KOGI POLITICS:
ON WHOSE SIDE IS GOD?
By ONOJA OKPANACHI
Dear concerned Kogites (Easterners in particular), welcome onboard this flight of truth. We have now reached that cruising altitude of 33,000,000 feet above the truth level because our speed is now fueled by sentiments and lots of disorientation no thanks to our political elites. Unfortunately, this distance from truth has indeed presented us with lots of lies and fakes to the extent that today, the people are so deep into the make-believe acts of our politicians.
Our expected time through this piece should be minutes of revisiting things we should know but systemically, knowingly and unknowingly keep putting them off because of what we have chosen to believe and work with so upon arrival, we may love or hate this trip but it’s okay as our consciences would surely have some works to do again haven been refreshed with vital points. On this note, we expect clarity for most of the lines with some exposé that may not go down well in some areas.
For our own good (our peace of mind in particular), it will be advisable we disabuse our minds from the first impression starting with the headline and open our minds to be very critical with the presentation instead as people who can think for selves and see things from various point of views and then compare and contrast. Once again, I say welcome.
FIRST, UNDERSTAND THIS GAME
In this game of politics, what it means to you as ordinary citizens is entirely different and sometimes, even opposite to what it is for the politicians. For the typical politicians in our clime, it’s all about their interests – what they can have at every given time irrespective of who is in power but they camouflage to be pursuing your own interests. Can’t you see how easy it is for them to crossover from one political party to another irrespective of the depth of damages they may have caused when on opposing sides. And, why do you think the other sides accept and absorbed them as if nothing bad ever happened? Interests but definitely not your own interests at the centre of their considerations.
Painfully, in this political game the victims are always the ordinary zealous citizens whose main interests are to see good leaders at helm of affairs and justice in all spheres of their engagements. And, in pursuit of these ideal interests, they go to great extents for what they consider right to achieve their objectives but most of the times being misdirected by the politicians they so much trust and consider good as their means of turning their dreams to realities. With high level of trust given to these politicians, they unfortunately manipulate the people and then use them as their bargaining chips to secure their own selfish desires.
RETURN TO KOGI STATE
For your sanity and peace of mind, get this one point clear – what is happening in Kogi State at the moment is not a tribal war even though it seems so – it’s pure political but the politicians understanding the mood and feelings of the people would always give their supporters an image of the situation they want them to see in order to remain fired up in supporting them till the very end. This is where sentiments step in. These sentiments are built most times around religion, region and ethnicity/tribes. In Kogi State today, the colouration of the sentiment is tribal. Successfully, with the politicians actions and inactions over time, tribal sentiments have crept into our politics and unfortunately, the Kogi scenario is seen by many on all divides as an Igala-Ebira war.
Many have bought into this for a very long time and to reverse may be a bit difficult due to their high level of investments into it as they must win the war for their people. Don’t forget so fast, all the main actors today were deeply into themselves just few years ago but today that their interests don’t align with each other’s, they have chosen the strategic ethnic card to show one is oppressing the other. Meanwhile, in 2019 many of these frontliners today were the ones who were ready to do (and in fact, they did) everything to return the former Governor Yahaya Adoza Bello to power against they wishes of the same people they claim to be fighting for today but in 2019 they had a different song on their lips. So, how can these people suddenly turn around and you think it’s your battle they are fighting? Sorry. You may choose to believe so but the truth always manifests itself one way or the other.
Well, I am not blind to the ethnic cards played by the former Governor Yahaya Adoza Bello as they truly heightened and have given an average Kogi Easterner the reason to believe the story about the ethnic war more than the self centered pursuits of the politicians in the real war. For the records, the tenure of Bello displayed the height of ethnic cards ever in the history of Kogi State so far. Some of the things that happened under his watch never happened under any other governor before him in the state. Just to show you a very sensitive one amongst many, the State Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has been from one Ebira man to another and may remain so – this never happened in the days of Kogi Easterners in power – they were very conscious about balance of power but the reverse is what the state is experiencing today and so, across board, positions have been imbalance and this triggers tribal sentiments and politicians tap into loop holes like this to score points when they need to.
COME TO KOGI EAST
This ugly issue of the Elders and Youths battling in war of words indicate the very high level of damage the kind of politics we play has done to us. We do not reason together anymore – the recent display by the youths attacking the Kogi East APC Critical Stakeholders is a very big shame – unfortunately, the youths attacking them are from within the same party, in fact, the ruling party in the state. This is a pure indication of myopic majority as once reflected by one of the elder statesmen, Chief JS Okutepa, SAN were he lamented about the lack of strategies and mentorship amongst the elites/leaders and results of the analysis are some of the ugly manifestations we are witnessing today. This act of blame trading and attacks give external forces reasons to keep the people locked down and until we reset our reasoning and perspectives on what the state politics really is to the politicians and what it is to the ordinary citizens, we may remain for a very long time in an unnecessary war in which we all will be loosing on all sides.
For these Kogi East elders in APC, I could imagine them in a cold war with the youths who stamped out returning in another platform to gain prominence and rule over them as a thing they would never allow and so, they pitched their tent with the same person this youth once worked with to knock them out – this cold war, like a joke could do more damages in the days ahead if not managed but who will take the initiative between these young and old gladiators? Who do we even respect today in the land to call waring parties to the table for amicable settlements? There are many more questions which answers may never come or would take miracle to come by.
The truth about Kogi East politics today is that nobody, I mean no external force has in anyway conquered us. The war and conquest issues are only made possible because of our perspectives and views of the game. If we take it as war, what then are our strategies to win the “war”? Do we have any? Do we as a people accept any leader? Are the strategies all those stuff we put out on social media every seconds? We are losing it with how lousy we have become no thanks to the new media. With our current behaviour, we may be very close but still very far from finishing good. In fact, our unguarded dissemination of information can even frustrate the efforts of the best legal team in the world only if we can understand and learn to adjust. Let’s learn to shot our mouths and work instead of talking too much.
SO, IN ALL OF THESE, ON WHOSE SIDE IS GOD?
God is of justice irrespective of your tribe, religion and region and we can never blackmail Him into dispensing justice just as we wish but He, The Almighty has His ways of dealing with people and situations – sometimes, slow and some other times, very fast in judgement. But, in all, He serves right.
It amazes me when we pray about political situations we were part of the creators and would want to blame God or ask Him certain questions if the results we get is not what we expect of a process. God has His ways and He works with His time. And, in His time, He will do His things, His ways.
Also, note, that for a sin of a man, it’s very possible for God to punish a people if they all support the person blindly against His wish. So, this is a call for us as a people to always choose right the people whom we want to lead us. X-raying people critically is a great deal as their pasts may rub negatively on our efforts to move forward for God’s rule of reaping remained whatever a man sows, he reaps.
We have heavy works ahead but if we do nothing as a region and relax only on the strength of our population, the earliest power may return to the axis is by 2042 but we may still pull through if we can humble ourselves and put heads together as till this moment we remain individually giants but collectively, dwarf.
ARISE!
