<\/p>\n
President Muhammadu Buhari long-awaited cabinet is now complete.<\/p>\n
As in any political endeavour, there are winners and losers.<\/p>\n
Socially, similar to the Yorubas in 2011, the Igbos appear to be on the
\nlosing end thus far in 2015, particularly with representation to the upper
\nechelon of the government. The underlying rationale is that the positions
\nof the President, Vice-President, Senate President, Speaker, Chairman of
\nthe ruling party, and the Secretary to Federal Government were hailed in
\nthe past 16 years as the main enchilada of the party in power and thence
\nrotated among the six political zones of the country.<\/p>\n
Of course, there is considerable merit in Buhari\u00e2 argument that trust
\nearned from the yore is an important criterion for sensitive positions.
\nThere is also no gainsaying that the president is set to bequeath to the
\nentire Nigeria a lasting legacy. Quite frankly, any
\nperson disclaiming the prevailing boon of the man\u00e2 aura is viewing the
\nhistory from a blind spot. Yet, the principle of federal character cannot
\nbe wished away at this stage of national development. It goes without
\nsaying that the theory of Taxation without Representation was well tested
\nbefore Nigeria opted for national independence over British rule.<\/p>\n
Politically, there is the need for caution. Both the All Progressive
\nCongress (APC) as a party and the president himself are not impolitic.
\nEvery discerning mind is aware that any attempt to marginalize any zone in
\na country of belligerent ethnic groups is a premature death sentence for
\nour hard-earned change. This is even more so when considered that the 2019
\nelection is likely to feature two strong presidential candidates from the
\nNorth. The veiled implication is that every breadth and depth of Southern
\nNigeria guarantees to be a battleground for votes, come that year. The
\ngist is that President Buhari is committed to his pledge to carry every
\nzone along before long.<\/p>\n
Strategically and economically, the Igbos stand to gain big time under
\nBuhari\u00e2 government regardless.<\/p>\n
First and foremost, no degree of amnesia can erase from existential memory
\nthe fact that Nigeria\u00e2 problem in the past 16 years was never the lack
\nof political positions or projects being attracted to any zone. It was
\ndefinitely not the lack of the funds to execute the projects. The bitter
\ntruth is that the funds were commonly looted with impunity by those in
\npositions of power.<\/p>\n
But if the truth is told in full, which this piece is set to accomplish,
\nnowhere was the problem of looting project funds more prevalent than
\nIgboland. The major reason is simple: While the North and West have been
\nconsistent with strong opposition activities in the national politics in
\nrecent years, which in turn help for a measure of checks and balances for
\nprojects in those regions, the reverse has been the case in the East.<\/p>\n
It is not a new story that South-East and South-South zones were
\npredominated by the then ruling party, the People\u00e2 Democratic Party
\n(PDP), a party penchant for conferring immunity to the activities of its
\nmembers, however feigned. To this end, Igbo politicians were always
\nspoon-feeding the helpless masses with vain rhetoric on dividends of
\ndemocracy. And any attempt by independent citizens to crosscheck the
\nprojects they claim to attract was seen as an unclad sin. But that was
\nthen. The now is where the elixir of Muhammadu Buhari comes in.<\/p>\n
For a change, a leader is poised to demonstrate that there is a day of
\nreckoning in the earthly Nigeria. For a change, a cabal whose entire
\nraison d\u00e2\u20ac\u2122\u00c3\u00aatre of being politics is to loot project funds is rattled.
\nFor a change, a leader is determined to recoup the funds looted from vital
\nprojects in Igboland towards completion. Needless to say, the list
\nincludes the dateless rallying cries, such as 2nd River Niger Bridge,
\nDredging of River Niger, Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu-Port
\nHarcourt Expressway, Enugu-Onitsha Expressway, and Owerri Cargo
\nInternational Airport, among others. It is worthy of note, however, that
\nthese projects were reduced to mere money-spinners for individual bank
\naccounts while Igbos manned the positions of Senate Committee
\nChairmanships on Works and Aviation, Ministers of Aviation and
\nFinance\u00e2\u20ac\u201dwith the Secretary to the Federal Government as well as the
\nadopted son in then president, Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan\u00e2\u20ac\u201dall in
\ntow.<\/p>\n
Further, given that the shenanigans with the aforementioned projects are
\ncommon knowledge, the Igbo civil society can now be emboldened by the
\nregnant \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcFear of Buhari\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 to petition the anti-corruption agency on
\nmany other phantom programmes fully funded but abandoned in different
\nparts of Igboland. Notable among them are the constituency projects said
\nto be attracted by members of the National Assembly and, of course, other
\nstate and local government projects.<\/p>\n
The second major area the Igbos stand to witness ultimate succour from
\nBuhari is newer government undertakings. Besides the revitalization of
\nCoal-to-Power severally promised by the president, the political climate
\nis warn to resuscitate the abandoned gas pipeline initiative across Igbo
\nhinterland and to develop the huge gas deposits in the South-East. Suffice
\nto say that these power projects received zero attention despite the fact
\nthat Igbos produced consecutive ministers of Power in the last regime with
\nthat of Petroleum Resources at a stone throw.<\/p>\n
More importantly, the political climate is clement to explore Buhari\u00e2
\nnew equity mantra with the view to truly demand creation of additional
\nstates and local governments in Igboland through Constitutional Amendment.
\nWhat is more, the whole hoo-ha on political appointments becomes pointless
\nonce it dawns on us that the very Constitutional Amendment was funded to
\nthe brim by successive governments but cobwebbed in the past eight years
\nat the den of a senator from the South-East.<\/p>\n
Finally, due to intrinsic knack for the Diaspora, the Igbos are bound to
\nbenefit regardless of the direction of the different policies and
\nprogrammes. But the appointment of an austere personality as the
\nController-General of Customs is cast with good tidings. Forget the
\nselfish few that thrive on smuggling! A dutiful implementation of extant
\npolicies within the Customs has reasonable prospect to reduce the volume
\nof contraband goods flowing into the country. This move will spur the
\nmuch-needed economic diversification, industrial revolution, and mass
\nemployment. The obvious whisper is a Christmas in June for the vastly
\noverlooked Igbo-made products primed to replace fake goods flooding the
\nmarketplace from Asia.<\/p>\n
Now, for all intents and purposes, consider that Muhammadu Buhari can be
\naccused of many things in his political life, including lopsided
\nappointments, but breaking promises has never been near the top. Then
\nthrow in the fact that fulfillment of his promises to the Igbos, including
\ncompletion of the abandoned projects, will not only boost employment
\nopportunities for the teeming masses, but will also stem the wave of
\nkidnapping and armed robbery common in South-East and South-South Nigeria.
\nThereafter, reckon that displacing PDP at the national level plus the
\npresence of vibrant APC ministers now from Igboland have the potential to
\nengender the elusive dynamic opposition activity in the region. Best of
\nall, combine it with the common consensus that dynamic opposition
\nfacilitates the checks and balances central for effective democratic
\nleadership, by consequence. True.<\/p>\n
Confronted with these realities, the Igbo masses cannot help but embrace
\nthe second coming of Buhari. For instance, in view of the fact that
\nNigeria is currently enmeshed in the throes of economic woes, what is a
\nbetter consolation for the cries of marginalization, unless heavenly, than
\nrecovering the looted funds and putting behind us ageless but prime
\nprojects, which would never come to pass without the presence of a
\nmessianic figure? Even if the looted funds are not recovered, does it
\nrequire a regal town crier to publicize that it is no longer business as
\nusual for projects attracted to Igboland? What else epitomizes a silver
\nlining than the very point where the era of impunity in Igbo politics is
\nfinally seen to be coming to an end, thanks to the fear and hope of
\nBuhari?<\/p>\n
The questions above adequately answer themselves. The paradox has exposed
\nthe decadent canopy of PDP and its proxies in the East. Having succeeded
\nin the last election with a witless canard that APC would Islamize
\nIgboland; the opposition elites must not hide behind the melodrama of
\nBuhari\u00e2 style of appointments to hoodwink the gullible masses again.
\nFor sure, any quest for equity is always a welcome idea, but coming this
\nsoon from PDP portrays a picture similar to Abubakar Shekau of Boko Haram
\nposing as a keynote-speaker on Western education.<\/p>\n
It is incumbent upon Ndigbo, therefore, to place the blame exactly where
\nit belongs. Given that President Buhari has promised to right the wrong in
\ndue course, let the current debate serve as a teachable moment for those
\ngrandstanding as our leaders. This moment demands that we remind them
\nthat, even as political appointment remains important, enduring service
\ndelivery matters most. It is imperative to echo with every cadence that,
\nlike any other zone or ethnic group, the Igbo people of South-East and
\nthose of South-South received their fair share of political positions
\nsince the 4th Republic. This should have ordinarily translated to mass
\ndevelopment, but that has not been the case. In fact, the records show
\nthat the South-East in particular boarded dead last in capital projects
\ndespite a commanding presence of appointees from the zone. Today, there is
\nnothing concrete on the ground even for the few projects that came its
\nways apart from cascading tears of marginalization.<\/p>\n
Clearly, the nature of the Igbo problem is difficult to explain. But there
\nis no better way forward at this historic moment than a paradigm shift in
\nperception to vitalize the full sphere of the widely acclaimed Igbo
\ningenuity. The time is now to admit that the distrust in the polity is
\ndeeply rooted in the past, where each ethnic group and generation patently
\nshares blame. The time is now to eschew selfishness and find common
\ngrounds where ideas could converge for practical solutions instead of
\namplifying the echoes of a lifelong pattern of tribal rivalries. Now is
\nthe time to recognize that curbing institutionalized corruption is a
\nwin-win for all. The posterity beckons on us to turn the page to the
\nfuture and take an unbiased look at the open buffet of opportunities
\npresented by the current change movement.<\/p>\n
*Ogbonnia, a leadership scholar, is the chairman of First Texas Energy
\nCorporation+<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
President Muhammadu Buhari long-awaited cabinet is now complete. As in any political endeavour, there are winners and losers. Socially, similar to the Yorubas in 2011, the Igbos appear to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":42372,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42939","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles-opinions"],"yoast_head":"\n