I like Governor Hope Uzodinma. Shocked? Why should you? I mean it; I like the governor and it is not your business.
What about the devil, who troubles this world? You love to call him evil and forget his good side. Let me ask, after all the fasting and binding prayers against this devil all over the world, has he given up? You bind and lose; all he does is step aside temporarily and goes to another victim, leaving you with a message, ‘I’ll be back’. Truly, expect more trouble when he does.
So, I love the devil’s tenacious spirit. If we were as tenacious and determined as he, we would easily defeat him but he knows we will never be able to because of our love of life and good things. So, he varnishes rotten worms and gives it to us. We relish and enjoy it but he sneers at our foolishness and keeps us ensnared for life. Foolish people.
Why am I digressing from my topic? I like Hope Uzodinma. I don’t care about what you feel. I will quickly add though that though I like Hope Uzodinma, I am not a fan of his. I hate his style.
However, there is something about him that I like. audacity.
When he was born, there was neither golden, silver nor brass spoon in his mouth. In fact, there was no spoon at all. So, his parents looked into the future and called him Hope. It was a name, a prayer and a prophecy rolled into one. Positivity is good. They believed there was hope.
As he grew up, he bought the message wholesale and worked hard. So much has been said about him. Some make scurrilous references to that humble beginning. It is rare to see anyone with his history that comes to rule those who laughed at him.
I am not part of that history and I condemn every aspect of that history that is unacceptable. That is not my target in this article. I just want to write about a quality in him, which many have ignored. However, that is his secret.
Hope Uzodinma has guts. He has tenacity. And he has it in full.
I can’t forget an Indian I met at Eko Hotel and Suites in Victoria Island, Lagos, telling me what he thought of Nigeria. He said Nigeria is a country where organised people don’t thrive; a country where disorganised people rule the turf. I didn’t agree any less.
If you are in doubt, check while you are in traffic, obeying the rules how long you would stay there. Then compare with the devil-may-care wawawa commercial bus driver. He would be on his return trip while you are still stuck in the same place being an obedient citizen.
It is not a nice way to live but those who choose it are not complaining; organised people do. Even the society has come to accept that style. They are virtually in control of even our courts, and would disdainfully ask you to go to court. Please, don’t bother, the judge may be hiding inside his bedroom.
I said I liked Hope Uzodinma, and his tenacity. And his ability to command obedience. Consider how he was brought from the fourth position to the first. None of my elementary school teachers up to the professors in the university ever told me that was possible; not even our late chief mathematician, Prof. Chike Obi, could decode that equation. But like Zebrudaya would say, ‘it happened in our very before’.
Why do you think the system makes use of our university professors to muddle elections? That was what Uzodinma did when he arrived on the throne. He brought in the so-called organised people to support him. He tickled them and dispensed varnished gifts and the organised people fell over one another, scrambling for the gifts.
But trust Uzodinma, he knows what he is doing. He knows the truth and holds these people in contempt for sacrificing values for the king’s meal. He knows that they don’t really like him. He knows they are after the patronage he doles out, and they would bale out immediately if he hits the bumpy side. However, he is determined not to use and dump them. There is still hope and he has the tenacity to sustain that hope.
This brings me to last Saturday’s election in Imo. Prior to that election, the state was in a frenzy. Imo State had descended into a monstrous pit since Uzodinma came into office. It may not be exactly his fault but the opposition was intense and determined not to lose the honeycomb in his mouth, he also bared his fangs and fought back. So, Imo became the theatre of every manner of absurdity fuelled by the governor’s haters and lovers.
It was surprising how people supported atrocities once their fingers were oiled. Uzodinma knew this and oiled the fingers very well, even their mouths, and they went to the field intimidating the opposition with venomous speeches and threats. Some seemingly big men and ‘elders’ began to redefine ‘equity’ as dictated by Uzodinma.
Now what happened on Saturday was sickening. To win re-election, Uzodinma and or his supporters made common sense uncommon. They turned the table upside down and left everyone bewildered.
All over the state, there was an outcry over many palpable shady deals. But how could, despite the heavy security presence, hoodlums hijack ballot papers and electoral materials and they were in most cases escorted and guarded by security forces?
Well, that is the audacity of hope. Dare it and you have it.
Uzodinma also made sure that the opposition never saw the reason to work together. If the opposition had closed ranks, perhaps, the reign of impunity would not have been this wild.
The opposition might have been naïve and believed that the queasy system would support them, a system that got rotten long ago.
However, what could they even do, fight back and die in vain? Those they would want to die for had been so crushed they did not mind eating their dinner at breakfast. They were ready to trade their lives for N5,000 or even far less. It was that bad, almost like the biblical story where two women decided to eat their children in order to survive.
Ndi Imo are eating their children and this is a shame. What would my life be worth if my heir must die for me to live?
The brigandage is unacceptable. This election is a sham and INEC knows it and must cancel it totally or substantially and order a rerun.
I reiterate that I like Hope Uzodinma. So, I want to leave him with this advice. When a man keeps dancing to monotonous music, he becomes predictable. When he becomes predictable, he becomes easy prey and great shall be his fall.
You have been opportune to come this far from nowhere. Don’t assume invincibility that you are not, lest God is provoked to rise against you. Ask Herod who reveled in the praise of his people and provoked God. He was eaten up alive by worms.
Ask Nebuchadnezzar; he was the greatest king of his time until God leveled him and made him a human monkey for seven years. After God had mercy on him, he confessed that there was no king like Jehovah.
Confess Jehovah today, Your Excellency; you don’t need to become a human monkey; God forbid!
This yes-sir crowd you see around you doesn’t love you at all. They are only after what they gain from you and would spit on your grave the moment you drop off the radar.
Looking beyond January 2020, may I remind of a Government of governments. Your Excellency, will you be excellent there?
So, I urge you today to listen to your conscience. God is speaking to you today, even through this common writer. You are heading in the wrong direction; make a U-turn to the God who has been kind to you. Don’t be deceived by these deceitful professional yes-men and women.
We all are like the biblical prodigal son, even me. When we come to ourselves like he did and returne home to the Father, great shall be our joy.
This message is not just for Governor Hope Uzodinma; it is also for all Imolites, hoping for a better Imo. It is time to rescue and rebuild our land. Shalom!