DR. MAX NDUAGUIBE AND THE UKWA NGWA LEADERSHIP STRUGGLE - PART 1
Posted by Onyebuchi Ememanka | 8 years ago | 3,532 times
I read with deep disappointment the write up by Dr. Max Nduaguibe on his Facebook page two days ago wherein he poured needless invectives on the Ukwa Ngwa political class and our decades long political struggle. He went as far as trying to diminish the significance of the emergence of Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu as Governor and justifying the latest attempt to remove Governor Ikpeazu from office.
Quite unlike someone of his pedigree, Dr. Nduaguibe used very indecent words to describe politicians from the Ukwa Ngwa divide.
First let me lay two critical foundations. Three, maybe.
This post may make very little meaning to you if you are not from Ukwa Ngwa or Abia State, or if you not a very close watcher of Abia politics.
Secondly, Dr. Max Nduaguibe is a man for whom I have deep respects. For me, he is one of our brightest sons. Brilliant, fiery and possessed of high intellectual fecundity.
I have always believed in Plato's principle of the PHILOSOPHER KING which posits that leadership should be left for a certain group of people who are possessed of high intellect. For me, daft men have no business in governance. I hold fast to this principle, without any apologies to anyone.
Therefore, I shall approach this discourse with great trepidation since I am reacting to an issue raised by a man whom I consider very sound.
I would never disrespect Dee Max. No, I won't. He is like my own father. His kids are my friends. He is a distinguished Ngwa son and a successful academic.
However, I shall, respectfully draw attention to the serious fallacies and outright misconceptions inherent in his latest treatise.
Thirdly, this post will be a long one. You have been warmed. Hehehehehe.
Dee Max accuses the Ukwa Ngwa political class of lacking in coordination over the years. That is true. Very true.
In the past, our people lacked cohesion. We lacked direction. We lacked focus. That was why you saw tens of Ukwa Ngwa men trying to be governor at the same time against a seemingly more coordinated political machinery of our brothers from old Bende.
Funny enough, Dr. Nduaguibe was a major player in that confusion and lack of coordination. Dee Max was a key stakeholder in the politics of that time which clearly lacked any direction.
Dee Max was not just a politician then but desired to be Governor. He ran for the office in 1999 and lost. He ran again in 2011 and lost. I think he also ran for the senate thereafter and lost again.
It's curious therefore that after contributing handsomely to our political confusion of that time, he now speaks like an officious bystander blaming others for the problem. I expected Dee Max to own up to the part he played then.
In my view, there were two reasons for his string of losses.
First, he always chose wrong parties. In 1999, he ran for governor under the then Alliance for Democracy (AD) against Orji Uzor Kalu of the PDP and Vincent Ogbulafor of the then APP.
How did he expect to win when the AD was practically non existent and lacked political structures in the entire South East in general and Abia in particular. Even as the sole Ukwa Ngwa candidate then, his party, the AD lacked the political platform to even galvanize our own people who had pitched tents with the PDP then. Those who didn't join the PDP then went to the APP. AD did not exist in Abia. That was the party Dee Max joined.,
He would later run again under the platform of the PPA and of course, lost. Naturally.
Dee Max always joined wrong parties. I don't know why. Indeed, I believe that Dee Max didn't really want to be Governor. His ambitions then were merely theoretical with little or no practical relevance. He was like Gani who wanted to be President under the National Conscience Party that existed mainly in his law chambers at Anthony Village, Lagos.
Secondly, Dr. Nduaguibe lost because he was part of the needlessly large motley crowd of Ukwa Ngwa Governorship that filled the political space from 1999, a situation that left the average Ukwa Ngwa man confused.
Dee Max, Arc. Dan Nwankwo, Chief Lambert Nmecha, Engr. Augustine Alaribe, Chief Andrew Nwaekwe, Hon. Rowland Nwosu, Hon. Tony Enwereuzor, Chief Chukwu Wachukwu, Kingsley Uluocha, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, Christian Nwogu, Chris Akomas, Paul Ikonne, Okezie Orji and others have all between 1999 and 2007 desired to be Governor. Of course, not forgetting that serial loser and unserious contestant, Ahamdi Nweke who only comes home from his base abroad during elections only to disappear so soon thereafter.
That these respected men could not find common ground then and work out a strategy that emphasized unity of purpose which will leverage on our geographical and numerical advantage was the major reason for the failure then. Simple and short.
While our people flooded the political space with all manner of aspirants, our old Bende brothers usually lined up behind one or two, at most. How do you beat them?
Dee Max made what I consider a completely fallacious deduction when he accused our people of getting from TA Orji and his son, what he called "Counterfeit Power". He also stated that power is fought for and grabbed and not given.
Dee Max, power can also be negotiated. That's exactly what our people did this time and it worked!
From 1999, we fought and fought!
We fought the powers that be. We fought the incumbents. Abaribe and Chris Akomas fought their bosses and challenged them in the elections. Where did it leave us?
Dee Max, where did that fight leave us? As perpetual and sore losers who kept complaining over our political misfortunes?
For how long would we complain?
Nigeria practices a strange like of democracy. A good politician or a people who desire political power must carefully study the dynamics and interplays inherent in the politics of Nigeria. You must be practical in your approach if you mean business.
Believe it or not Dee Max, the power of incumbency is a force in Nigerian politics. The incumbent wields tremendous powers and goodwill, rightly or wrongly. You ignore that power at your own peril.
Besides, only a fool keeps repeating the same thing and expects a different result.
Having fought the people who held power since 1999 and come out with bloodied noses, won't we be fools if we fought again?
Chinua Achebe said in ARROW OF GOD that Ulu, the God of the people then doesn't fight a war of blame.
Why must be keep fighting a fight that we will lose?
The Ukwa Ngwa man is wiser today. This wisdom is the product of years of struggle. We have learnt our lessons. Those lessons you and your fellow aspirants didn't learn then. So, we played the game this time, got close to the corridors of power and here we are today.
Because we came close to the powers that be then, we were able to subtly and strategically push the PDP to keep to the spirit and letters of the Abia Charter of Equity which advocates that each senatorial zone will have the chance to produce governor.
Because we are wiser today, fewer Ukwa Ngwa men ran for governor this time. Indeed, after the primaries of the PDP, all the other aspirants rallied round Dr. Ikpeazu, except of course FN Nwosu.
Indeed, we learnt our lessons from the past. We realized that GIRI GIRI MBU UGWU EZE!
Like I wrote on your wall yesterday, a wrongfully issued warrant of arrest does not invalidate the result of the execution of the warrant. If stolen money is recovered while executing a wrong warrant of arrest, the recovered money will still be confiscated.
So Doc, which one is better?
To fight the powers that be and lose again or to play smart and get what we want...that which has eluded us for several years?
Thank God for people like Elder Dr. Adaelu who understood that we needed to change strategy. Thank God for that great Ngwa son who showed great wisdom and selflessness in galvanizing our people.
If we had stuck to your own doctrine of using a stick to fight a man with a gun, we would have lost again.
Near and never again will be play the fool again in Abia Politics.
Dee Max...
Dee Max...
Watch out for the PART TWO of this write up.
I call it the major part.
-Onyebuchi Ememanka wrote from Lagos
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