Straddling both the executive and legislative arms of government in the course of one’s political career is not always easy. But Emeka Ihedioha, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, whose trademark green cap has come to symbolise his prowess in the Lower Chamber of the National Assembly, does not worship the god of impossibilities, writes Ikechukwu Amaechi.
On Wednesday, October 15, Emeka Ihedioha, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, took a giant step in his blossoming political career when he picked the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) expression of interest and nomination forms to contest the Imo State governorship election in 2015.
He was one of the first PDP aspirants to do so, validation of the perception held by many that he is a man of conviction. He has courage. And every step he has taken in his eventful political career has been measured and well considered.
That is the difference between him and most other Nigerian politicians who nourish their political career on the diet of pretension and self-importance. He is unlike others who, even when they make up their minds to run for office, claim they are waiting for the people to beg them to contest.
Not Ihedioha. For him, power in a democracy belongs to the people, and whoever wants to serve must not only be sure of himself but seek the hand of the electorate in the journey of fate.
He has supreme confidence in his own ability and, therefore – rather than waiting to be begged or persuaded by the people – stepped out in the arena, offering himself for service.
Though he is not an unknown quantity, unlike some of the pretenders on stage, he is a disciple of the belief that in politics, humility is not only a virtue, but everything. Leadership is about service, and if Nigeria is to make progress, there must be a paradigm shift where the only motivation to seek public office is the willpower to promote public good.
Ihedioha insists he wants to be the next occupant of Douglas House (Imo State Government House) because he has the capacity to enthrone good governance.
He points at his record as a federal lawmaker. “I have discharged my duties professionally and creditably in the legislature. And I will even do more for my people if given an executive mandate,” he told The Niche in Abuja.
“I have the track record, antecedent and credentials. The surprise will be if I do not do well in executive.”
His friends fondly address him by his traditional chieftaincy title, “Ome nke ahuru anya,” which means “one whose good works are there for all to see.”
That was the title bestowed on him by his Mbaise community. Though it is only one of his numerous chieftaincy titles, it is for good reason that he has adopted it as the campaign pay-off. And he has every reason to exult.
Born on March 24, 1965 in Mbutu Mbaise, Imo State, Ihedioha studied food science and technology at the University of Lagos, where he graduated in 1988.
Since then, he has taken courses at Stanford and Harvard Universities, both in the United States; and he is an alumnus of Oxford University, England; London School of Economics; and University of British Columbia, Canada.
But it is in public office, particularly as a federal lawmaker, that he has exhibited extra-ordinary brilliance, turning out to be one of the shining stars of the present democratic dispensation.
When the bells of democracy tolled in 1999, Ihedioha was appointed Special Assistant to the Presidential Adviser on Utilities; Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the Senate President and eventually Special Assistant on Political Matters to the Vice President in September 2001.
But he has made the most impact as a member of the House of Representatives representing Aboh Mbaise-Ngor Okpala Federal Constituency of Imo State since 2003.
Perceptive colleagues saw in him a budding lawmaking icon and appointed him Chairman of the House Committee on Marine Transport in 2003. He did not disappoint. He was the brain behind the passage of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Act, 2007, which reformed the maritime industry to allow for increased participation of Nigerians.
When Ihedioha was re-elected in 2007, he served first as Chairman, House Committee on Cooperation and Integration in Africa before he was elected Chief Whip. He also served as Chairman of various ad-hoc committees, including those on Process and Procedure for Obtaining Local and Foreign Loans and Sub-Committee on the Review of Police Act.
The icing on the cake came on June 6, 2011 when he was unanimously elected Deputy Speaker.
Again, he has not disappointed colleagues who repose confidence in him. As Deputy Speaker, he has served as Chairman, House Ad-Hoc Committee on New Legislative Agenda, and Ad-Hoc Committee on Constitution Review.
This is aside being Chairman, Committee of the Whole, in which capacity he presides over the consideration of committee reports.
But it is not only Ihedioha’s fellow legislators who have recognised his leadership qualities. The PDP appointed him Chairman of the screening panel of its special national convention in 2012, and Chairman, publicity committee of the 2013 special national convention.
While he has excelled in lawmaking, from which the entire country has benefitted, he has also proved in the last 12 years to be an effective representative of his constituents in particular and Imo in general, using his legislative position to attract federal projects to the state.
What was your mission when you aspired to be a lawmaker? Ihedioha was asked.
He paused and said: “To contribute my quota towards realising the dream of a vibrant legislature that is fully aware of its rights, duties and responsibilities to the Nigerian citizenry and committed to upholding and discharging them in an equitable manner without fear or favour.”
This mission, he stressed, emanated from his vision of performing his legislative functions “for the common good of the people of Nigeria irrespective of cradle, creed, or calling and regardless of any prejudice or preconceived interest.”
Almost 12 years down the road, Ihedioha is confident that he has realised his mission in the National Assembly. History, he said, with a smile dancing on his lips, will be kind to him.
For him, it is time to go back home to lift Imo people from the depths of poverty and bad governance which they have plumbed for so long.
Reminded that the PDP field is crowded, he smiled again, contending that it is good that the party’s first eleven are interested in pulling Imo back from the brink.
But he expressed confidence that he will pick the ticket. But the battle to reclaim Imo, he said, will be a collective responsibility.
“Together, we will reclaim Imo from dictatorship and deceit and transform it into a culture of excellence and dignity in statecraft.”
The era of deceit in politics is gone, he said, in answer to the question of what gives him the confidence that he will get the PDP ticket.
“Today, the people are wiser. At the end of the day, it all boils down to the man whose good deeds they can see. And I am, even at the risk of being immodest, the only Ome nke ahuru anya in the pack. What I have done, which the people have testified to, stands me in good stead.”
So enthused Ihedioha – Commander Order of the Niger (CON), a Knight of Saint Christopher (Anglican Communion), voted one of Nigeria’s 50 Most Outstanding Legislators (1999-2009) – as he picked yet another telephone call from a constituent, one of the several calls in less than 30 minutes of this interview.
