Goodbye Nigeria, Hello Oduduwa - Femi Fani-Kayode

(Being a verbatim copy/transcript of a speech delivered by Chief Femi Fani-Kayode to the Alajobi Group- the group that wrote “the Yoruba Constitution”- on the occasion of the commemoration of ”June 12”, as published by The News Magazine of 2 July, 2001).

”I must commend the vision, strength of character, and the clarity of purpose of the Alajobi Group together with that of the expanded committee on the Yoruba Constituent Assembly for coming up with this noble and innovative initiative and for drawing up this truly progressive and pristine constitution for the Yoruba people.

I salute their courage, their sense of history, their excellent timing and their obvious and deep-seated concern for the fate of the Yoruba race in the 21st Century and in a wider Nigeria. These are concerns that we all, as responsible and literate Yoruba men and women, certainly share. It is for this reason that I can therefore make the following emphatic and categorical statements on the proposed constitution.

Firstly, that I have read it carefully and that I have considered the legal and social implications of every word and every line of the document.
Secondly, not only do I fully endorse its provisions, but I also encourage every Yoruba man and woman in Nigeria (and indeed in the diaspora), not only to get hold of a copy, but also to imbue its laudable and beautiful message of self-determination, autonomy, decency, tolerance, and the restoration of the dignity and self-respect of the Yoruba people.
Again the collective objective of the proposed document is clear: It seeks to preserve and protect the culture, the heritage, the values and the sense of excellence of the Yoruba nation. It seeks to emancipate us from the shackles of unitary servitude and it seeks to give us a resounding and irresistible voice, not just over our own destiny and over our own affairs, but also a strong and respected voice in the comity of civilized nations. It seeks to reject the muffled, garbled, confused, and clearly weak echo that present-day Nigeria has bestowed upon us as a people.
Though we have never been conquered, subdued or overwhelmed by any other nation on the African continent, it is sadly clear
that we are not, in the Nigeria of today, the masters of our own souls or the captains of our own ship. It is sadly clear that in the Nigeria of today we are not the architects of our own destiny.
And of course this regrettable state of affairs is not only unnatural but it is also completely unacceptable. You cannot muffle the Yoruba and you cannot hold back their progress in the name of one Nigeria. And that is precisely why the document that the Alajobi Group has prepared is not only timely but it is also clear that the adoption of the spirit of its provisions, is vital for the future welfare, and indeed survival, of our people.
This is a duty that is incumbent on each and every one of us that are Yoruba men and women, and whether we like to admit it or not, posterity and history will judge us, kindly or unkindly, depending on which side of the divide we find ourselves in this noble quest. Today the Yoruba number at least 40 (Forty) million people in Nigeria alone.
Our strength is self-evident but till now we have refused to use it. We have a historical legacy that manifests the deepest and most profound form of liberalism, dignity and grace and we have an in-built and instinctive craving for excellence, fairness, lively debate, education and progress that is second to none.
We have a keen sense of justice and we have an overwhelming desire for decency in public and private affairs that cannot be matched anywhere else in this part of the world. We have a resilient soul, a fighting spirit and a courageous heart, qualities which our rich and noble history cannot but testify to in an eloquent and incontrovertible manner.
We have a historical lineage that is not only more enlightened, more cosmopolitan and more sophisticated than most but in addition to this it is clear to us that we have a key role to play in the restoration of the dignity of the black man worldwide. It is for all these reasons that I can proudly proclaim with every fiber of my being and every atom of my soul that, before all else, I am first and foremost a Yoruba man.
In my family, the Fani-Kayode family of south western Nigeria, we value education. We cherish it, we live by it and we are proud of it. But this is not a value that is peculiar or particular to my family alone. I am proud to say that it is a value that is intrinsic to and deeply entrenched in the very nature and culture of the Yoruba.
It is a value that is deeply entrenched in the deepest recesses of our body, spirit and soul. Our quest for excellence and distinction simply knows no bounds. And of course that is precisely why policies such as free education at all levels is something that the Yoruba people are prepared to live for and, if need be, prepared to die for.
They, perhaps more than any other, recognize the fact that education, in practical terms, is a liberating force: it frees the mind from the barren and provincial bondage of myopia and it frees the spirit from the insidious and pervasive prison of ignorance.
They, perhaps more than any other, appreciate the fact that once you are educated the sky becomes your limit. But sadly all of this is now under threat as we have been compelled by our former colonial masters to be part of an artificial, man-made and implausible entity called Nigeria, the majority of whose ethnic groups, from at least north of the River Niger, certainly do not value education as much as we do.
Not only have we been compelled to live in this artificial entity but we have also been told in clear and unequivocal terms that our brightest and our best will never be allowed to preside over the affairs of this strange and hybrid mega-nation.
Sadly it does not stop there. We have also been told that we will never be able to discuss the terms under which our various nationalities should remain together in a wider Nigeria and we have been told that we will never be allowed to discuss the rules under which our unsolicited and forced union should be sustained.
The powers that be and those who erroneously believe that they were “born to rule” this country in perpetuity keep telling us that they will not allow a sovereign national conference to take place. They keep telling us that they will not allow any form of restructuring. They keep telling us that they will not allow resource control.
They keep telling us that they will not allow the establishment of a true federation. They keep telling us that they will not allow ethnic emancipation. As a matter of fact they keep telling us that they will not allow anything that is clean, wholesome, progressive and good to take place in our public and national affairs.
And instead of anything good, they rather insist on introducing into our body politic, alien and archaic concepts and retrogressive and backward philosophies such as “political sharia” and so many other questionable contraptions that are not only barbarous and primitive in nature but also downright repugnant to what the British once described as “equity, natural Justice, and good conscience.”
And it is precisely because of this retrograde and abysmal attitude that there is cause for concern today about the plight of the Yoruba in a wider Nigeria. It is precisely because of this sort of thing that there is a need for the sort of proposals and constitution that the Alajobi group has come up with.
That is precisely why we seek to establish a system which can at least attempt to guarantee a higher degree of ”separate development” for the various nationalities and ethnic groups that have been compelled to live together in this extraordinary mega-nation of ethnic incompatibilities. This is precisely why every true Yoruba nationalist will be pleased with what the Alajobi group is doing.
For we as a people have absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. We must never shy away from our noble heritage and we must not run away from our proud history. We must not shun our obvious appointment with destiny and greatness and we must always walk with our heads help up high.
For we know where we came from, we know who we are and we know where we are going. And even though the powers that be in Lord Lugard and Lord Harcourt’s Nigeria have cheated us, robbed us, killed us, brutalized us, divided us and made us simply powerless, we are still a strong and virile people. We are still a great race.
And like all the other great races that came before us, it is in the face of our collective adversities, our present-day challenges and our ever-present struggles that we as a people shall rise up again and dominate our entire environment.
And when that time comes, no-one and no group of people will be in a position to say “no” to the rise of the mighty Oduduwa nation. It is at that time that we shall expand our borders and re-establish the ancient boundaries.
It is at that time that we will drive the alien invaders out of Kwara and parts of Kogi. It is at that time that we will reclaim what is rightfully ours and deliver our Yoruba brothers and sisters that have been forced to languish in those parts in a sad and pathetic condition of debilitating bondage.
It is at that time that we will vigorously respond to the plight of our Itsekiri cousins. It is at that time that our fellow Africans, and indeed the world generally, will know what being a Yoruba is all about and what having a Yoruba nation can mean for us all. For now we seek only to lift up our people to where they rightfully belong: nothing more and nothing less.
For now we seek only to nurture and protect that which we deeply cherish: nothing more and nothing less. For now we seek only to confirm the incontrivertible fact that we have a role to play in God’s greater plan for the final emancipation of the African continent: nothing more and nothing less.
For now we seek only to establish the fact that we are a people that are not only close to the heart and seat of Almighty God Himself, but we are also a people whose irresistible and manifest destiny it is to lead mother Africa and all her beautiful peoples to the citadels of abundance and excellence and to the pearly gates of the Promise Land.
And if it means that before the Yoruba nation can achieve its divinely ordained purpose that Nigeria must go then I say today, and I say it loud and clear to all who care to listen, that it is indeed, good-bye Nigeria and hello Oduduwa Republic.
If we cannot have a true federation, it is good-bye Nigeria. If we cannot have devolution of power, it is good-bye Nigeria. If we cannot have a secular state, it is good-bye Nigeria. If we cannot have resource control, it is good-bye Nigeria.
If we cannot have regional armies, it is good-bye Nigeria. If we cannot have regional police forces, it is good-bye Nigeria. If we cannot have regional Parliaments and a maximum degree of separate development, then it is good-bye Nigeria.
If we cannot have these things then we may as well say that the unfruitful and barren “marriage” that two extreemely cruel, unfeeling and obviously sadistic englishmen by the names of Lugard and Harcourt decreed between the Northern and Southern Protectorates of Nigeria in 1914 is not only truly dead but it is also well-buried.
Again, if we cannot have our own constitution in the West, our own foreign embassies and our own National emblems, then it is good-bye Nigeria. If we cannot at least have the right to determine our own future as a people without any manipulation, subterfuge or input from the relentless, byzantine and barbarous Huns and Phillistines that hold sway in certain parts of this nation, then it is good-bye Nigeria.
And of course, once we are forced to say “good-bye Nigeria,” there will be no regrets, no turning back and no remorse. It will be a clean break and it will be a break that we are prepared to defend with the last drop of our blood.
And even though here we have not asked for and neither have we advocated secession, I dare say that in the next few years, if care is not taken, the spirit of secession will undoubtedly begin to rise up and shatter the very foundations of this nation. Sadly this is a reality that we have to live with. We can no longer allow ourselves to be in denial.
If things don’t change and if they don’t change fast, this country will eventually cease to exist. It is only an undiscerning fool that still cannot appreciate or recognize this bitter and unpalatable fact. It is only the ignorant and the deluded that can still insist on treating this matter with levity or that can dismiss the likelihood of such a sanguine and bloody course of events from unfolding.
Again, for the record, let me be clear. What we are calling for here is not secession or armed struggle. What we want, nay what we demand, is change: peaceful, progressive, wholesome, equitable and constitutional change. What we are fighting for is peaceful and purposeful constitutional reform.
And of course, based on the internationally accepted principle of self-determination of a people (a principle which has the full backing of international law), we have every right, as citizens of the world, to call for and indeed demand such change simply because that is precisely what our people, the over 40 million-strong Yoruba people of south-western Nigeria, desperately desire and certainly deserve.
We have not called for subversion, dissention or dismemberment here but instead we call for an understanding of our position and an appreciation of our strong resolve. Again let it be clearly understood by all and sundry that we will do whatever it takes within our means to liberate our people and to enable them to achieve their full potentials as human beings.
It is in the light of this that we totally reject the new-fangled and alien concept and philosophy that encourages wholesale and unrestrained racial integration. We refuse to become fully integrated with, and consequently held down by, other groups and ethnic nationalities who not only come from a different world but who also erroneously believe that they were divinely mandated to turn us into the biblical and proverbial “hewers of wood and drawers of water” in our own land.
We refuse to accept having any part of or any fellowship with those that have fully espoused and imbued the culture of ethnic hegemony, the culture of the nomad, the culture of the leech, the culture of the cattle-rearer, the culture of the desert, the culture of corruption and the culture of laziness.
We refuse to accept the culture and ways of those that our forefathers continuously warned us about. They told us that when these people enter a room with a snake that we should endeavour to kill them first even before killing the snake. That is how dangerous they are.
Yet they may overcome others but they will never overcome the Yoruba race and neither will we, as a people, ever bow down before them. And lest they forget, let our core “Arewa” brothers be reminded of one incontrovertible fact: that the only reason that the Yoruba nation is not on the march today is simply because a fellow Yoruba man is sitting on the throne.
Yet, the truth is that, Obasanjo or no Obasanjo, when the time is right, the militant march of the Yoruba nationalists will rent the air and shake the very foundations of this country. It is at that time that we will once again be in a position to achieve our wildest dreams and our greatest ambitions. It is at that time that they will know who we really are. It is at that time that we will prove to the world that our will and our firm resolve cannot be tested lightly.
Until then I encourage every Yoruba man, woman and child to stand firm, to stand tall, to be strong, to be courageous and never to give up because ultimately we shall prevail. For the vision is for an appointed time: though it tarries, it shall surely come to pass. The Lord shall see to that. He shall be our deliverance and our strong tower.
Until then I say God bless you all. God bless the Alajobi Group. God bless the Yoruba nation and may the Lord, in his infinite wisdom and mercy, deliver our beloved Nigeria from the hands of those that seek to keep her in perpetual servitude, darkness and bondage.
May He raise up a biblical Jehu who will, once and for all, cleanse this vast and beleaguered land with his sword. And may He raise up a gallant Garibaldi whose brief it will be to unite the Yoruba people and to lead them from glory to glory”.
(Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, a lawyer, delivered this speech at the Alajobi Group lecture to commemorate “June 12″ at Premier Hotel, Ibadan,Oyo State on June12th 2001)

Nigeria Union of Journalist NUJ disowns one Odimegwu Onwumere over blackmail case in Delta

The Nigeria Union of Journalist NUJ has disowned one Odimegwu Onwumere recently arrested in Delta State for attempting to extort money from Governor Uduaghan through blackmail.

Odimegwu who claims to be a journalist has been going round the country extorting money from top government functionaries, politicians and top industry players . His stock in trade is blackmail through a website being managed by Mascot Uzor kalu, Nnanna Kalu, Odiuko Eunice Kalu and Orji Uzor Kalu. The NUJ Asaba Branch, in a press statement today warned the general public to be weary of the likes Odimegwu and their blackmail threats.

NUJ insisted that it is doing everything possible to flush out fake journalists from their fold. The Union said that Odimegwu has defrauded a lot of politicians through threats of publishing stories that will damage their reputation. NUJ commended the police for arresting Odimegwu whom he described as a fraudster. The Union urged the police to ensure that Odimegwu and his sponsors are prosecuted.

The NUJ also used the opportunity to warned the general public against stories that are not verifiable especially those being peddled online by the likes of Odimegwu and others who see the social media as a means to become rich.

EXPLOSIVE: Nigeria Has To Split Now...Northern CAN Pleads

Christians in Northern Nigeria under the aegis of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in the 19 northern States and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have called for the disintegration of the country if the activities of militant islamic sect, boko haram fail to abate.

Speaking at a press briefing in Kaduna today, the Secretary General of the Northern CAN, Elder Saidu Dogo said the division of the country has become necessary in view of the wanton destruction of lives and property by boko haram members in the Northern region.

According to him,“If Nigerians are serious, then from here we have to move forward, call a spade a spade, and move Nigeria forward. If we want to stay together, let’s stay, if not everybody should go his own way. We cannot continue this way with this type of killings and so on and so forth. Some people do not want Nigeria to stay as one. It is important that this marginalization must stop.

“If you know what CAN stands for, CAN was formed in 1964, and why was it formed in 1964?. There was an attempt to actually stop the expansion of Christianity in the North and Christians in the North decided that if we don’t unite and speak with one voice, we will be run over. So all the Christians denominations decided to unite, forged ahead and formed this united body so that they would be in a position to defend Christians in the North. If you look at it now, all these talks about indigenes, non indigenes in Plateau State, people are just playing to the gallery.

“If you go to Katsina, Sokoto, Kano you have indigenes who are Hausa/Fulani, they have no other towns, no other local government, but they are being discriminated, they cannot be commissioner, they cannot contest for local government chairmanship because they are Christians. It is the Muslims in the North who started trouble in Nigeria, most especially in the North, the records are there.

“Someone carrying trailer load of beer across federal high ways to another country, and some people somewhere attacked it and destroyed the whole beer, all his earnings and living collapsed there. Nobody said anything, and you want Nigeria to remain one? There is no law in the country that says someone should not sell beer. These are some of the things we are saying that discrimination against Christians is more in the North.

“Let me tell you, believe you me, Boko Haram will fizzle away, our population is not up to America’s population, but as soon as the 9/11 incident happened, they put in place all mechanism; today you cannot go to America and terrorize them and do what Boko Haram is doing here.

“What is our population compared to America, and look at the amount of money we are having in this country, we are in the position in this country that even if a fly comes to any local government in Nigeria you will know. If we are determined to fight insecurity in this country, we will do it. But the issue is that, because of massive corruption, if you vote billions of naira for security, it will go into private pockets. Nobody will give any information. Anybody can cross from Niger, Chad illegally to Nigeria and have all he wanted and go free whereas individuals are stockpiling this money and taking them away.

“Honestly if we have a government that is serious both at the State and the National levels, am telling you that this crisis can be checkmated. This thing was done before, so I just want to tell you that if there is determination by the government, this thing can be checkmated by the government. If the United States and other countries have done it, why not Nigeria?.

“There are elements of truth in what the former Inspector General of police, Ehindero said recently that police intelligence unit is obsolete to withstand Boko Haram because when E-Department was cancelled and National Security Organisation {NSO} which is now the State Security Services (SSS), they were on changing this thing but it is no longer effective.

“When the police had the E-Department, it was purely confined to intelligence gathering for the police force which work hand in hand with Criminal Investigation Department (CID), so in any place, you have any problem, even before the problem comes, the Commissioner of Police, the DPOs in that locality will know exactly what is happening, and within a shortest time, trouble will be curtailed, and the ability of anybody to cause problem will not be there.

“But look at what is happening now here in Nigeria, an Inspector General of police cornered Billions of money, what was that money meant for? It was supposed to be for information gathering. Up till today, information money is not being utilized. We have people in the rural areas, farmers, hunters and cattle rearers, these are the police informants in those days, especially during the colonial era. So any suspicious movement, even at the borders, these people will report. But it is longer there. It is very unfortunate. So that is why I said if governments at all levels are determined, they can stamp out the issue of Boko Haram.

“And let me tell you this, Boko Haram does not have the type of ability to bomb people outside the initial place where they were initiated, that is Maiduguri, Borno State. There are people who are actually using this opportunity to operate under Boko Haram, the Boko Haram does not have the ability to do what they are doing. It is individuals, people know them very well, who are sponsoring them. Thank God some of them have been arrested. Government can fish out all the Boko Haram members if it is determined, and that will be the way of stamping them out.”

Borno: Boko Haram attacks Alagarno, kills 19 persons

Boko Haram sect attacked Alagarno village in Damboa Local Government Area of Borno State in the early hours of Wednesday, killing 19 people.

The sect members equally carted away food items after setting ablaze almost all the houses in the village.

Alagarno village is about 30 kilometers to Chibok town where about 275 female students of Government Secondary School were abducted by the insurgents, and about 117 kilometers from Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

A local, Mallam Umaru Saina, who spoke to DailyPost said a young woman in the village had been missing ever since the attack ended, fueling speculations that the insurgents may have taken her along.

“They destroyed everything we have and took our remaining food. The most painful thing is that they did not spare children. They killed a child, killed women and men”, he said.

Neither the police nor the army has commented on the incident as at the time of filing this report, but sources within the military said that already security operatives have been detailed to the area.

Chief Larry Essien former PPA Chairman described Uzor Kalu political ambition a huge joke

Former Chairman of PPA, Chief Larry Essien has described as huge joke plans by the ex Abia governor Uzor Kalu to run for the Senate in 2015. Essien who said he left PPA due to Kalu’s over bearing and deceitful character, argued that Kalu has no political relevance and cannot win even in his village or environ.

Essien wondered why Kalu who has been telling people that he wants to be President, is now thinking of going to the Senate on the platform of PDP, a party that has rejected him. He told Kalu to go and revive PPA and contest on that platform, instead of deceiving himself.

Essien however, confirmed that Kalu attempts to join APC were rebuffed by Tinubu who described Kalu as a spent force and confusionist without sense of direction. He warned Kalu to stop using President Jonathan’s name to draw attention to himself as he (kalu) remains, a political leper.

Kalu he said should bow in shame, as his antics can't work again, the people now know better.

Breaking News...APC debunked Orji Uzor Kalu's claimed APC wooing call.

APC has debunked claims by former Abia Governor, Orji Uzor kalu that the party is wooing him to join its fold. A credible source in the party hierarchy maintained that APC did not send Atiku to go and speak with kalu on any issue concerning the Party. Atiku and kalu he said may have met on their business interest.

APC insisted that it barred kalu from joining the Party earlier when Kalu approached Bola Tinubu.  Kalu is an expired politician who cannot add value but crisis he added. APC urged his faithful in Abia State to disregard such story coming from Kalu.

The Party urged kalu to rebuild his PPA since PDP has equally rejected him.

Our source noted that kalu is terrible, as he wants to use his meeting with Atiku to showcase falsehood, which is his style. APC has already warned kalu who it described as a political leper not to use its name to seek for relevance. 

It would be recalled that in his usual style Orji Uzor Kalu abused Atiku recently calling him all sorts of name a situation that forced Atiku to described kalu as a political imbecile. 

Ebere Wabara: Merchant of OUK the expired drugs....Franklin James Nwankwo

EBERE WABARA: MERCHANT OF OUK THE EXPIRED DRUG...Franklin James Nwankwo

He describes himself as a Language Expert. Yes, that is not contestable. However, somebody should remind Ebere Wabara what Moliere said about education, intelligence, foolishness and wisdom; that a learned fool is more a fool than an ignorant fool. Apart from always writing to impress (he hardly makes sense), Ebere appeals to me as the Village Teacher who was reminded by an uneducated commoner that one could still be comprehensively educated, yet; remarkably lacking in wisdom.

Ebere appears to have promised the immediate past KINDERGATTEN Governor of Abia State, Orji Uzor Kalu that he would help him win the confidence of market women whose collective psyches were debased by his mother, the millions of youths who were impoverished by his wheelbarrow and shovel empowerment tools, thousands of politicians who were wrongly inspired by OUK’s deceptive leadership styles, Abia’s economy left in an almost irredeemable backward status and the future of children mortgaged by a Governor whose knack for greed, selfishness and self-centeredness underdeveloped Abia. I know by the grace of God that marketing OUK in 21st Nigeria is a terrible mistake.
If Ebere is endowed with productive wisdom, he ought to have known that ORJI UZOR KALU is an expired drug. The least he could do for us is to promote this caveat on OUK, “If you have a supply of drugs that is old or expired, discard of them safely through your local pharmacy’s disposal system or with your doctor’s office. Avoid flushing them to avoid potential contamination of the water system”.
I do not know whether to sympathize with Ebere for celebrating foolishness or pity his ignorance. This is what he said about OUK: “Let me say it for the second time, an aggregation of thousands of these so-called Abia PDP stalwarts and their receding followers cannot have the minutest value (an expired drug has no potency value) of Kalu’s heroism (as a pathological liar), invincibility (like Ganiyu Adams), transnational fame (or notoriety?), nationwide popularity (infamousness) and superlative chord (strapless) with fellow Abians and non-Abians. This is the crux of the morbid hatred (disdain is a better word) for Kalu: his diminishing opponents (that exiled him politically) are afraid of his domineering carriage (in Nigeria or Gambia?) and intimidating potentialities (like?) that naturally make his dwindling hypercritics fret (yet they retired him prematurely), submissive and subservient!
Orji Uzor Kalu acquired very insignificant formal education, so he could easily be carried away by Ebere Wabara’s use of words. However, no matter how hard you try to wash a pig, it does not change his status. What Ebere does not know is that OUK has long taken a slide to unalterable oblivion. Abians issued him a yellow card at the end of his first tenure in 2003, issued him another yellow after 2007. Two yellow cards translate to a RED CARD. OUK has a permanent NO vote for his eight disaster years in Abia.
At the risk of repeating myself, let me remind Ebere that OUK his paymaster with all his noise about being business minded ceded Enyimba Hotels (with a market value of about N20b) to his friends (the two Maduakos through Aba Chamber of Commerce) at a paltry sum of N12m, denying Aba the life time opportunity of having a five star hotel with all its value chain advantages. OUK’s illiteracy got Golden Guinea Breweries and the Umuahia Ceramics Industry entangled in the worst legal/ownership cobweb. The result of that dumb decision is the denial of employment opportunities to thousands of Abians. If a Governor aided the death of industries he inherited and caused the remaining to go moribund, he is obviously valueless. Does Ebere Wabara know that the international (?) business man OUK lived in a rented Government House for the eight years he attempted to wreck the ship called Abia? So, what value is this dumb Ebere Wabara talking about?.
I am still wondering what Ebere means by invincibility. I entered the words OUK and INVINCIBILTY in Google search. The search result was “do you mean the demystification of OUK the local champion?”. Where is PPA? What happened to REALITY ORGNAIZATION WORLDWIDE? If OUK is truly invincible how come his PPA crumbled like a pack of cards and his clandestine moves to join the PDP thwarted by even political feather weights in his Igbere? Do you still remember the purported issuance of PDP membership card marked 9787945 to OUK? His invincibility is in my mind, a logical construct that exists only in the mind’s eye of spin doctors like Ebere Wabara.
I don’t know what Ebere means by transnational fame. Ebere needs to be reminded that the average Nigerian nay Abian sees OUK as a crook, an illiterate and a proponent of politics of deception. Unless Ebere has short memory, he should remember how the presence of OUK at the Ekwunife campaign train in Anambra ensured that she had the least votes in an election OUK boasted that if Ekwunife loses, he will believe there is no God. What of the disaster called “OUK for PRESIDENT 2007”? Does Ebere know that his man’s transnational fame meant less than 2% chances in aggregation of nationwide polls?
What Ebere describes as morbid hatred is actually strong disdain for OUK. The reason for this public disdain and monumental disapproval is simple, OUK squandered public goodwill and set Abia on the path of stagnation. The people Ebere described as “diminishing opponents’ are actually the people who have successfully quarantined OUK politically, ensured that he is retired prematurely and consigned to the dustbin of history. At least, the whole world now knows that his purported popularity was a scam, what with his inability to sustain the existence of his PPA. He has shamelessly run from pillar to post, claiming friendship with successive PDP National Leadership. In the final analysis, each refused to admit him.
The story of OUK makes me sick. It gives me goose pimples. It is even worse to imagine that an adult with reasoning faculties could spare time to “market” an expired drug like OUK.
Abia is merely recovering from the misrule of an illiterate businessman called OUK. There are verifiable conscious efforts to do for Abia in 2014 what OUK’s colleague Governors did for their States before 2007. If OUK should serve as performance benchmark for any Government, then that Government is sure courting alienation by the people. Abia is coming on at the moment. I will say with every sense of responsibility that all the years eaten up by the OUK locusts are being restored.
It is shameful to note but the insane truth is that Abia just started building state – of – the art General Hospitals, markets, roads across rural communities, model primary and secondary schools, workers’ secretariat, a Government House, Primary Health Centres in all nooks and crannies of the State, model high court buildings, housing estates, agricultural farms, a model library, an event centre, international conference hall, first ever Eye hospital just to mention but a few.
If OUK was reasonable enough to have laid a foundation for the take off of Abia, his name would not have been deleted from Abia history. Ebere Wabara should please stop introducing an expired drug (that’s what OUK is) to us. He is going to tell us that the achievements listed above are nothing; that is not too bad to say. The task now is, for every three projects I credit to TAO; I challenge Ebere Wabara to mention just one that OUK did for eight years. I am waiting. Onye ara Ekeoha!

• Franklin writes from Enugu, Nigeria

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Orji Kalu and his attack...Samson Okoro

ORJI KALU AND HIS ATTACK -- Sampson Okoro

The former governor of Abia State Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu will not stop using Sun newspaper and his aids to attack the office and person of the Executive Governor of the state, His Excellency, Chief T. A Orji, Ochendo Global. This is even when it is confirmed that the sun Newspaper was established with Abia State funds and the printing machines meant for the Abia Newspapers publishing company, publishers of Ambassador Newspapers.

In his latest attack, Kalu used a certain Ebere Wabara, Who has no home, to attack the Governor and his son who is happily married and living in Umuahia. First, Wabara, according to our sources, hails from Ukwa East local government area of Abia state. His tiny village, Umuogo, our sources reveal, was burnt down some years ago when they brutally murdered five police men in cold blood.

Before the incident, Wabara, the powerful media advisor to Kalu, had not visited his village for over 15years.

Wabara is married to a woman from isialangwa south local government area where he built a house for himself and his immediate family. So, why can’t Ebere Wabara build a house at Umuogo? Why has he not gone to his native village for over 15 years? The answer is simple. Ebere Wabara committed an abomination and his father disowned him, banned him from entering his compound and cursed him for life. Details in another piece. He is under the influence of that curse. And he can only work with those that are under curse. Like Orji Uzor Kalu who was cursed by his ‘ real father’ Johnson Nsiegbe. Ebere Wabara’s father cursed him that he will be wandering till death. Ebere was practicing journalist, resigned from journalism and went into banking. Today, he is back into journalism and media advisor to Kalu.When Ebere’s cousin, Chief Adolf Wabara was in the senate, Kalu used him to write all manners of stories against the Senator. How can Ebere Wabara, who has not been to his village for over 15 years know what is happening in Abia State? When did he visit Abia State last?

Ebere said that ‘ anyone interested in development should take a trip to Abia state and see the level of dilapidation, especially in the major cities’.There are two major cities in Abia state.They are Umuahia and Aba. Governor Orji has tarred numerous roads in umuahia, built the new secretariat complex, built international conference centre, built a permanent government house, built the Dialysis centre, the mecure, the Amachara specialist hospital, high court complexes, the skill acquisition centres, thee library, two new markets...Industrial markets police and army lodges and the street lights are functioning. And more. Ebere should go to umuahia and verify these things. In his next sucide mission, he should tell Abians why kalu did not build any single structure in umuahia for good eight solid years which many now describe as eight years of locusts.

In Abia, Governor Orji has embarked on massive road construction. The roads include Ukwu mango road, Ikot Ekpene road, Aba- Owerri road, Faulks road, Ngwa road, Azikiwe road, and other roads. Work is going on on other roads. How about the new High court complex built by Ochendo in Aba?

The major problem in Aba is the blockage of the drainages. These drainages are being opened up.

A few years ago, kidnapping and armed robbery were the order of the day in Aba.

Today, kidnapping and armed robbery are things of the past in Aba. Is Ebere Wabara reading?

Let it be included here that the kidnapping in Abia state was sponsored by kalu and his mother, Eunice uzor kalu. Eunice had the effrontery to order Governor Orji to giver her security contract so she could call the kidnappers to order. But the Governor refused, arguing that a woman in her class has no knowledge of how to handle security matters. Kalu’s mother went wild.

She latter changed her mind and asked her second son, Nnanna, to get the security contract from the Governor. The governor gave Nnanna who was in the House of Representatives for years without moving a motion, the sum of N500 million as mobilization for security contract. Nnanna took the money to kalu and Eunice and three of them shared it and kidnapping continued. Until T .A Orji decided to take the bull by the horn and kidnapping disappeared? Is Ebere Wabara listening?

In Aba also, Governor Orji started the street projects. But Mother Excellency kicked against it. Her reason was that the governor should not try to overshine his son by such projects. Kalu, Eunice, Ebere is it not so? Ebere Wabara, to satisfy his paymaster, did not spare the son of the Governor, Engineer Chinedum Orji, Ikuku. He described him as power drunk, that he is assisted by jobless elders to run the state and that his word is law. Something must have gone wrong with Ebere Wabara, perhaps he is suffering from the curse placed on him by his late father. In Abia State, Ikuku does not attend government functions. In Abia state, Ikuku is not seen in any office in government house. In Abia state, those who have his phone number say he hardly puts his phone on. So how does he run the government when nobody sees him both at government functions and government house?

It is on record that most, if not all the governor’s appointees have never come in contact with Ikuku. What Abians, genuine Abians, Abians who are not under any curse know is Ikuku pleaded with the father to include the youth in his administration. And the father did just that, hence the Abia state youth empowerment programme, which has seen many Abia youths become car owners. Many of them have been trained in various skills. Where were Nnanna and Mascot when kalu was Governor? They were there in government house, daily, making the state and political appointees.

Our dear Ebere Wabara should be reminded, if the curse placed on him by his father has not affected his medullar oblongata, that Mrs. Eunice Uzor Kalu cleared every political appointee under his paymaster, kalu. He must also pay a specific amount of money. Most, if not all these appointees were workers in the kalu’s private offices. After the appointee was cleared, he was taken to Okija shrine to take oath of allegiance. All elected chairmen and councilors under kalu were also taken to Okija shrine for oath taking. They would gather at Enitona hotel, Aba, from where a notorious Godwin Duru would taken them through Mbaise villages, Owerri streets, Orlu town, before moving in to Okija. Whereas kalu’s mother was busy milking the state, Ochendo’s wife, Mrs. Marcy Odochi Orji and Ikuku are busy empowering Abians. Mrs. Odochi Orji has empowered over 50,000 widows and indigent persons in Abia state. How many did Eunice empower? Killing freely was the order of the day in Abia state under Orji Uzor Kalu. Ebere should ask Kalu to tell him who killed Chukwudozie Nwachukwu, 29, and Okechukwu Maduekwe, 27 two young and promising Ubakala boys at the safari Restaurant and Business centre, 99 Azikiwe Road, Umuahia. By way of expo, the two young men were killed when Kalu wanted to kill the owner of the school certificate he is parading, because the young man threatened to expose him. But he ended up killing two innocent persons. Ebere Wabara must have been to Igbere before. He should ask Kalu who killed Eze Ukaegbu of Igbere. Ebere Wabara hasn’t told the public how many people that governor Orji has killed. There are others that the kalus killed that we will mention their names in our next edition. Is Ebere Wabara not aware that kalu’s first wife, Ifeoma, became mental while addressing women at the saint Michael cathedral, Aba? And that it is common knowledge that Eunice Kalu inflicted the madness on her. Are these not parts of kalu’s fame and credibility?

Ebere Wabara forgot to mention one single structure built by kalu for eight years. Just mention one. Tell Nigerians just one thing, not two, that kalu achieved for eight years. Because Kalu’s credibility and fame cannot reach high heavens without one single structure attended to his eight years reign in Abia state. We remember he achieved a Toronto degree certificate from the Abia state University, Uturu. Ebere should ask kalu how he earned this Toronto degree certificate and what happened to the fake document today. Ebere is old enough to know the story of a certain Igbo man who packed papers in a carton and donated to the university of Maiduguri in the name of cash. That Igbo man is Orji Uzor Kalu. Is Ebere taking note? Is Ebere still talking about credibility and fame for Kalu?

Yes, the president of Ohaneze Ndigbo, Gary Nnachi Enwo- Igariwey went to kalu and told him to drop his ‘ presidential’ ambition for 2015. That is what we read in the papers. Two things: it is either kalu organized the visit or Gary went to mock him and warn him not to allow himself to be used by the north to create crisis in the southeast. The visit also clearly shows that it is only Kalu that northerners can buy over with money or threats that if he doesn’t play the spoiler role for them, they will expose his dirty deals with him.

I am sure that Ebere was of age when Kalu contested the 2007 presidential election and came last. I am sure that Ebere was of age when kalu contested the 2011 senatorial election of Abia North and lost woefully to senator Uche Chukwumerije. Kalu did not even win in his booth at Igbere.

So, can Ebere Wabara, except he is under the influence of the curse placed on him by his father, Tell Abians, Ndigbo and Nigerians that kalu is any threat to presidential Jonathan in 2015?

I don’t know how many genuine awards that kalu won when he was G

overnor for eight years. But I know that Governor T A Orji has won over 50 genuine awards both in Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, U. A. E, the United States of America and the united kingdom. Ebere, do we count?

Also, I don’t know how many genuine awards that Nnanna, Mascot and Eunice won for eight years. But I know that IKUKU OMA Abia has won several genuine awards including the award of the pillar and hope of Nigeria youths by Imo state police community relations committee, PCRC, and the award of Media personality of the year 2013 by the independent Newspaper publishers Association, INPA, Imo state. I mention these two because they are awards from outside Abia state. They are from Imo state. Ebere Wabara, any comment? 

If Kalu is ahead of Governor Orji, it can only be on the negative side. Governor Orji has a peaceful home but Kalu has a scattered home. Governor Orji and Ikuku are graduates with verifiable degree certificates; Kalu is a school drop out who used his position as governor to force the Abia state university, uturu, to award him a Toronto degree certificate. Kalu’s mother, wife, daughter and brothers have broken marriages; Governor Orji, wife, ikuku and his sister have peaceful marriages. The Kalu’s have blood in their hands and on their heads, Governor Orji and his family have no such record. Ebere Wabara should be man enough to mention the ‘little’ achievements that Kalu and Orji recorded between 1999 and 2007. Yes little achievements. But mention just one. Or doesn’t Ebere Wabara know the means of these ‘little’ achievements recorded by kalu? How can Ebere Wabara say that kalu ferreted Orji to Abia state liaison office in Lagos and swore him in as a governor just before Nuhu Ribaadu of the Economics and financial crimes commission, EFCC? Okay, can Ebere tell Nigerians and the world the offence T.A Orji committed for which the EFCC arrested and detained him?

In case Ebere Wabara does not know, T A Orji was arrested and detained because of financial crimes committed by kalu. They wanted T. A Orji to make statements implicating kalu, but Orji refused. That was what happened. Is Ebere with me? Ebere has flair for insulting elders. He insulted his father; he insulted his elder brother who is a monarch. He insulted his cousin who was former number three citizen of Nigeria. Now he is insulting bull in government house. Has Ebere forgotten Eunice Uzor Kalu who’s was the beginning of wisdom in Abia state? Has Ebere forgotten how Mother Excellency was worshipped by every Abian who wanted any favour from the government house? Is Ebere Wabara aware that men and women had to talk to Mother Excellency kneeling down? Is Ebere Wabara Aware that men and women became slaves under Orji Uzor Kalu? Because Ebere Wabara is under curse, he can say that the likes of Dr. Anagha Ezikpe, General Ike Nwachukwu, Chief Ojo Maduekwe, Prince Vincent Ogbulafor, Chief Onyema Ugochukwu, and other statesmen are jobless. But I make bold to ask Ebere: Where were these statesmen during the eight years of Orji Uzor Kalu and where are they today? If Ebere Wabara cannot answer this simple question, we will answer it for him next time.