The Iniquity Of Equity Based Campaign In Abia State

EMMANUEL UGWUMBA 

Prior to the 2015 governorship election in Abia State, a group of political scamp who wanted to retain power through the backdoor, lied to the Ukwa Ngwa nation, (the largest subethnic tribe in Igbo Land) through a deceptive slogan termed equity. They convinced the Ukwa Ngwa nation to believe that they have been marginalised since none of them had become a governor. Believing that these political scammers are genuine and that it will reduce the sufferings brought upon them by the man whose gang was singing the equity song, the Ukwa Ngwa people jumped on the offer. Forgetting that good or bad, the entire Abia people are swimming in the same pool. There are no roads designated for Ukwa Ngwa people alone, there are no schools and markets meant for them; everyone buys and sells in the same market, school within the same system and civil servants are all being owed at the same time. 

 

Now, the trouble is not with the word EQUITY but the INIQUITY that these primitive characters and political jobbers have used it to perpetuate in Abia State.

 

To start with, the charter of equity being talked about here factors Isuikwuato first before Aba. But again that is not the problem. The challenge here is that never in the history of Abia State has that been used as the basis for choosing a governor. Candidates from every part of the state has always been allowed equal ground to contest for the seat of power and whoever that had won at any time was expected to bring good governance and development to every part.

 

But the diabolic gang raped the Ukwa Ngwa nation to their innocence and good nature. They made it look like the Ukwa Ngwa people were only interested in grabbing power and not the wellbeing of the entire state. They mobilized thugs from across the state and set them on a mission on behalf of the Ukwa Ngwa people. And they succeeded in rigging the election. And that has kept bad eggs amongst the Abia elites in power.

 

Since the so called equity government came on board, nothing has improved in the lives of an average Ukwa Ngwa man. If anything, their conditions have become worse. They are not only suffering from the bad situation being faced by all Abians, they are equally meant to bear the shame that their so called equity governor brother has brought upon them. With the failure of Okezie Ikpeazu, average Ukwa Ngwa man is viewed as not having the capacity to govern Abia State. So many derogatory things are being said about the Ukwa Ngwa people, despite the fact that world over, Ukwa Ngwa people are notable as first class brains, world class intellectuals with many having proven records of performance.

 

But the truth is that If you are to request the Ukwa Ngwa nation to present people who can lead Abia State from amongst them, Okezie Ikpeazu cannot be counted amongst the first one thousand. There are so many Ukwa Ngwa men and women who have the capacity to transform Abia State, not on the basis of where they come from but because they have the ability to do so.

 

It is my believe that any Ukwa Ngwa man or woman who wants to be the governor should be someone who’s influence cuts across; someone that had cultivated friendship across the state, known for his capacity, his character and his love for Abia State. I don’t believe an Ukwa Ngwa man should be made a governor as a gift. It diminishes the people.

 

Looking at what transpired, the purveyors of this equity of iniquity were intent on DECEIVING THE UKWA NGWA NATION and possibly disgracing them by choosing the worst of the characters available in the zone to head the ticket. They deliberately chose someone they can control, a man without ambition and one who is very much aloof in government. Imagine choosing someone who was never considered fit to be a commissioner and was never a member of the executive of the government that installed him in power. A man who is known for easy and fun filled life, always in a drinking mood amidst women; never interested in rigour. It was a big slap on the Ukwa Ngwa nation and a deceptive way to keep hold on power.

 

To buttress this argument, the average Ukwa Ngwa man is suffering and is ashamed of the man people call their brother. But while they are suffering this humiliation in the name of equity, Chinedu Orji (Ikuku), his father and other diabolic elites from across Abia State are sharing billions of naira belonging to the state. There is no record anywhere that Ukwa Ngwa man or woman on the street is getting billions every month because their brother is in power. Ordinary infrastructure they don’t have. And one wonders what manner of equity they are talking about.

 

As if that is not bad enough, these criminals who are using Okezie Ikpeazu to loot Abia State resources in the name of equity are back with their EQUITY OF INIQUITY in 2019.

 

You can imagine that after having power for 4 years, they have nothing to campaign on. And to show the poor mentality of the man called Okezie Ikpeazu and his handlers, they have gone to town raising billboards everywhere and their campaign theme is: ON EQUITY WE STAND.

 

Please who did this to Okezie Ikpeazu? A man who has been governor for 4 years based on stupid equity is seeking re-election on the basis EQUITY AND NOT PERFORMANCE.

 

Under his watch Abia State has become a laughing stock. The sorry state of Aba is now global news. Over 100 industries in and around Aba are now moribund because there are no access roads to bring in raw materials and to evacuate finished goods. Buyers of made in Aba goods which he CLAIMS to promote have changed locations because they can no longer access manufacturers as a result of collapsed infrastructure in the commercial capital. On a typical day in Aba you will spend at least 6 hours to get to your customer and back. Once it is 5pm you can hardly get transport to Umuahia, a distance less than an hour.

 

The same goes for Umuahia, the state capital. As small as Umuahia is, roads are smaller, looking like community roads. Entrance and exit roads in Umuahia are in bad shape. There are no beautified areas. Street trading at Isi Gate exemplifies madness. The only traffic light in Umuahia is located on the road leading to BCA Radio from Ikot Ekpene Road and it is not even functional. There are no bus stops and no laybacks.

 

One of the most intriguing things you notice on approaching Abia State Government House in Umuahia are mad men and women. And someone said it is an obvious sign that people in power in the state are entangled in a diabolic adventure because it is difficult to understand why within and around a government house, mad people are littered everywhere. And at the same time the environment is dirty and stinky. Yet, Abia State Government operates from a rented property.

 

With the pathetic story of the two major cities in Abia, it is easy to imagine the state of affairs in hinter communities and local government areas. There is a particular village in Isiala Ngwa South where community dwellers don’t go in and out of their homeland during the raining season. Their road is muddy, slippery and hilly. Once it rains, it is dangerous to drive through the roads; vehicles naturally slipper into the valley. Yet the current Governor is an Ngwa man.

 

And when you go to Isuikwuato area, you cry for Abia State. The Isuikwuato area is simply a death trap. The major road leading to so many communities has been cut into two by deep gully erosion. Gully erosion that stretches over 50 meters.

 

Yet, some people have gone to town campaigning for status quo in the name of equity.

 

And I ask: what manner of equity is this?

 

Ndi Abia State wake up, your future is being destroyed. Your young men are now school dropouts trying their hands on yahooyahoo, Malaysia runs, kidnapping, armed robbery, ritual murder and voodoo. Your young girls are now flaming harlots and baby manufacturers for diabolic politicians in Umuahia who use their wombs for rituals as they have become desperate to hold on to power despite not having anything to offer.

 

From Ukwa Ngwa to Arochukwu, Ikwuano to Umuahia, all across the state, people are hungry, there are no jobs, no infrastructure, workers are not being paid and pensioners are dying daily from starvation.

 

This is despite the fact that Okezie Ikpeazu has received over 500 billion Naira in 4 years from IGR, Federal allocations, oil derivations, ecological funds, Etc,. With salaries of workers within the range of 2 billion Naira monthly, Okezie Ikpeazu had a surplus of about 420 billion Naira that he could have used to develop Abia State. A simple honest investment of 100 billion naira in Aba would have brought massive transformation to the city. With about 50 billion Naira Umuahia would have been a different place to live in. Rather than use Abia’s money to develop Abia State, Okezie Ikpeazu shared it with some Abia elites in the name of equity. A meaningless equity that made T. A. Orji’s 32 years old son a billionaire and owner of Shoprite in Umuahia, whilst children of Ukwa Ngwa people and the entire Abia go to bed hungry.

 

Yet some wicked people are shouting EQUITY, trying hard again to use the Ukwa Ngwa nation to achieve their criminal enterprise.

 

Time for change is now. Ndi Abia should go for a young visionary man who has the love of the people at heart and have demonstrated it in many ways. What Ukwa Ngwa people and the entire Abia people NEED is development and not EQUITY OF INIQUITY.