MIKE EJIOGU AND THE TEST OF CHARACTER KIZITO DURU -

Spread the love

MIKE EJIOGU AND THE TEST OF CHARACTER

KIZITO DURU

One of the things that has caught my attention about Chief Mike Ejiogu (Onowu Anara) is the goodwill he appears to enjoy across Okigwe Zone. You hear his name in different circles and the response is often same: people speaking about his accessibility, his relationships and the way he relates with ordinary people. I have been paying attention to this because political campaigns can create a lot of noise, but they can also reveal something about a man. In Ejiogu’s case, however, the interesting thing is that much of the goodwill around him did not begin with this campaign. It appears to have been accumulated over years.

Ejiogu appears is a relationship builder. He does not strike me as someone who remembers people only when he needs their support. He has maintained relationships with people across different walks of life, including people who have no political value to him. A man of his social and economic standing could easily restrict his circle to people of similar status, but he seems comfortable with ordinary people. He fraternises with the lowly without appearing to be conscious of the difference in status. For me, that is one of those little things that tells you how a man understands life.

It is also why I believe we make a mistake when we judge politicians only by what they do during campaigns. Election periods can turn almost anyone into a saint. People who were inaccessible suddenly become accessible. Those who rarely visited their communities suddenly become regular visitors. Politicians suddenly discover compassion, humility and an interest in the poor. Some of it is real, but some of it is simply part of political branding. The more useful question is: who was this person before he needed our votes?

That question is germane in our consideration for Mike Ejiogu because his life did not begin with this senatorial ambition. Long before he answered the call to represent what he sees as the underrepresented people of Okigwe Zone, he had already built businesses, employed people, supported individuals and nurtured relationships. His interest in human development preceded his political ambition and it is interesting to remember that he had affected lives without the gains of any political office. There is a man behind the politician, and that man has a record of his own.

There is also something admirable about Onowu’s personality. Mike Ejiogu exudes positive energy. He is a people’s man and, in the most ordinary sense, the life of the party. He enters a space and attracts notice. He can engage people, make them comfortable and move across different social circles without appearing forced. This is not the sort of quality you find on a manifesto page, but it matters in public life. A politician is dealing with human beings every day. He has to build alliances, maintain relationships, negotiate interests and persuade people. A man who naturally connects with people has an advantage in that environment.

I think this quality will also matter in the Senate. Okigwe Zone should not send a representative who will simply become one more name in a crowded chamber. We should want a Senator who can speak with confidence, build relationships across political divides, lobby effectively and draw attention to the concerns of his people. The Senate is a place where personality, relationships and the ability to negotiate can matter as much as what is written on paper. I do not see Ejiogu as a man who will easily disappear into the crowd. He has the personality to command attention and the experience to engage the space.

Perhaps what gives me the most confidence is that I have encountered Ejiogu outside the narrow frame of politics. I have followed his story, met him and listened to him speak about his plans for Okigwe Zone. The man I see today is not completely different from the man whose life I encountered before he became a candidate. The same themes keep appearing: relationships, enterprise, resilience, empathy and the desire to see people make progress.

For me, that is the part of Mike Ejiogu’s candidacy worth paying attention to. Before he became a senatorial candidate, he was already a businessman, employer, philanthropist, family man and community leader. Before people started asking what he would do with political power, he was already using what he had to build something and influence lives around him. Now he wants to bring those experiences into the Senate.

And perhaps that is what Okigwe Zone should be looking at: not only the politician who is asking for our votes, but the man he has been all along. Because when the campaign is over and the posters come down, it is that man who will remain.