By Chief (Sir) Don Ubani
It was the famous Jamaican singer, song writer, musician and guitarist, NestaRobert Marley, popularly known as ‘Bob Marley’, that openly advocated for justice instead of peace. The implication of this advocacy, which stands as a global phenomenon, must have been covertly and overtly appreciated by the founding fathers of Abia State who, in their philosophical comprehension and projection, agreed with the Jamaican Regae Maestro that no society can achieve peace and progress in an atmosphere of injustice and inequity.
It would be completely unreasonable for any person to expect peaceful and progressive co-existence in a society where a section of it believes that her members are being marginalized and discriminated against simply only by reason of their geo-political origin, religion, gender or any other socio-econo-political differences. Where such myopic segregation exists, the people so affected naturally resolve to do everything, legitimate and illegitimate, to make sure the larger society does not, in any way, enjoy peace and equanimity. A situation such as this usually ends up breeding out-laws; armed robbers, kidnappers, rapists and other hooligans who would just be desperate to break the laws of the land, not minding the likely enormity of the consequences of their actions.
In such a situation, the society, including the parochial agents of discrimination, marginalization and injustices, becomes inundated with different kinds of vices. Law and order break down and resource meant for social engineering, such as education, health, infrastructure and public utilities, would be misdirected only to provide security. Investors would become afraid of the security and protection of their lives and investments and would, therefore, quit the environment, leading to capital flight.
Political, traditional, religious and economic leaders from the present Abia state had strongly been involved in the struggle that led to the creation of Imo State out of the defunct East Central State on the 3rd of February, 1976 by the military administration of General Murtala Muhammad. Before long, however, leaders from the present Abia State realized that there were unjustifiable and intolerable imbalances in the conduct of the affairs of the state, especially with regards to strategic appointments in the public service. In the Spartan Spirit of the Abia man, notable indigenes of Abia State such as;
1. Dr M.I. Okpara
2. Dr Anagh Ezeikpe
3. Dr Agbara
4. His Eminence, Eze (Dr) B.O. Enweremadu
5. His Imperial Majesty, Eze Isaac Ikonne
6. His Royal Highness, Eze (Dr) Roland Asobie
7. Chief Paul Ogbonna of Asa, and others came up with the idea of having their own state.
The first thing they did was to choose a nomenclature that would be adjudged suitable and appropriate for the state of their dream. But before the question of nomenclature, the founding fathers of Abia State had intrinsically agreed withinand amongst themselves that their perceived state would be run on best globalstandard application of equity, fairness and justice. This philosophical undertone had to be captured and reflected in the naming of the state. The founding fathers, therefore, equitably resorted to the use of acronyms; A for Aba, B for Bende, I for Isuikwuato and A for Afikpo and summing it up as Abia. By this nomenclatural arrangement, the old Aba Division, the Old Bende Division, the Isuikwuato and Afikpo Districts were all encompassed in the name Abia.
The founding fathers went further by assembling one of the most detailed and formidable equity-inspiringly tailored documents called ‘Abia Charter of Equity’. The synopsis of this charter was and remains that every geo-political Zone or segment in the state, when created, would not be marginalized in any sphere of the state administration but rather would be given adequate sense of belonging. The Abia Charter of Equity had and still has a motto; Onye aghala Nwanneya! This simply means that every Abian was expected to see and treat his or her fellow Abian as either a brother or a sister and not as a stranger.
As God would have it, the struggles of the founding fathers were crowned with unquantifiable success on August, 27, 1991 when the administration of first Nigerian Military President, General Ibrahim Babangida, announced the creationof Abia state.
Regrettably, many heads of government who had held sway in the state, both military and civil, before Governor Theodor Orji, did not care a hoot about the Abia Charter of Equity, not to talk of its implementation. The consequences of such uncharitable neglect is best consigned to the rusty repository of history.
But in his own natural understanding and out of his own volition, Governor Theodor Orji feels convinced that continuous suppression of a people based on ethnic or sub-ethnic consideration has all the trappings of an explosively injurious aftermath and has, therefore, resolved to be guided by the spirit and dictates of the Abia Charter of Equity.
Not minding heavy pressure coming from left, right and centre, the Governor has remained adamant in his conviction that his successor should come from the old Aba Division of the state. He even deepened equity by propounding that since the state is presently constitutionally made up of three distinct senatorial districts or Zones and that since Abia-North had produced an executive governor that had governed for two tenures amounting to eight years and he, coming from Abia-Central and is on the verge of rounding off his consecutive second tenure that would amount to eight years, that equity demands that the next governor of God’s own state, after him, should hail from Abia-South Senatorial Zone.
As Usman Othman Dan Fodio; the Islamist Jihadist, would say, ‘Conscience is an open wound and only truth can heal it.’ Because Governor T.A. Orji stands on the solid grounds of conscience and truth, the People’s Democratic Party, both at the state and national levels, support him. The people of Abia State, especially the majority of them that have not killed their conscience because of quest for materialism, have evidently thrown their support for Governor Orji’s commitment to equity.
The combined forces of God, Governor T.A. Orji, the People’s Democratic Party and the electorate in Abia State have, as an essential preliminary step, positioned Dr Victor Okezie Ikpeazu for eventual emergence as the next democratically elected Governor of Abia State; the first Governor of Ukwa and Ngwa extraction in the history of Nigeria’s one hundred and one years of existence.
The very populous, dynamic and ever accommodating people of Ukwa and Ngwa, nay the human community, should rise with one voice to glorify God for touching the heart of Governor T.A. Orji and the entire leadership of People’s Democratic Party; P.D.P, to resolve, in an unequivocal manner, to align themselves with the course of equity, fairness and natural justice.
The P.D.P delegates to the December 8, 2014 state congress that ended up castingtheir votes for Dr. Victor Okezie Ikpeazu as the governorship flag-bearer of the Party for 2015 general election should also be commended for choosing a man whose strength is anchored not only on the intimidating records of his academic excellence but equally on humility and sensitivity to the need of his fellow human beings and corporate existence of any contemporary society. The Abia electorate should see the candidacy of Dr Ikpeazu as a healthy development and give maximum support for its realization.
—