It is no longer in doubt that the Ife Emelu Mma Unity Rally organized recently by stakeholders from Enugu West Senatorial District has put paid permanently to the shenanigans of those rascals on Facebook who were bent on heating up the polity unnecessarily with the now otiose “Ike Is Coming” mantra.
At that rally, the Chairman of the organizing committee Senator Ben Collins Ndu made a bold, defiant and conclusive statement acknowledging that the next governor of Enugu State must as a matter of honor and in respect of mutual agreement made between gentlemen, way back in 2013, come from Enugu East Senatorial District.
Worthy of note is the fact that Senator Ndu came up with details of the meeting that birthed that agreement and gave names of key figures present. Interestingly the person of Sen. Ike Ekweremmadu was mentioned as being a major endorser of the sacrosanct agreement to let the position of Enugu State governorship go round the three Senatorial districts.
On a more specific note, he pointed out, that the original motion which merely stated that the position of governor would rotate among the three senatorial districts of Enugu State was amended by Dr. Charles Egumgbe to the effect that after Enugu North Senatorial District, it would be the turn of Enugu East Senatorial District. This amendment, he further observed, was, thereby, adopted by the Caucus at that meeting. How then can anyone justify a situation where a seasoned politician, in the ranks of Senator Ike Ekweremmadu, would make a volte-face, reneging on a position he was a critical party to.
Initially, when those annoying posts started popping up on Facebook, I quickly dismissed them as the work of a bunch of unemployed folks who felt they could get handouts from the Senator through such attention seeking tactics. I was convinced he would immediately clarify his position and at the same time chastise those boys. It was, however, somehow confusing when he maintained an eerie silence that appeared to give the impression he endorsed the diabolical and disruptive posts.
Now that the air has been sufficiently cleared by the unwavering voice of the majority, made up of men of integrity and honor, from the three senatorial districts of Enugu State, Let us, quickly, for a while examine the concept of zoning exactly the way a sage and a patriot will look at it.
Some low minds claim it engenders mediocrity and does not give room for the best to emerge. I wonder how that line of reasoning makes sense. Are they by any stretch of imagination attempting to posit, for instance, that now Enugu East Senatorial District has been established as the next to furnish us with a governorship candidate, it might become difficult to find a suitable candidate from the multitude of technocrats abounding in that part of the State, qualified to become our Governor in the year 2023?
Coming up with such myopic insinuation amounts to a grave insult and resounding slap on the psyche and capacity of the good people of Enugu East Senatorial District. If we must be frank with ourselves on this issue, even if the zoning arrangement were to be filtered down to local government levels, there is no local government council in Enugu State that cannot produce at least more than five candidates with the requisite qualification to stand for the governorship position.
Furthermore, zoning, can equally be looked at from the philosophical lens of Governor Ugwuanyi who at the Unity Rally, noted that the ‘Ife Emelu Mma’ mantra, which defines the zoning concept, is both a “statement of fact and a philosophy; a philosophy that situates and inspires a just and equitable dispensation of political leadership in our polity”.
By this position, he recognized the underlying importance of zoning in ensuring that no part is left out of the political leadership equation. As a man of peace Governor Ugwuanyi would not broker a situation where injustice is allowed to thrive. At that rally, he assured that he shall strive to sustain the zoning arrangement which he agreed “has kept our state peaceful, united and on the path of development”.
With such soothing assurances coming from the man who should have a major opinion on who succeeds him as governor, I expect Senator Ike Ekweremmadu to do the needful at this point by publishing a bold disclaimer and stern warning to those urchins who were bent on dragging his hard earned political reputation through the mud. The fact remains that while they lasted, those posts attracted very odious detractions from his once revered personality.
We appreciate his enviable record and the quantum contributions he has made to the political development of Enugu State. At this point, however, what we need from him is a rub off from the vast experience he has derived from his extensive sojourn in the peculiar Nigerian political space over the years. He should best serve as a partnering king maker, joining hands with the incumbent governor to come up with the best choice of a successor to the gubernatorial seat in Enugu State come 2023.
We need, more than anything else in the State, a stable and peaceful transition in 2023, achieved on the platform of equity and fair play.
