There is this old idiom we learnt in kindergarten which states that “birds of identical plumage congregate together” coupled with another wise saying by the sage which ran thus “tell me your friends and I will tell you what you are. Scribes authors and journalists have a common obligatory function to society that is to record events that make up history good or bad and they would have failed in this function when they place monetary gains above facts and truth which are the oil to grease life’s proper history for learning and continuity.
African leaders since the wave of independence across continent in the 60’s have been acclaimed to be tyrannical sit-tight leaders who unleash hardship, poverty, ignorance and joblessness on their citizens to perpetuate themselves into power for life. They practice black apartheid, democracy and new slavery. Examples are abound in Cameroon, Ghana, Benin, Equatorial Guinea etc but most pronounced in the central and South African states where there sit-tight leaderships have erupted to continued strife in Congo, Kenya, and Zimbabwe. Tunisia and of course elite South Africa of orange free state which obtained independence with the 27 years emasculation of “Saint Nelson Mandela who handed over power through to a man who is today making a negative history in that free state of apathies, notoriety.
Those who aspire to lead must lead by example. Recently, on October 14 to be exact the Imo state government and the council of traditional rulers played host and rolled out the drum with a holiday for the sit-tight President of South Africa who was on a private business visit to his partner in Imo, Owelle Rochas Okorocha with who has a number of bilateral trade and government business agreement with him. To underscore the great importance the Imo governor attached to his visit, the former President of Nigeria, the man who was commander of 3rd Marine commando that took over the instrument of surrender from the Biafran in January 1970 was on hand to grace the occasion of making a new African leader and history.
The government of Imo state spent huge chunk of the tax payers to raise an Effigy for the man in a state synonymous with Mbakwe where Ndubuisi Kanu, K.O and Zik of Africa and their statues do not stand anywhere. To crown it all, the over 700 traditional rulers who have never thought of immortalizing the great Igbo names in history rose up in unisim to honour this visitor in a grand style with monumented outogies and ecomomiums on him that many of our aspiring youth would wish to be like Jacob Zuma. What is Jacob Zuma to the history and development of Nigeria and Imo state.
But who is this Jacob Zuma that our leaders would like us to copy and emulate though many have risen in anger to publicly oppose this singular action while the man was in Imo state dancing, singing, dinning and winning, the South Africa Supreme Court ruled that Zuma was to face a number of bribe and corruption charges. The matter has been in court before he was airlifted to Umuohiagu. As if this was not enough castigation or aspersion on the man declared the patron, saint of our leaders education foundation, Jacob Zuma’s son is to face a murder charge in another court in South Africa (no immunity clause). As usual with tyrant African leaders we want to deify emulate, and eulogize, Zuma, on Thursday October 19, 2017 on return from Imo made bold face to address the parliament of independent South Africa.
The South African legislators had been reported to have on the floor of the house condemned Jacob Zuma, whom they said has lost honour and integrity having been indicted by the constitutional house of South Africa on corruption charges and violation of oath of office. They queried the speaker on why he allowed a man who has been indicted and rejected by the South African voters to come and address the honourable house.
According to Hon. Malema “we wrote the speaker twice formally indicating our unwilliness to allow criminals and people of questionable character to come here and address us. This hallowed chamber is honourable disciplined and responsible people and can only be addressed by people of the same pedigree”. It is this same Jacob Zuma being immortalized in Imo state that spearheaded and supervised the obnoxious xenophobia attack on Imolites in South African and their properties reminiscent of Owelle Economics reprisal attack on Imolites in the guise of urban renewal and demolition of electorates for their not voting for him as he claimed, in 2015. These are wonderful of shrewed businessman with common love for demolition.
We salute and respect our true sons and daughter who have the courage to speak and point out this abomination and sacrilege of institutionalize, recklessness, disrespect, lawlessness, bribery and corruption. What does Zuma in world history and politics represents. Open your books and read. Africans has impeccable names to emulate Jomo Kenyatta, Kenneth Kaunda, Patrice Lumumba, Kwama Nkuruma, Zik, Balewa, Awolowo, Ahmadu Bello, Aminu, Okpara and of course Imo cannot forget or erase Okpara, Ojukwu, Ndubuisi and Mbakwe, any other is fake.
This goes to show how far the leadership of Imo want to copy and institutionalize bribery and corruption which must stop in our time, in our office through high way task force, disobedience to the rule of law, witch-hunting of the free press. Forceful acquisition of the people’s land, begetting children without fathers abolition of god-fatherism, eradication of history and obliteration of historical fact or futures and landmarks, erasing all former known names in history to perpetuate only one all-knowing, all powerful and to be Owelle dynasty, our hegemory without challenges.
However we ought to learn from the past that those who strove to perpuate continued leadership in Nigeria never had some stepped aside and others at the Eden Apple.
Imo is in Nigeria. As is an Igbo nation and as the saying goes “Igbo enwe Eze”. It has always been Oha na Eze and Igbo nwere Nze na Ozo. Zuma has no place in Igbo history and cosmopology.
