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FEBRUARY 12, 2007 VOL. 20. NO 18 |
Let Odili Be
Before the primaries, I had a clear bias for the emergence of Governor Peter Odili of Rivers State, as the presidential candidate of the People's Democratic Party (PDP). My support for him was based on principles. Odili is a good man. He is not a saint. No human being is. But his good heart, his compassion for others, especially the under-priviledged, tower above whatever his weaknesses are. I prayed for the Odili candidacy because I felt it would be a just one. His emergence would, I felt, assuage the feelings of injustice and inequality, felt by the citizens of Nigeria, who are of the South south and South east origin. His emergence would have been like the proverbial killing of two birds with one stone. For years, the South south people have rightly been screaming that they had gotten nothing out of the Nigerian state, inspite of their being responsible for its sustenance. It is the crude oil deposits from the South south that makes Nigeria shine. It is one of the reasons the world takes notice of Nigeria. It is for it that Nigerian Presidents can afford to influence a lot of things in Africa, especially in West Africa. Yet, the Niger Delta is amongst the world’s most deprived regions. In fairness to the President Olusegun Obasanjo regime, it has paid more attention to the region than any other regime. Yet, there is no denying the fact that the region is still criminally neglected. The NDDC is under-funded. But more than all these, it is a shame that all along, nobody from the Niger Delta has been deemed fit enough to be Nigeria’s first citizen. The up-coming 2007 presidential elections offered the best opportunity to the South south. Forget the spoilers and pretenders from the zone who aspired to that seat, the South south put forward its best materials this time around. There was Governor Victor Attah of Akwa Ibom. There was Governor Donald Duke of Cross River State. And there was Governor Peter Odili of Rivers State. But of the three, Odili was clearly the issue. Long before he declared interest in running for the presidency, those afraid of him, especially from the North, had started a blistering attack on his policies and person. Everything was done to run him down, to intimidate him. Odili never replied to any of those, especially the unwarranted attack by his brother-governor, Abdulkadir Kure of Niger State. Those who saw him as the issue were not mistaken. If the South south was truly ever deemed good enough to produce Nigeria’s president, Odili fitted the bill. Even Kure, in his misadventure, recognised that. When Odili eventually showed interest, he did not disappoint. He ran the most sophisticated campaign. He ran a campaign based on issues. His campaign was based on his belief in Nigeria, and its people. Odili has charm and charisma. And he brought both to bear. While others made do with going to a few places, Odili traversed the length and breadth of Nigeria. His campaign was robust. He carried the message of the Niger Delta, and Nigerians. Everybody felt the impact, his impact. Because of Odili’s kind of campaign, most Nigerians hardly knew there were other political parties with an eye on the presidency. His campaign was presidential. But all that came to nought. In the wisdom of the powers-that-be, Odili and co. were dumped in an untidy manner. They were asked to step down on the eve of the election for their brother- governor, Katsina State's Umar Yar’Adua They did because they are good party men. With their fate, the South south lost. And so did the South east. If Odili had gotten it, the South east would have heaved a sigh of relief. Odili is not only partly Igbo, his adorable wife, Justice Mary Odili, JCA, is Igbo. Since then, Odili has kept quiet inspite of what he went through. Being a good party man, presumably close to Mr President, if Odili had been called and told: “You won’t get this thing because, for so, so, so, reasons it has been zoned to the North", he would not have dared. He would have been saved money and time and the stress associated with the type of campaign he ran. But he and the others were allowed to waste their time. And money. Odili’s case had a tinge of irony attached to it. The EFCC found that very crucial week of the primaries appropriate to descend on him. His government's IPP, which Mr President had commissioned, and praised to high heavens two days earlier, became a subject for investigation. Odili’s commissioners, including the Speaker of the House, Rotimi Amaechi, who had picked the governorship nomination ticket were picked up. If anybody saw that as a grand plan to intimidate Odili, the person would be right. But since then, Odili, a good party man, had forgotten and forgiven all. In the face of betrayals, he has offered one explanation. The cost of the IPP at Omoku, for which he is being investigated, and rubbished, is cheaper than the unit cost of those being built by the Federal Government across the Niger Delta. Nobody has disputed this. What is more, three of them are being built by the same company – Rockson Engineering. On the purchase of the state's aircraft, over which I have read some of the most ignorant write-ups – Odili had cash to stash away but quickly bought an aircraft when he was caught (as if aircrafts are bought off the shelf like cars) – he asked to be investigated fully. Yet, Odili has not been left alone. Since after the PDP primaries, he has been a subject of the most callous, most vicious, and most wicked campaigns. Different stories have been weaved around him. A few of them: *Amaechi blackmailed him into picking him as the governorship candidate by telling him, 'If I don’t get it, I will impeach you!' Amaechi Ke? Not true. It is only those who don't understand loyalty and friendship that spin this rubbish. Amaechi had been with Odili, loyally, since, and before, the NPN days. *When Odili was asked to step down, he collapsed! Odili Ke? Only those who don’t know his strong belief in God can tell this lie. Of course, as a human being, he would feel it. But he was the one comforting his people, telling them it was God’s wish. He extolled the qualities of the President, the PDP, and of party supremacy. Since then, as usual, he has given the PDP his all. He has thrown himself into the Yar’Adua / Jonathan ticket. All he wants is a PDP victory, inspite of the way trust, friendship, and loyalty were rewarded with betrayal. He is happy that his younger brother and compatriot, Jonathan, got something for the Niger Delta. *They have said that the President told him on the eve of the primaries: “If you don’t step down, I cannot guarantee your safety to your lodge.” Obasanjo ke? Not true. In all Obasanjo’s famed bluntness, he cannot say this nonsense. He is a President for God's sake. Since then, Saharareports has spinned all kinds of stories too. It is churning out all kinds of defamatory reports on Odili. It has become the accuser, and the judge. The EFCC report has not been made public, but Saharareports has made its own EFCC's reports public! How fair are all these? So, what is Odili’s reply? Leave these things for God to sort out, he keeps saying. That is his standard answer. Penultimate week when Alabo Tonye Graham Douglas, an Odili ‘friend’ and ‘brother,’ a man he had over-stretched himself to help, a man who said publicly he was going to die for him, took up newspaper pages, in form of adverts, to accuse "Odili of Manufacturing votes and marginalising his Ijaw" people, many people were aghast. Such friends are fair-weather friends. In the face of all these, what I see is a desperate plot to destroy Odili the man, the governor, and whatever he stands for. Why would friends and brothers suddenly turn enemies? What has happened to friendship, to trust, to loyalty, to brotherhood? What has happened to love? I have a suggestion for both the PDP and the South south: Don't allow politics, and envy to be used to destroy your own. Odili is a great asset to the PDP. His charm, goodwill, and reach should be exploited in this election. For the South south and the South east, Odili is a great son and son-in-law. Don't let your own be sacrificed on the altar of pettiness. The chorus should be: If you don't want to use this man's God-given assets, let him be. That is only fair.
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