Follow Us on Google
Two striking topics dominated the media space in the week. One is the running inanity of a certain Kenneth Okonkwo, a largely Back-of-the-Book (BoB) creation, who is riding on the loose social media ecosystem to arrogate some fleeting importance to himself. In the days of hard-core magazine journalism, the Back-of-the-Book section was for light-hearted and human angle stories. It was in that part that entertainment and other related offerings were featured. That was how Okonkwo came into the limelight, when he was featured as “Andy”, a lead character in a Nollywood movie, “Living in Bondage”.
Andy was a portrayal of a young man that desired richness without capacity for hard work. In the process, he fell into a ritual gang that demanded him to sacrifice his wife, “Merit”, for him to hit it big. After initial hesitation, he obliged and wasted the beautiful lady that had stood by him in his decrepit state. Andy eventually stumbled into rootless wealth, but the spirit of the innocent Merit did not allow him breathing space. He ended up running mad. The second segment of the flick did not attract much attention, given that enough lessons had been learned from the first part.
Playing that odious role gave Kenneth Okonkwo some publicity that made him assume certain levels of social arrival. He was said to have studied law afterwards but certainly lacks the content and carriage. Since 2023, he has been trying his hands in political communication, in the process, flirting around major politicians and political parties. Peter Obi, who was then in Labour Party (LP) but now in Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), used to be his idol. In 2023, Okonkwo advertised Obi as the best thing that had happened to Nigeria. His targets of attacks then were Bola Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who he dismissed as grossly incompetent, and Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who he said was heavily corrupt and unfit for the presidency. When Obi was not declared the winner of the poll, Okonkwo shifted his loyalty, at first, trying to sneak into the Tinubu camp but was rebuffed. In the lead-up to the 2027 election, he has returned to his vomit, going to unimaginable limits in burnishing the image of the same Atiku he had written off.
You may see in Okonkwo the South East version of Daniel Bwala (North), Reno Omokri (South-South) and Dino Melaye (North Central) – men without character and conviction. But Okonkwo’s case is more pathetic. There is the suspicion that he is trailed by the name and role he played in “Living in Bondage”. That cannot be wished away. In Igbo cosmogony, the belief is that there is a lot in a name; the name one bears or role ascribed to him, has serious significance in what he turns out to be. It is thus believed that the madness that afflicted the character, Andy in “Living in Bondage”, may have caught up with Kenneth Okonkwo in some ways in real life. You can then understand why many are not taking him seriously. Some colleagues have taken note of his antics and have appropriately told him what he is – a man-child! By way of explanation, a man-child is an adult man who does not behave in the calm, serious or sensible way that you would expect from someone of his age. Kenneth Okonkwo does not deserve spending time on. He belongs more to the theatre, a life of make-believe, not real time situation.
Our attention should rather be on the worrisome developments in the South East Development Commission (SEDC). The Senate, on Tuesday, intensified its oversight of the commission, ordering its managing director, Mark Okoye, to account for alleged mismanagement of N16.6bn appropriated in the 2025 budget. The Senate’s intervention came on the heels of growing concern over transparency in the utilisation of funds released to the agency. Among other issues, the Committee Chairman, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, raised serious objections to several items in the commission’s financial report, including N153m reportedly spent on renting a single-room liaison office in Abuja and another N2.5bn categorised as “implied expenditure.”
Before the Tuesday Senate Committee session, allegations had been flying about on significant portions of the SEDC budget being dedicated to frivolities, including conferences, roadshows, talk shops, retreats and entertainment events. Another sore point was the alleged proposed funding for multiple international conferences on investment opportunities in the South East, which many saw as unnecessary in an era where digital platforms can achieve similar outreach at a fraction of the cost. Some also expressed disappointment in allocations earmarked for roadshows intended to attract investors when the very roads leading to potential investment sites are impassable during the rainy season.
The atmosphere in the Senate sitting did not allow for the SEDC MD to make full presentation of his stewardship. He did not sufficiently state his case. Follow-up efforts for the details of the workings of the SEDC did not yield reasonable results. An enquiry to the commission’s Executive Director (ED), Corporate Services, Sylvester Okonkwo, on the true state of the allegations against the agency as well as its position on the entire issue, was returned with a lethargic and floppy response: “Thank you for reaching out Dr. Alex”. Now, from whatever angle it is viewed, the languid response is haughty, discourteous and serious disservice to the Commission, the South East and the Igbo nation, for whom the agency was established. But that is not the issue, for now. What matters is knowing the activities and all that have transpired in the SEDC.
Other News
The adjournment of the sitting for another week by the committee chairman is, therefore, a step in the right direction. It is hoped that within the interval Okoye and his team will tidy their books and return to the session in proper shape and comportment. South East residents are eager to know how the SEDC is being run. And in doing so they are not asking for too much. The region has long grappled with infrastructure deficits, economic marginalisation and social challenges. Despite its rich cultural heritage and entrepreneurial spirit, the zone has faced development barriers that have hindered its full potential. The establishment of the SEDC, thus, represents a significant stride towards addressing historical disparities that the area had been subjected to by successive administrations in the land.
The demand for the agency is instructive and had been long in coming. Until the 1967-1970 Civil War, the Eastern Region had led the pace in all aspects of national development. In terms of infrastructure, human capital development and good governance, the zone provided the template for others. Prof. Chinua Achebe captured the strength of the people in his concise book, “The Trouble with Nigeria,” as though not having advantage of early head-start, “wiped out their handicaps in one fantastic burst of energy in the twenty years between 1930 and 1950”. The result was phenomenal. By 1964, the East was rated the fastest growing economy in the world by Harvard Reviews.
That meteoric speed in development was halted by the War which ravaged the region, devastated its infrastructure, wasted the indigenes and left the survivors with scars of defeat. At the end of the field hostilities in 1970, the Federal Government had proclaimed the principles of Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Reconciliation (3Rs), which aimed at reintegrating the region to the rest of the country.
Unfortunately, none of the principles had been faithfully implemented. The zone has rather been facing serious marginalisation in terms of admission of indigenes to Unity Schools (Federal Government Colleges), higher institutions, employment into federal establishments, recruitment and advancement in the armed forces and paramilitary institutions as well as infrastructure development. To say the least, the East has been left unattended to.
Fifty- six years after the war, the region remains considerably in ruins. Even in the politics of the country, the South East has not been favoured. Since the commencement of the present dispensation, the zone has not been found worthy to produce a president of the country.
This was the ground upon which the agitation for the South East Development Commission was anchored. The clamour for the initiative was articulated through a Bill introduced in the previous National Assembly but was not assented to by the then President, Muhammadu Buhari. The Bill that culminated in the Act was sponsored by Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, who represents Bende Federal Constituency, Abia State. And in a move at ensuring equity and fairness, the President Tinubu signed it into law on Tuesday, July 23, 2024. SEDC’s primary aim is to foster sustainable economic growth and infrastructure development across the states in the South East region. The Commission is to serve as a catalyst for investment, working closely with public and private stakeholders to create an enabling environment for business, innovation, and community empowerment. Its mission is to drive transformative projects that uplift livelihoods, strengthen regional integration, and position the South East as a hub of opportunity and progress.
There is so much expectation on the Commission. A Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) of its nature, has lot in its schedule. It is a child of circumstances that carries on its shoulders, a burden of history. That is one constant reminder that Okoye must not lose sight of. In simple term, the SEDC should not fail. It cannot be a forum for frivolities and bazaar.
