…By Prof. Nathan Protus Uzorma…
According to Aesop the great philosopher, “A goat was straying in the vineyard, and began to browse on the tender shoots of a vine which bore several fine bunches of grapes. ‘What have I done to you’, said the vine, ‘that you should harm me thus? Isn’t there grass enough for you to feed on? All the same, even if you eat up every leaf I have, and leave me quite bare, I shall produce wine enough to pour over you when you are led to the alter to be sacrificed.”
It is obvious hitherto in accordance with the principles of Hormic Psychology that behavior is characterized by purpose or a tendency to seek goals. Goal-seeking behavior is motivated by propensities that are instincts or sentiments. We all know that instincts are innate propensities such as pugnacity, curiosity, acquisition and self-assertion. According to William McDougall (a great Psychologist) “all instincts are describable in terms of their three fundamental characteristics or attributes-cognitive, affective, and conative.”
Following the above assertion all instincts have a sensory, a motivational, and an emotional component. Instincts therefore may be modified into sentiments, such as love, jealousy, or patriotism, which are combinations of instincts and through experience, become associated with complex stimulus situations. The point here is that every behavior is characterized by purpose and goal-seeking. The influence of sentiments has greatly affected many people who sincerely wish to achieve a particular goal. People can kill out of sentiments occasioned by jealousy.
I am not trying to take you to my lecture room in order to educate you on Hormic Psychology which lost its ground when behaviorists attacked it, rather I am by virtue of the above alluding and inferring that the allegory of the goat as was highlighted by Aesop the philosopher was influenced by envy and jealousy to harm the tender shoots of a vine which bore several bunches of grapes.
The reader of this article could recall that I have written several articles bore out of patriotism and aimed at giving the present administration of Imo State, led by Chief Rochas Okorocha a good sense of direction; hence he appears to have lost direction many years ago. But he has completely negated my advice, and like the goat in Aesop’s fables went ahead to browse on the tender shoots of the vine after the goat had complained, so has Okorocha continued to treat Imo State. He has destroyed our economy. Now, I am still calling on him to sit up to enable him deliver democratic dividend to Imo people but all he is doing are all shrouded in fraud which informs why his political destiny would be likened to that of the response of the vine to the goat as reflected in the fable.
In Igbo Cosmology, when someone sees or senses a rabbit in the afternoon (an omen), it signifies warning of the danger in the future. In such a situation, the man begins to arrange on how to handle the situation in sincerity. The western scholars call it ‘superstition’ which is a derogatory term to vilify the cultural cum spiritual orientation of the African society. However, the Igbo man has a way of understanding his own world. Every Igbo man who sees the handwriting on the wall will certainly know that Gov. Rochas political time is up. The omen is here and there, yet he does not want to see it, which informs the traditional philosophical saying that “whom the gods want to kill, they first make blind.”
If truly Rochas is an Igbo man, he would have used the ancient wisdom to discern what is going on now. There is no wisdom in the contribution of money he did last week for his re-election. All those things were stage-managed by his men. Imo people need a leader with conscience and cannot compromise again come 2015. Gov. Rochas, Gov. Rochas, Gov. Rochas, how many times did I call you? How could you say in Imo State, no one can match you politically? Igbos are known as people of wisdom, are you truly an Igbo man? I do not see any wisdom in all your political scheming and manipulation.
At this point I want to advise all those vying for any political position in Imo state to cease from taking away the microphone from Gov. Rochas Okorocha at any public function, allow him to open up and tell his lies which will haunt him very soon in 2015 guber election. Forcing the microphone out of his hands as a sitting Governor is an aberration. We all know that he has done so many things to our future that could warrant even more than taking away the microphone from him even in the presence of God, but the truth remains that he is our Governor for now and should be accorded all the respect as the number one citizen of Imo state.
I have called Gov Rochas three times in this article which means a lot to any Igbo person. A similar scenario played out during Christ earthly ministry when he called Peter three times indirectly prognosticating the future in a loving manner and language depicting warning. Jesus said to Peter, “…Simon son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? Yea, Lord….feed my lambs…And saith to him again the second time, Simon son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, yea, Lord…Feed my sheep. He saith unto him the third time, Simon son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time…” John 21:15-17.
Following the above, Peter’s exasperation was informed by the repeated manner in which Christ asked him a single question which he already knew the answer. In the same vein, I am not calling Gov. Okorocha because of what he does not know. He knows why I am calling him and Imo people know that Okorocha’s government has failed to deliver the dividend of democracy simply because he has no respect for virtue. In the words of Shakespeare, “Our life is short, but to expand that span to vast eternity is virtue’s work”. The virtue of a man ought to be measured not by his extraordinary exertions, but by his every-day conduct.
Confucius one of the greatest Chinese sage, was asked if he knew a secret for happiness. He answered that he did not know any. Then a disciple asked, “Do you know any secret to ruin a country?” “Yes”, Confucius replied. “When the rulers do not accept criticisms”.
Criticism cannot be stopped through the art of violence which informs why Voltaire infers, “Really to stop criticism they say one must die”. Destructive criticism is dangerous because it wounds a man’s precious pride, hurts his sense of importance, and arouses his resentments. On the contrary, constructive criticism does the opposite to a man of virtue and value. This however is not the case with Imo State government.
Gov. Okorocha has never loved me, because beginning from time (I saw his posters and hand bills) he declared his intension to run for the governorship seat of Imo, I took it upon myself to inform the Imo people of the danger inherent in electing him as the state Chief Executive. Today, all my predictions about him have all fulfilled. Though, when he was declared the winner of the supplementary election, I started advising him through my various columns both in the Sun Newspaper and other local newsprint. I did all that as a patriotic Nigerian but he completely negated all my admonitions.
As a social critic, I continued my work and assignment under the slogan of the present administration ‘Imo must be better’. Imo cannot be better without constrictive criticism because those who clap for Gov. Okorocha in error are now mocking him now that his failure is conspicuous. Instead of positively appreciating my patriotic contribution in making Imo better, I was negatively appreciated through violence and evil plans. The experience I had on the 17th of March, 2013 at exactly 5:30am is still very fresh in my memory.