu to pave way for his political god father Mr Andy Ubah.
This time, Iwu’s target is Mr Peter Obi of APGA. Now, what is his
criminal method to perfect the criminal plans? Just get into the books and
bring out anything, any argument whether it makes sense or not to bring
back Chief Chekwas Okorie to APGA, recognise him as APGA Chairman, Court
or no court ruling on the matter, and Mr Peter Obi will be out of the way.
This is the type of job Chekwas Okorie is known for. A man with no means
of livelihood, a political contractor without conscience, a bread and
butter political turn coat, an unrepentant pretender with the character of
a clown has been on this type of hatched job for more than 10 years now
with no respite in sight. But he lacks wisdom and native intelligence to
understand that this game cannot work in Nigeria of the 21st Century. The
joke cannot stand for two solid and undisputable court decisions: the
expusion of Chief Chekwas Okorie as APGA Chairman for betraying his Party
by the Federal Capital Territory High Court on April 16 2008 still stands until otherwise
stated. This stops Okorie from parading himself as APGA Chairman and
stopped him from taking any action on behalf of the party. Again in
September 1 2009, the Federal High Court in Abuja stopped Chekwas
Okorie’s dubious attempt to hold a national convention in the name of
APGA. This is the same man Prof Maurice Iwu says he recognises as the
APGA Chairman. This cannot happen here in Nigeria and a million Professor
Iwu cannot do that. Proffessor Iwu has personalised a national
institution called INEC and let us see how he will succeed. He endangered
our hard-earned democracy in 2007 and the international community has
said so, the election tribunals and Appeal Courts have said so, the
Supreme Court ruling on the presidential elections in the ratio of 4:3
affirmed it. Prof Iwu must now know that a man who goes to the market to
buy basket knows it cannot be used to store water. His attempt to stop Mr Peter Obi is simply a basket case!
Enter Prof Charles Soludo. Forget all the noise going on in Anambra State.
Forget about the so-called 47 PDP candidates seeking to rule Anambra
State. The fight is for these three groups; Mr Chris Ubah/Ibeto group, the
Soludo group and Mr Andy Ubah group led by Prof Maurice Iwu. We know those
fighting for Soludo. We know those fighting for Andy Ubah. I cannot tell
the candidate Mr Cletus Ibeto and Chief Chris Ubah are fighting for.
But who is professor Soludo? Professor Soludo is the immediate former
Governor of CBN. During his tenure he collapsed Nigerian banks into 25
banks; and compelled them to raise their capital base to 25 billion Naira
each. They all went to the public to raise the money and they all
succeded. I remember I was one of the people that praised Soludo for this
feat. But after consolidation, something went wrong. First, the banks used
tricks to rob the people of their hard-earned money via the heavily
manipulated stock market. After the sales, the manipulators brought the
stocks prizes down using financial meltdown as an excuse. Secondary, the
banks CEOs started spending the peoples’ money as if it is their money.
Meat sellers money, fish sellers money, petty traders money, labourers
money etc were given to friends and cronies even without collaterals.
Mansions were built all over the place in Nigeria. The CEOs did not stop
there, they invested the peoples’
money in properties in Europe, America, Dubai, and South Africa and yet
Soludo did not see this. To reward Soludo and to keep their loot,
billions were put together to fight for Soludo to get a second term as
CBN Governor. The project failed because President Yar’Adua could not
believe his ears and eyes where the billions for the campaigns came from.
At a time the President was said to have asked: where are all this
billions coming from? Now let me provide the answer.
The billions came from the banks CEOs who worked themselves to bones for
Soludo to remain so that the protection will continue. But the new CBN
boss Mr Lamido Sanusi has exposed them all. Yes Soludo worked hard but his
love for money, good things of life and kola money from the banks CEOs has
rendered his good works almost useless. Untill we get the details of what
happened in the banks during Soludo’s tenure as CBN Governor, his bid to
rule Anambra State will be an exercuse in futility. Until Soludo tells us
why he did not see the rot in the banking industry during his tenure, his
attempt to become the governor of Anambra State remains an insult to the
collective psyche and intelligence of Nigerians. Until Soludo explains to
us why the banks books are full of lies and blatant lies to decieve the
public, his ambition to rule Anambra State will remain a tall one. Until
Soludo tells us where the billions he is throwing arround came from, he
must be told that Nigerians are no fools. Until Soludo tells us how much he used
to hire the nation’s foremost traitor, Chief Tony Anenih to come and
rig him to power in Anambra, this project cannot fly.
Anambra 2010 will tell us how 2011 will be. From the signals, we are
getting, Prof Iwu has taken sides in Anambra matter and therefore we
cannot trust him with that election in 2010 talkless of 2011.
President Umaru Yar’Adua has done wonderfully well with his amnesty deal
with militants in the Niger Delta and I pray to God fervently that the
project will be brought to a logical conclusion soonest. It is the most
robust, creative and very intelligent political masterstroke ever
performed by any known President in Nigeria living or dead. In the name of
God, I pray that President Yar’Adua succeeds and he will go down in the
history of Nigeria as a President who saw civil war coming and cleverly
avoided it. President Yar’Adua should look back to the history of
Nigeria, the events of 1966 to 1970, the June 12 crisis, the riggings in
1999, 2003 and 2007, the response from the international community,
several decisions of the election tribunals and Appeal Courts, the
killings and lootings in the land, the bad names these have brought to
Nigeria and take the honest and only wise option by sacking Professor
Maurice Iwu now. This is the way to tell the world that we are serious about rebranding our image. This country is
bigger than anybody. We must set greed aside and work for the overall
interest of Nigerians. Iwu is heating up the polity for personal gains
and the President must stop the mess now.
If the truth must be told, no election will take place in Anambra State
without Mr Peter Obi of APGA participating. Mr. Peter Obi has put his life
on the line to salvage and rescue Anambra from bandits and mercinaries. He
is too big to be sacrificed because of a political rascal and cheat called
Chekwas Okorie. Please tell it to the North, East, West and South that
elections in Anambra State without Mr Peter Obi is non event, a nullity, a
void, unacceptable, it is of zero consequence, and without any effect.
A dummy is being sold to the world that Mr Peter Obi is a failure but this
is a lie from the pit of hell, a tale told by idiots, full of sounds and
fury signifying nothing, the biggest joke of the century, a loquacity that
tells you nothing but superfluity of nothingness. Mr Peter is one of the
finest souls in the political landscape, one of the most successful
businessmen in Nigeria, one of the strongest person I know and one of the
most courageous politicians in the anals of Nigeria. Even if Mr Peter Obi
has not achieved anything in Anambra State (I know he has recorded
monumental achievements) the facts that he fought the election riggers in
Anambra State to stand still, rescued our State, and totally humiliated
and hunbled those who criminally conspired to illegally impeach him in
2006, and those who live by stealing from the State. Good people of
Anambra State must understand this game, they must understand the politics
of Anambra State they must understand the forces at play. Leadership goes beyond building roads,
providing water, and paying salaries. Leadership is being responsive,
responsible, accountable, sincere, and honest and having character,
honour, intergrity, courage, content, culture and colour. Mr Peter Obi
possesses all this, politics or no politics.
Febuary 6 2010 Governorship elections in Anambra State must be one man one
vote thing and I pity any Party that will try to bastardize the electoral
process. The candidates must be allowed to test their popularity and the
election must be won and lost in a free and fair contest. Anambra 2010
remains a foretaste of what 2011 will be and we wait as the drama unfolds.
Joe Igbokwe
Lagos
