By Obiora Aghadinuno (aghadinuno2014@gmail.com)
The political tug of war going on between former governor Peter Obi
and his successor, Chief Willie Obiano, the governor of Anambra State
has continued to astound many observers. Coming against the backdrop
of the former governor’s assurances of non-interference when he handed
over power in March last year, the raging face-off between the two
brothers remains a curiosity to people who had hoped that finally,
Anambra had shrugged off the usual ego clashes between her leading
citizens. That this needless ego clash has continued to fester against
wise counsels and endless interventions by their mutual friends speaks
to the deeper psychological inadequacies that characterize the lives
of public servants in Nigeria.
In this case though, Mr. Obi seems to be the guilty party. After
wrestling power from the strong men whose sole purpose of seeking
political power was for personal enrichment and setting a record as
the first governor to successfully hand over power to his anointed
candidate, expectations were understandably high on Peter Obi. Many
people had hoped that Obi would ascend to a higher grace; that he knew
too well the cost of war to offer his successor peace. Many people had
wished that Obi’s unassuming nature and loud simplicity would dictate
his attitude to life after service. Alas, they were all wrong. It soon
became clear that Obi was only willing to relinquish the office but
not the power. The former governor has continued to act as though he
is the alternate governor of Anambra State; stage-managing public
functions for himself across the state where he is either flagging off
a project or commissioning a new one with fanfare and robust media
coverage. Obi’s recent visit to St Augustine’s Primary and Secondary
School, Nkpor is one instance that stands out as not only unwise but
needlessly provocative.
As was reported by Valentine Obienyem, his media aide who is
infernally drawn to intrigues, Mr. Obi has visited at least one school
a month since he left office. Obienyem, irredeemably obsequious and
always eager to go beyond his master’s brief, garnished his narrative
with misguided allusions to “costly wines and Epicurean indulgences.”
But the point here really is not about costly wines and lifestyles but
about Mr. Obi’s new found love for philanthropy, which has prompted
the rhetorical question – Is Saul also among the prophets? Seriously,
is Obi, a man famous for his tight-fist also, among the emergency
philanthropists? Okay. For the sake of argument, let’s agree that this
particular Saul is now counted among the prophets; would it be asking
for too much to suggest that this strange philanthropy be done in a
silent, if not less offensive way? How about simply making a quite
donation? Would Obi’s peculiar philanthropy amount to less if it is
not turned into a state function? If he performs it in a way that
makes it look a little less than an outright eye-ball contest with the
man he handed over power to?
Beside the notion that Obi is hell bent on an avoidable head-on
collision with his successor is also the sad narrative of the
infuriating cold-shoulder he has given the man that he fought to
install in office. Keen observers believe that the cold war between
the duo began immediately after handover, when Obiano began to show
unexpected confidence in his own ability. Obi had hoped that the
ex-banker would be overwhelmed by the new challenge sooner than later
and scurry back to him for guidance. When it didn’t happen, he decided
to recoil from him, shunning all invitations to public functions in
the state and avoiding open association with Obiano. But what got
people talking was that when Obiano began to garner rave reviews from
his sterling performance, Obi stood aloof and never for once said what
people had hoped he would say to re-enforce the general perception of
the man he had campaigned so intensely for. Obi’s silence and
deliberate absence from state functions to which he was always duly
invited left gaps in the new Anambra story for the public to fill with
rumours and malicious speculations. If only Obi had deigned to say one
pleasant thing about his successor, if only he had said a simple “I
told you so.”
If Obi’s aloofness smacked of thinly veiled witch-hunt, his dogged
campaign to drum home the fact that he handed over the sum of N75bn to
his successor was simply curious. It is indeed curious that for one
whole year, Obi and his battery of aides have turned this singular
topic into a tragic refrain. The curiosity deepens when it is realized
that at no point has Obiano raised questions about this “great”
inheritance. And from the look of things, the state does not seem in
imminent danger of bankruptcy. Salaries are not owed and other
financial obligations have not gone bad. So, why is Obi suddenly
anxious to shove this great legacy of his down our throats? Hello!
Be that as it may, whatever Obi has up his sleeve will show itself one
day. Whatever that may be, one however hopes that unleashing his media
aides to launch dirty calumny campaigns against Obiano as has been the
case in the past six months is not a part of it. Nor the planting of
moles in Obiano’s cabinet and living quarters to snitch on him and his
wife. That is a low down dirty scheme that should not come from a
venerated Knight. Truth be told, Val Obienyem’s “young” English and
Stanley Chira’s (Mazi Odera) hilarious grunts on social media all in
an effort to attack Obiano who they erroneously see as Obi’s enemy,
come across as one more reason why Peter Obi may never be finally
counted among the greats.
Already, questions are being asked about what Obi truly wants. Another
term in office as governor? Already, there is a disquieting murmur
that Obi who had a turbulent time in his eight years as governor is
stricken with a strange malady that makes him fancy himself as the
best thing to ever happen to Anambra State, preening and grandstanding
in a hollow show of faux statesmanship. The fear is that this illness
has reached an advanced stage where Obi now sees himself as the
alternate governor of Anambra State, holding state functions with pomp
and pageantry. Fortunately, this is a bizarre psychological condition
which has yet to show itself in any other ex-governor in Nigeria
except Peter Obi.
Aghadinuno writes from Nsugbe