Emma Okah in The Sun: The true story
Rivers State has been bringing up classes of Political Icons, strongmen
and mainly persons ceding or recessing to grab political colony of their
own. Looking at the events paradoxically, one lives to wonder if there
is any other lucrative job in this dispensation other than politics.
Must we all be politicians before we place food on our table? Your guess
is good as mine.
If what is happening in Port Harcourt seeks blame, one will turn his
face from looking for the self-acclaimed godfathers whose evil maneuver
were enhanced by drumbeaters, singers and political jobbers hovering in
the state. Most of these jobbers have traced their ways into government
house. And those who could not trace their ways into government house
become Traducers and Political Demagogues of the government, casting
venom, vituperation and vilification to anyone who does not succumb to
their devilish policies and agenda to suck the state dry.
In recent time, it is no longer news that a lot of people have taken the
masquerade to the village square; not to entertain the spectators but to
extort the masses and exploit the downtrodden in the society. We had
heard news of people who took their elected "honourables" to the court
of Law, not for justice but to unseat fellow countryman for "egocentric"
pursuit, for the fact that the person is contending from the fence. However, those people who could not be relevant in the system because
they have expired in the eyes of the man with the saddle have taken low
profile jobs in the system to appear relevant. It behoves a good
indigene or a friend of the state or a political observer should know
that Rivers State meant to have a very sharp eye is becoming
blindfolded. It is not a natural occurrence that the state is becoming
blind upon the ebullient efforts of Gov. Chibuike Amaechi.
Dragging the state into the messy mud, a lot of rented writers and their
principals are riding on the good governance in the Rivers State;
thereby jeopardizing the peace and stability of the state, which is now
causing incalculable loss. This is now a scope in the wheel of happiness
of Rivers people. One wonders how these writers could appear in
camellia’s ways: peace seeking, agitating, convening and opinion
analyzing. One of these epitome is Emma Okah whose brother Henry Okah
was terrorizing the State; now a fly in spiders' net.
One question bugling the mind is, where were Emma Okah, Odili's
spokesman - turned Omehia's boy, in those Abacha's days when we were
gluttonously looking for freedom fighters to emancipate Saro-Wiwa from
the military juntas. Where was Emma Okah, as a Niger Deltan, when
Obasanjo invaded Odi and sent young and old souls to their untimely
grave? What we are hearing now is Emma Okah writing to cover his name,
which goes with Odili's in the stream of atrocities. What does Emma Okah
want that he has not gotten?
Those whose brothers dance ugly in the dancing foyer covers their faces
in shame, but this is exemption to Okah who now writes in The Sun,
criticizing those that he feels that are threat to his selfish desire
and his intention against the will of the peace loving Rivers people.
Does it now no longer take absolute morality to expose absolute
immorality? It would have been much more understanding if Emma Okah was
blessed with as much smart talking skills as the ill famed Femi
Fani-Kayode who maligned everybody who dared to speak against Obasanjo
only to apologize when called before the House of Assembly for
ministerial screening. Well, the day of reckoning will come. It is an
organized effort by desperate Okah acting for his selfish political
interests to mislead the public and incite members of the public to
portray himself in a good light.
Should the public not ignore such publications, Mr. Okah? Nigerians
could recall that at the wake of the swearing in of Governor Rotimi
Amaechi as the state governor October 25, the AC’s media consultant in
the state, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, had accused "unseen hands in the"outgone Odili/Omehia administration" of pressurizing the Rivers AC not
to withdraw its election petition against the PDP in the state. Though,
the names of those "unseen hands" were not mentioned; can Okah know who
they were?
At a time violent clashes can be said to have reached a crescendo in
Rivers State, following a one week seige laid to Port Harcourt, the
state capital by cult groups, as the then state’s Commissioner for
Information, Mr. Emma Okah, says what happened does not warrant the
imposition of a state of emergency. Mr. Emma Okah described the call for
the declaration of state of emergency in the state as "arrant nonsense."
Said he: "The recent disturbances in Rivers State is part of the Niger
Delta crisis which has been lingering for years. Initially, it was
thought to be the regular agitation for resource control, but over time
it has become obvious that criminal activities, coupled with the thirst
for money, has become the order of the day....This relegated the
original concept of the struggle and agitation for better living
conditions and enhanced resource control for the people of the Niger
Delta. What happened in Port Harcourt last week was a clear
demonstration of the effort by some misguided persons who called
themselves cultists to cause mayhem and intimidate people by carrying
guns and shooting sporadically into the air and in some cases, killing
people and destroying property without provocation."
Today Okah is a strong critic on the solution to the Niger Delta crisis in
his column in The Sun but during when he was serving he said those force
calling state of emergency in the state were enemies of the people. But
the masses had this for him after the statement:
(1). Mr Okah doesn't know what he is saying, just because he has loads
of security men guarding him and his family doesn’t\'t mean Rivers
should not be declared a state of emergency.He is the selfish one, cos
he loves his job more than the lives of the people he is supposed to be
serving.There is DANGER in the land and it is only GOD and the presence
of the military that can save the people!
(2). It is rather unfortunate what is happening in Rivers State, as much
as I consider the situation the government of Rivers State is, I believe
it is time the Federal Government exerts its authority there. We can\'t
start backing this rogues and clowns to be terrorizing innocent
citizens, while the Governor and his cohorts go on with their business
without thinking of the people who voted them in. I feel the President
should know by now that this is just another ploy by some groups of
individuals to sustain their illegalities. it is another ploy to spend
tax payers money on negotiating in terrorism, knowing fully well that
this seems now to be the best way to loot state funds as contract moneys
could easily be traced. We should reconsider our dealings when it is not
too late. It was first happening in the creeks and swamps , now it is in
PH who knows when it will spread to Lagos , FCT or ... A stitch in time
saves nine.
One besetting issue today is can people call Okah a freedom fighter
because he now writes a column in The Sun same person who was supposed
to be protecting the people of Rivers people but was giving wrong
information while the state smoldered? As unfortunate as it is, the
people who are doing these things "after medicine crusade" are purely
after their selfish interest. Money, money is the only reason some
people do not stand on one side.
By Odimegwu Onwumere and Chinedu Arizona-Ogwu
Odimegwu Onwumere and Chinedu Arizona-Ogwu, are of Nigeria4BetterRule, writes from Oyigbo, Rivers State.
globalactingpoets@yahoo.com or levinet64@yahoo.com
Odimegwu Onwumere is a vibrant prolific author and poet, writes from
Oyigbo, Rivers , Nigeria.