I choose this topic and caption this week, following the reactions that trailed my last piece titled “2019: Araraume, Ihedioha others coming”. Among other things, I had suggested some reasons why the Imo PDP Governorship Candidate, Rt Hon Emeka Ihedioha may have lost the chance to be sitting inside Douglas House, Owerri now as the Governor of Imo State.
However, one of my ardent readers picked hole where I said that Ihedioha’s party, PDP contributed part of the failures, which my reader disagreed with, but instead had this to say.
“Sir I want to disagree with u on why Ihedioha lost the last guber election. He was roundly rejected because of his Mbaise factor. Secondly some time ago you accused people of Imo West of sabotaging PDP but it is not true, I voted at Amaigbo ward 5. We rejected Ihedioha because of Mbaise factor. For 2019 I will consider Araraume, Eze Madumere and Capt Emmanuel Iheanacho” he wrote.
I now replied “But Mbaise have bn voting for Orlu and Okigwe Zones. Why did Orlu nt vote for Owerri represented by Ihedioha?”
Our man replied “ Ihedioha contested Governor on the wrong time, had he went for Senate, he would have been there now, we cannot leave our own to vote for an outsider, that’s what happened”.
After this conversation with this reader, I decided to ask this important question: why are people afraid of Mbaise people? Could it be true that the PDP candidate in the 2015 election Rt Hon Emeka Ihedioha partly lost the polls because he is a native of Mbaise Nation?
This is a very serious issue, and needed to be highlighted, instead of being swept under the carpet. This is not the first time I am hearing people speaking on their phobia for Mbaise Nation.
However, I see it as fear occasioned by nothing but inferiority complex. Even before the election, this wild notion was in the air but many people pretended they did not hear such allusions.
My father is not from Mbaise, neither is my mother. But I make bold to state here that Mbaise people are one of the greatest tribe in Igboland. They are the best people you can have as friends and confidants, provided you don’t take them for granted.
Mbaise people are usually accused of being too smart, educated and suffers no fool easily. Are these bad qualities? Is it a bad thing for one to be alert in all endeavours? Is it a crime for one to be at his wit at all times? Is it wrong for one to be sharp not to be out smarted, no matter the circumstance? Why would you in the first place deem it fit to cheat or out-smart others?
Now, would you blame the man who set out to outfox others or that who refused to be duped? Therefore, what those who accuse Mbaise nation of being too smart is because they had tried to fool them, which they vehemently refused. They want Mbaise people to be their mugus.
Indeed, for a voter from Orlu zone and a PDP member for that matter, to say that he voted for another candidate other than Ihedioha because he comes from Mbaise nation is spurious, silly and clannish.
Hear him “we rejected Ihedioha…… we cannot leave our own to vote for an outsider, that’s what happened”
This is different strokes for different people. My reader voted for “our own” which indicates that he must have voted for a candidate from Orlu zone, but is accusing Mbaise people of voting for their “own”. Therefore, while it is expedient and right for him to vote for Orlu candidate, it becomes ethnic chauvinism when an Mbaise person votes for an Mbaise man.
Imo political environment has already been fouled with the splitting of the State into three political zones; Orlu, Owerri and Okigwe. This fouling of the environment emerged with the Orlu dominance of the Governorship seat of the State.
This situation has rendered useless the objective of the Imo political Elders who devised this contraption as an opportunity for all the three zones to taste the Governorship get over the trouble of three political zones sharing the spoil of office, some people are even reducing the contentious partisan issue to the clans, the level which may spell doom for Imo politics and its development in the future.
While Orlu dominates the zones because it has twelve LGAs over and above Owerri’s Eight, and Okigwe’s five, in Owerri political zone, Mbaise nation is the most populated both in number and in LGAs. And it is the most homogenous.
Mbaise nation has Aboh, Ezinihitte and Ahiazu LGAs. There is no saying the fact that Mbaise can always control the direction elections go in Owerri zone. Therefore, if it is established that Ihedioha was partly refused in the polls because he comes from Mbaise clan, it will cause more political roadblocks for other parts of Owerri zone, whose sons or daughters may aspire for political positions that may warrant the contribution of Mbaise land.
And for the PDP as a party, if also it is discovered that some of its members voted for opposition parties because it fielded an Mbaise candidate,PDP should be ready for a pay- back time from the Mbaise.
For the records, Mbaise as a nation has contributed individually and collectively to the growth and success of PDP in Imo State.
The pioneer State Chairman of PDP is the patriarch of the Nwoga family of Ahiazu Mbaise, Chief I D Nwoga, who nursed the party into fruition. Under him PDP won the Governorship of Imo State in 1999, at a time other political heavy weights like Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyawu, Chief Arthur Nzeribe, Chief Ifeanyi Araraume and others were in the All Peoples Party APP, later All Nigeria Peoples Party ANPP.
Nwoga handed over to another Mbaise son, Dr Alex Obi, who injected youthful zeal into the office, and PDP became an all- conquering army.
Ironically, both Nwoga and Obi worked their blood pressures high to deliver an Orlu candidate, Chief Achike Udenwa. Same Orlu that has chosen to play deceptive politics against Owerri today, after Owerri helped them ascend the throne twice.
Mbaise nation has also played a loyal partner to Okigwe zone when it mattered most. In 2007, Mbaise helped in enthroning Chief Ikedi Ohakim as Governor. However, the Mbaise loyalty came to the shore in 2011. Apart from the three ; namely Aboh, Ahiazu and Ezinihitte Mbaise, where else in Owerri zone did PDP sweep the polls?zones (Okigwe and Orlu) to continue to produce the Governor of Imo State.
Now, if truly Ihedioha lost Imo guber due to his root as an Mbaise man, would Mbaise nation support any other candidate that may emerge from Owerri zone in the years to come?
How is it certain that Mbaise nation will forgive easily if truly their son was sabotaged in his Governorship ambition?
Do we see Ikeduru, Mbaitoli, Owerri North, Owerri West, Owerri Municipal or Ngor Okpala brandishing that Governorship candidate that Mbaise will support whole heartedly without stretching behind to remember what happened to their son?
Those who are already afraid of Mbaise when they had seen nothing, should get ready for the amageddon when it is established that Imo PDP members, part of Owerri zone and other parts of Imo State frustrated Ihedioha Governorship election simply because Mbaise blood runs through his blood stream.
Mbaise love themselves and do their things to the envy of others. That is no crime, and they should continue to do their thing. They should continue to live in unity and set the pace for others as usual.
They should continue to be their brother’s keeper and help each other as they do. They should continue to remain alert and smart, and out-fox, always those who plot to out- fox them. It is no crime to fool the man whose plan is to fool you!
Many clans must not be like my LGA of birth Ngor Okpala, which you cannot define if they are in Mbaise or “core Owerri”.
For instance, Ngor Okpala is larger than Belgium and Gambia put together. Yet today it remains one Local Government Area, while Mbaise, an old county council like Ngor Okpala now has three LGAs.
Infact, Ngor Okpala is fused with Aboh Mbaise, one of the LGAs caved out of Mbaise clan, as one Federal Constituency. Mbaise achieved all these fits because of the unity and corporation among its leaders, who operate on one page.
For Ngor Okpala, because it cannot find its bearing, it has been tossed about. When the core “Owerri zone” is in need of Ngor Okpala it “adopts” it only to abandon the LGA after getting what they want politically.
When Mbaise clan needs Ngor Okpala, it will become their “brothers” only to be jettisoned immediately the political “Bread” arrives.
Since the inception of the present political dispensation in 1999, only two Ngor Okpala sons have come out to contest for Imo Governorship seat.
The first was Chief George Eke in 2007; the other is Prof Jude Njoku in 2015. This was years after Dr Basil Nnanna Ukaegbu rubbed shoulders with Dr Sam Mbakwe and others in the days of yore.
However, Njoku and Eke can tell you their experiences during the Governorship adventures. Their major distractions came from their brothers in Ngor Okpala who worked against them. Prof Jude Njoku could not even been allowed to produce delegates from his own immediate political ward, Obiangwu.
When Rt Hon Emeka Ihedioha first told Imo people that he was running for Imo Governorship election, it was his brothers like Late Chief Joe Ndu, Dr Iregbu and Co who “persuaded” him in his compound to join the race. I was there.
Mbaise believe that charity must always begin from home. And that nobody can claim to love you more than your blood brother.
Being afraid of Mbaise nation is simply to accept defeat and it showns inferiority complex. Rather, whoever aspires to be like Mbaise people should emulate them than be afraid of them or even denigrate them
My last take is that Mbaise rather than get dejected should be proud, because that they exude fear among others means respect.
