Date Published: 01/12/10
Popularity through Blackmailing: The Uba, Iwuoha antics By Okechukwu Nwadike
It was one of the greatest political perambulators of the ancient days, Mysterus who developed among other things, 15 possible ways an individual can make himself popular.
Although blackmailing as an art was not mentioned in Mysterus 15 Possible Points to Popularity, the use of the art was craftily captured in his explanation of the point - Terrorism which was one of the possible ways of becoming popular. Osama Bin Laden’s popularity today is gained through this point; a Mysterus’ point’s theory.
But from the beginning, the creator of the universe in all His admonitions to man warned of the great consequence of lying, blackmailing or raising falsehood against another.
The Christians’ holy book in Exodus 20:16 says in the eighth commandment “Do not accuse anyone falsely”, even as it warns further in chapter 23:1 “Do not spread false rumours, and do not help a guilty person by giving false evidence”
While explaining further to his confused disciples the things that make man unclean, Jesus added in the book of Mark 7:20-23 that “It is what comes out of a person that makes him unclean. For from the inside, from a person’s heart, come the evil ideas which lead him to do immoral things, to rob, kill, commit adultery, be greedy, and do all sorts of evil things; deceit, indecency, jealousy,slander, pride and folly – all these evil things come from inside a person and make him unclean”
No wonder Allah in Al-i-‘imran 71 of the holy Quran declared to those who mislead the people with their knowledge “Ye people of the book! Why do you clothe truth with falsehood, and conceal the truth, while ye have knowledge?”
Warning of the consequence in Ahzaab 60 said “truly, if the Hypocrites, and those in whose heart is a disease, and those who stir up sedition in the city, desist not, we shall certainly stir thee up against them; then will they not be able to stay in it as thy neighbours for any length of time. They shall have a curse on them; wherever they found, they shall be seized and slain”
The Traditional Africa Religion in all its practices abhors lies, slander and false witnesses. Before the advent of western education and its accessories, offenders were made to testify before the gods of justice such as Amadioha and or Shango as the cases may be and these gods never spared anyone involved in raising false witness against another.
The ancient Seafarers in the days of the reigns of the Vikings and Buccaneers never hesitated in anchoring at the middle of the ocean and throwing offenders into the high sea for the sharks to feast on. This is because lying, deception, blackmailing or slandering - whichever name one chooses to call it - has been seen by mankind as crime against nature and humanity and people who thrive in it should not be celebrated. They are the enemies of peace and unity.
Of the many lies and blackmails against the Imo state government aimed at creating confusion in the state through their writings recently was the article published on some online dailies by one Maximus Uba and his co-traveler, Samuelson Ikenna Iwuoha. I had in my previous article described the later as a “Frustrated Lunatic” and will always be available to defend my claims.
Uba as usual had claimed he saw the Imo state governor Ikedi Ohakim publicly giving out two big bags stuffed with foreign currencies to the Oni of Ife during the monarch’s recent birthday celebration in Ife where the Imo governor was honoured with a traditional title.
This governor’s public waste of Imo tax payers’ money, according to Uba must be condemned as he asked the EFCC, ICPC and other graft agencies to quickly arrest governor Ohakim and have him jailed.
As childish as this allegation which truly deserves no reply is, one thing for certain is that Uba and his cohorts have continued to embarrass the pen profession by their art of reckless writing.
Certainly, Uba does not expect any right thinking Imo citizen to believe his false claim of the governor publicly dishing out bags of money to the Oni. This writing is not to suggest that the governor never showed any appreciation to the Oni. It is in our culture to do so at times like this, but can Uba truly defend his claim of seeing the governor giving out two bags of foreign currency to the Oni? If not for mischief, why would Uba want to unnecessarily mislead the Imo public and tell lies against his Governor?
Before I came in touch with the Ministry of the Niger Delta budget of 2009 and saw the dredging of the Nwaorie River in Owerri as an NDDC project in the state, I had previously aligned myself to the lies of Maximus Uba in one of his write ups where he alleged that Governor Ikedi Ohakim had borrowed billions to dredge the River. I had also thought him correct in virtually all his claims against Ohakim until recently when I began seeing the many lies in most of his claims.
Personally convinced that individuals have rights to expressions which include making allegations; the individual must however be ready to defend his allegations with facts when called upon to do so as not being able would be seen as libelous and slanderous.
Up till today, I do not see why Mr. Uba and the former Abia state Governor Orji Uzor Kalu could not approach the Inspector-General of Police or even the courts and ask for protection from arbitrary arrest from the lawmakers so that they can freely appear before the Imo state House of Assembly and defend some of their recent weighty allegations against Governor Ikedi Ohakim for which they are being haunted.
We in the Imo Peoples’ Movement (IPM) would not hesitate to drum up supports for them if they have evidence to nail Ohakim. But in the meantime that they have decided to shy away, we shall continue to drum up condemnation for them as it is now clearer to us that their allegations against the governor were meant to heat up our dear state.
To many Imo sons and daughters who have been misled by Uba and Iwuoha through their writings in the recent years I wish to say take heart, be calm as God’s curses and punishments would surely descend upon those who speak falsely against others. My only worry is their generations up to the seventh that would eventually suffer from the effect of the curses upon them as stipulated in the holy books.
Following the positions of the IPM in most of the articles released through the writer against the styles of Uba and Iwuoha, the duo had variously called, sent e-mails and text messages abusing the writer for criticizing them. This writer has also been threatened with court actions but has always maintained the grounds that Uba and Iwuoha are heating up Imo state through their hatchet men’s job and advised that they devise another approach.
Recently Iwuoha accused me of being the “new media Al-Capone for Ohakim”. I laugh and hoot at him because he thinks all men are like him who is being paid to disrupt the peace of his state. Iwuoha thinks all men are like him who has decided to embrace blackmailing as a way of eking out a living and evening scores for the demolition of his kerosene shanty in Owerri. Iwuoha thinks all Imolites are like him who has become an anti-development agent preferring the existence of an ordinary shanty in the state capital to the development of the entire state. His physical and mental redundancy in Owerri and Nkwerre his homeland has blurred his vision to know that many Imo sons and daughters had, and are still suffering the effect of demolition in Abuja, the FCT and they have not carried arms against the FCT administration.
Iwuoha has mastered so well the art of blackmailing that he no longer thinks of better job to do. In one of his regular blackmailing articles against one Nze Louise Onwunali; a notable columnist in an Owerri based newspaper, Announcer Express and an elder of the New Face Organization in the state, Iwuoha claimed he showed Onwunali a “trailer load” of documented evidence against Ohakim and the man started weeping and asking him for forgiveness. What a cheap blackmail!
Iwuoha knows very well the rapour that exists between Nze Onwunali and the Ohakim’s administration and tried very hard through his material to destroy it. I say this because even if there was a meeting between Onwunali and Iwuoha, a mentally sane writer does not need to expose it let alone syndicating the article to his claimed thousands of e-mail addresses.
This is in a similar way he claimed in the same article that he was going to release a telephone conversation he had with the DG of New Face Organization, Nze Elvis Agukwe where he alleged that the DG spoke against the governor. Iwuoha’s target, from his antics is to cause disaffection between these respected elders in the Ohakim’s administartion and their boss (Ohakim) and as the sadist he is, rejoices at his folly. But Imo people have pass-grown this local game plan.
If not the sought after cheap popularity, why has Iwuoha been begging players in the Ohakim administration to invite him for discussion or according to him challenge him? In a recent article Iwuoha claimed he had petitioned the Imo House of Assembly to invite him to testify against Ohakim; and I ask, why can’t he transfer this “trailer load of documented evidence” to Uba who has been duly invited by the lawmakers so that Ohakim could be perfectly nailed? After all, this whole media fight is to rubbish the man and administration that has refused to be victimized by their blackmailing instinct.
My concern and worry is the constant deception and misinformation of the Imo public by the duo of Uba and Maximus all because their selfish interests in the Ohakim administration have not been met.
As for the warnings and text messages sent to me by Uba recently because I refused to align with his idea, I shall visit that on another article but now my candid advice would be that he down his tools and give the government the desired supports and contributions necessary to stir Imo to the right course.
To Iwuoha I dear say I admire his ingenuity at least for the nuisance value. My concern is that brains like him in civilized countries would have been legends and great creators. As estranged, quire and alienated Nostradamus lived his life; he imprinted a name for himself by becoming the man who saw tomorrow.
As lunatically disposed as the white apartheid government in then South Africa termed Dr. Nelson Mandella, the black legend ended up becoming the symbol of freedom to his people in today’s South Africa by continuously insisting on the conscientization, sensitization and mobilization of his black brothers on the use of their votes; not arms and blackmailing to vote out the white’s apartheid government in their country.
Imo state can still be made better with your positive contributions.
Greg Okey Nwadike is a media practitioner based in Abuja, the FCT. He is the Coordinator, Imo Peoples’ Movement (IPM).
Greg Okey Nwadike
Discovery News Nigeria
Garki, Abuja
08056454115
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