Igala let's think

“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”  Mark Twain

If power shifts to either the West or Central, I don’t think the world will come to an end. The chaps from the West and Central are not aliens. They are Kogietes and Kogi ought to be an equal opportunity state. 

If you ask me, we should leave the scene; go back to the drawing board to articulate the economic and political agenda of the Igala race. This can come in the form of an Igala Leadership and Economic Summit.  

There we will sit down and deliberate on the leadership and economic challenges of the Igala Nation and suggest the way forward. I recall sometime in 2009, Igala Project did set up a committee to host the first ever Igala Economic Summit. I was privileged to be a member of that committee. 

We held meetings, paid advocacy visits to people, institutions and even the Attah of Igala. But we could not present our case to the governor because some elements felt we had sinister motives. And as such the summit shouldn’t hold. And the then governor, Ibro, who is and still remains the greatest disservice to the Igala race wouldn’t grant us audience. And I was ashamed of being Igala.   

I think it is important for us to understand something. The Igala Race is lacking fundamentally in two critical areas, and they are lack of sound economic direction or blueprint and the presence of greedy and completely hopeless political class. 

The present crops of politicians of Igala extraction are mediocre politicians.  I will start with the political class because it informed the basis of this write-up. Prince Abubakar Audu has departed, how many people can come out to say they understand and identified with his brand of politics? How many people did he groom to carry on with the political ideology (if there was any). 

This also applies to Ibrahim Idris, Ubolo Okpanachi, Nicholas Ugbane, Salihu Atawodi, Alex Kadiri, Isaac Alfa, Sani Ogu, Sylvester Onoja, Joe Agada and others too numerous to mention. The answer is a huge no. This is the starkness of the reality on ground. 

All they do is encourage young boys and girls to go into thuggery in return for a plate of porridge. And the foolish boys and girls in return worships and hail their slave master.  In essence, what is happening can be best described as slave and slave master relationship (Stockholm syndrome) and the earlier we nip it in the bud the better for our children and grandchildren.

On the economy, the state was created 24 years ago. Take a trip to Igala land and tell me if you won’t almost feel and smell abject poverty. I will use Idah as an example, what happened to Idah Sanitary Ware Company? And many other economic ventures in Igala land? I can’t write anymore because it’s getting emotional for me.

If power shifts, it would be a welcome development and the perfect opportunity for us to go back to the drawing board to task ourselves mentally, socio-economically and politically. It’s just a shame! 

 

By Joshua Ocheja