My people, this is an emotional letter, a kind of love letter. Though I have not set out to woo a bride, I have set out to woo your hearts; to win your convictions in the fact that, in the present circumstances, what matters more is our community and our state. I have set out, in this letter, to convince the Ukwa/Ngwa on the need for us to run a united race, keep a united faith and win a united crown. Having followed the trajectory of the political metamorphosis in our dear state for over two decades, I stand on a vantage position to share some valuable insight.
I share in the zeal and enthusiasm of all the gubernatorial aspirants to offer themselves for service to our dear state. Some of them have given a lot to the Ukwa Ngwa cause. I will single out Enyinnaya Abaribe, the distinguished senator, as one man who raised the political consciousness of our people. At a critical hour of history, God raised an Abaribe who stood tall and courageous and restored the pride of the Ukwa/Ngwa. Nobody can erase this history. All the other aspirants have also paid their dues for our people. But, today, I speak to their hearts with every sense of patriotism and loyalty, delivering the message that there will only be one governor at a time.
If the future and destiny of the Ukwa/Ngwa people and our dear state are the driving persuasion, then our aspirants must go the extra mile in making sacrifices by collapsing their ambition to the moving train. This will be the noblest act and the most altruistic in the face of the current realities. It will give a very dangerous signal for any Ukwa/Ngwa to be seen to be standing on the way of the moving train.
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For the Ukwa/Ngwa, I say that this is an age of reason and common sense. It is no more an age of sheepish and captive loyalty. The Ukwa Ngwa have grown in political wisdom, nurtured by experience and tutored by history, to know that loyalty and patronage are only beneficial when it is given to the right source of power. And, in the present circumstance, the right source of power remains the incumbent governor of Abia State. Thank God that the generality of our people have realised the wisdom of keying in to the right power grid. The Ukwa/Ngwa cannot and will not run contrary to that power.
The Ukwa/Ngwa have also risen above clannish sentiments to see Abia as one large and unified spectrum of people with a common aspiration. This is the standard that Ochendo has set. Thus, when the Ukwa/Ngwa rose to endorse Okezie Ikpeazu as the chosen candidate, they did so with the full consideration of his universal appeal and acceptability within the broad spectrum of Abia State. Abians must appreciate the pains it has taken Governor Theodore Orji to worry about a successor, knowing full well the complexities of that office.
This is why I must commend the frontline Ukwa/Ngwa groups like the Theo Nkire-led Ukwa/Ngwa Professionals, the Emman Adaelu-led Nzuko Ohanaeze Nde-Ngwa La Ukwa, and many other groups that have boldly keyed into the vision of the great Ochendo of Abia. These groups hold all the aspirants in high esteem but their plea is that there can only be one at a time. There is no wisdom in causing trouble. The aspirants must realise that the struggle was not a misadventure for them. They have benefitted. They have held the people’s mandate and have enjoyed all the goodies associated with the offices. For them, this must be the time to give back to the people by divorcing self and making hard sacrifices of their ambition.
Indeed, my letter is a plea and pacification to the aspirants. History will forever remember them and the Ukwa/Ngwa nation will forever appreciate them for their contributions and individual sacrifices in raising the bar of the agitation for the empowerment of the people. Yet, as in the case of Moses, history has also taught us that it is not in all cases that the pioneers of a struggle remain the final anointed leaders. But, their spirit and vision are always kept aflame in the hearts of the people and their names remain permanently placed in the hall of fame.
I make bold to inform the Ngwa that our brothers in Abia North and Central are watching to see how we articulate our position and how united we could be in the face of the offer that has been made to us by the state PDP and the governor. They are watching to see how well we could make use of the chance in our hand. I, therefore, call on all Ukwa/Ngwa to work with the state in delivering Okezie Ikpeazu, the popular candidate that has been endorsed and accepted by the generality of Abians.
Okezie Ikpeazu, the street sweeper of Aba, demonstrated a high capacity for service as the helmsman of the state environmental maintenance agency in Aba. He followed the counsels of Martin Lurther King Jnr. and swept Aba so well that the host of heavens had to say, “Here was a street sweeper”. He had earlier repeated the feat as the TC chairman of Obingwa and as the manager of the Abia State Passengers Integrated Manifest and Safety Scheme (ASPIMSS). A thorough-bred intellectual and an unassuming fellow, he has everything it takes to mount the saddle, so let’s give him our co-operation.
Pardon me, the aspirants, that I have to send this letter through the media. I had wanted to deliver it personally but I do not have your mailing addresses. I do hope that my letter reaches you in good faith. Mine is a sermon of peace and an appeal. I know what ambition is. I know it is not easy to quench the raging fire from within. But, sleep over it. Chew upon it and realise that what is ahead of us is far greater than what is behind us. You are all men of substance who cannot be ignored. Yet, the greatest service you must give to Ukwa/Ngwa now is the sacrifice of your ambition for the common goal.
Godwin Adindu