The Nigerian chequered political history will be incomplete without the mention of a military politician whose knack for socio-political maneuver and unpredictability earned such a great notoriety that the entire society perceived him as a master dribbler and was nicknamed ‘Maradona’. All over the world, the Argentine soccer maestro Diego Maradona was rated second to the legendry Brazilian Pele whose skill in the most popular sports of football remain unrivalled and unbeatable up till date.
Similarly, in the game of politics, Nigeria is yet to produce another politician of the military extraction particularly whose savvy for political trickery, ambushes or maneuver can be equated to that of Gen (rtd) Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (IBB) whose unbridled disposition to struggle for political power by all means was chiefly responsible for dragging the Nation into disrepute amongst comity of nations as the worst case in history where the collective will of a people was fragrantly raped. The botched June 12, 1993 Presidential election is one political scare that will remain as the truly indelible as heinous apartheid regime in South Africa under the infamous Piete Botha. All these are history today, just in the same way today’s events will chronicle the history of tomorrow.
By all reckoning, the political history of Imo State will forever hold Owelle accountable for masterminding an era when the unsuspecting innocent indigenes of Imo State were confronted with a barrage of alien policies which deviate so much from the societal norms, even negates to great extent the cardinal tenets of the rule of law and the principles of due process.
In what many analysed as executive recklessness, the administration of Owelle is known for inconsistency and inexplicable surprises. Under the cloak of the Rescue Mission Mantra, everybody’s consciousness has been reawakened to the fact that Imo people have never been subjected to such a height of policy Somersault in any previous regimes than the present government. Even when one pretends to overlook the discernible contradictions in such situation were these myriads of strange policies are quite antithetical to the much sing song agenda my people! My people!! The burden of the act of experimentation with governance is taking great tolls on the common masses. Regardless of an acknowledged quality of political will exhibited by this great champion of the Rescue Mission crusaders, it is often evident that the masses are not at ease with most of these unusual policies. Consequently, several of such policies end up hitting the rock in the forms of public agitations, resentment or outright repudiation that compels the policy makers to always equally make U-turns as often as they indulged in rolling out more and more of it. The scenario has generated much criticism, triggered off unwarranted cynicism and also cast much doubts in the sincerity of purpose of the Rescue Mission government. In fact, the tendency with which detours and u-turns are simultaneously taken seem to make a non-sense of the initial political will power displayed at taking a venture in the first place into rash regrettable decisions.
It is essential to draw a distinction between the act of governance and the game of politics. In politicking, one may be tempted to be unconventional, ignore norms and ethics, but governance is quite a different ball game being equally a continuum that must adhere to extant principles that were systematically created as fundamental guides to qualitative leadership. Also, policies which serve as the main leadership bearing define the principles, ethical relationship, charter or purpose of a government, organization or an enterprise. They (policies) provide the structure with guidelines, rules, and roles, and procedure which will guide behaviour and shape expectations and decisions of the actors.
A policy is the mechanism through which the executive transmits its values, aspirations and motivation for the overall purpose of achieving institutional goals. To this end, a policy (or
The attitude of inconsistency is the fall out of over-zealousness which the Owelle’s government imbibed in the course of being in a hurry to deliver. This explains why the ship of Imo State is sailing like a rudderless one captained by a government whose policy thrust is unfounded. Resultantly, policies are dished out and retracted at random. The implications of this disposition could be disastrous and unpalatable. For instance; the conversion of the erstwhile general hospital Umuguma to a specialist one would have been a blessing if such decision was well thought out and the policy properly implemented; instead it has earned us a great woe in that the hospital is now comatose with workers yet to receive outstanding eight (8) months salaries. Some workers in Imo State government ministries and parastatals were suddenly retired or sacked including permanent secretaries whose case is now a pen in the ass to the state government which is re-considering that blunder. This administration suffers vituperations till date for the sacking of elected council members and LGA Chairmen, repudiation of the Ohakim’s 10,000 jobs for the Imo Youths and introduction of the pre-mature baby, the community governing council (CGC) popularly and formerly known as the fourth tier government which is still in the incubators intended to jettison the constitutionally provided third tier. The CGC as it operates in Imo State contrary to expectations of both the public and government is nearly moribund and inactive due to the absence of the Town Union Presidents. The supposedly revered traditional rulers institution was severely tampered with the abrupt and illegal removal of Eze Cletus Ike Ilomuanya and replacement with the cosmetic Eze Samuel Ohiri as the state Council of traditional rulers Chairman with the attendant depletion of the respect and integrity of that institution. The court of law has disapproved most of these changes and Owelle is bound to make a u-turn for peace to reign. Similarly, the relocation of Imo State University to Ogboko is another glaring policy statement which earned Owelle so much lambasting from the public and stakeholders like that of the President Goodluck Jonathan’s rejected gesture of re-naming the ivy University of Lagos to Moshood Abiola University in honour of the late MKO Abiola as the martyr of the Nigerian Democracy. In fact, His Excellency, Governor Owelle Rochas Okorocha’s fame did not soar higher with the declaration of multi-campuses for the Imo State Polytechnic at Mbano and Orlu as the case may be. The people of Umuagwo Community which host the maim campus of Imo State Polytechnic refused to be convinced that Owelle did not intend to short change them. Another matter was the Imo Monumental Hotel proposed on the housing Area K of World Bank Estate site which compulsory acquisition by the Imo State government under the Rescue Mission’s dispensation was vehemently resisted being perceived as sequestration by the Amawom family land owners. It is stating the obvious that Owelle’s rescue mission government may not definitely obviate the difficulties of the masses through policies like the unacceptable commercialization of ministries and parastatals which concessioned ADAPALM for twenty (20) years and the project twenty (27) new general hospitals to ROCHE and LANTECH companies respectively. The proposed commercialization of ministries and parastal was dead on arrival but the surviving concessioning did not go down well with Imo people in that both the industrial and health sector totter towards collapse as a result of ill-conception and ill-implementation of radical policy decision under Byzantine Rochanomics principles. Much to the chagrin of a bewildered masses of the Imo People, the mesmerized elite, the general public of the Nigerian populace, the Governor of Imo State, His Excellency Owelle Rochas Anayo Okorocha (OON) conspired with the docile legislative arm of the state government to embarrass the respected people of Imo State, the Igbo race and the entire secular Nation of the Nigerian nation state to roll out law No. 12 of 2012 to promote abortion.
Although an intrepid clique of women under the aegis of pro-gender group of the Federation of International Women lawyers (FIDA) attempt at drumming support for the obnoxious law, the situation tensed up the polity so much as to further drag Owelle into the invidious tight position of between the contemplation of repealing or sustaining the abortion law even after rendering public apology before His grace Catholic Archbishop AJV Obinna. From the foregoing, the bitter pills column is conscious of the fact that the characteristic aspect of the Rescue Mission Czar in policy U-Turn indulgence lean so much on a despotic disposition to foist perfidious policies on Imo People without recourse to public opinion. This attitude has provoked a serious ailment of policy somersault syndrome on Owelle’s government.
