Ohakim And ‘Egbugbungala’ Politics

PRINCE MACDONALD ENWERE

In Igbo lexicology, Egbugbungala (summersault) is a classical Igbo lexicon. It is a metaphorical expression descriptive of a flexible lifestyle with unstable character disposition and attitudinal flight and trajectory which does not depict a real Igbo man.

In the Igbo precolonial era, character flexibility and attitudinal flight were used to describe men of low ebb and low moral fibre by our great grand fathers. Igbo cosmology has proved that a real Igbo man is an embodiment of self-respect and character prestidigitation with positive moral conduct. Igbo man is known for contented self-worth and stable moral principle. In Igbo literature, such people are called DIMKPA. Traditionally speaking, Dimkpa is a man of great value with the aura of intuition, perfectionism and influence. 

On a prefatory note, the likes of Chief Dr. Ikedi Ohakim cannot be described as Dimkpa. His recent politics can be described as “politics of Egbugbungala” – politics of instability and flexibility. Egbugbungala politicians are not trustworthy, and reliable, they are flexible and treacherous. Egbugbungala politics is a very bad one. Men of honour and respect do not play or associate themselves with Egbugbungala politics for whatsoever reason. It is a politics of stomach infrastructure, politics of “ratu-ratu”. Egbugbungala politics is very caustic and poisonous, it kills political career faster than acid. Men of stable principle do not indulge in Egbugbungala politics.

Like the proverbial man with a swollen scrotum, who went to the gathering of his kinsmen one early morning tying a piece of wrapper without wearing anything under. After a while, in the gathering, he forcefully removed his wrapper in front of his kinsmen with his right leg raised up. Later he turned back and asked his kinsmen whether they saw anything. His kinsmen said No, they didn’t see anything. This is a classical display of Egbugbungala.

Can Dr Ohakim be described as a man on the radar of Egbugbungala politics? In 2007, he was in Progressive Peoples Alliance ( PPA) founded by Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu. After he became the Governor, within a twinkle of an eye, he did Egbugbungala and did a summersault to PDP. After 2015 election, he also did another Egbugbungala and said he had gone to political sabbatical. After 2015, in another Egbugbungala way , he did another summersault to APGA, later to Accord. When PDP won the 2019 Governorship election in the state, ‘piam’ he did another Egbugbungala now with a back-tumble to PDP where he was given a safe landing with some palliatives.

Now, we are hearing that he has planned another Egbugbungala to APC. Although, Amadioha Ngor okpala will always say that in politics, summersault is allowed while Egbugbungala is inevitable especially when the previous road is closed.