He who thinks he leads but without followers, according to John Maxwell, is only taking a walk. This is how the President of Ndigbo Cultural Society of Nigeria (NCSN), UDOKA UDEOGARANYA, sees opposition politicians in the North and South West, in this encounter with Senior Copy Editor, INNOCENT ANORUO.
It was at a location on Lekki Phase One, Lagos. Dressed casually in a pair of knickers and aso oke top, Udeogaranya, after some banters, told our reporter the essence of NCSN, stressing that it is a non-governmental, non-profit organisation that is into the promotion of Ndigbo affairs and well-being in Nigeria.
“It is also a pressure group on all forms. We are interested in every area of life as far as Ndigbo are concerned; be it culture, economy, politics. And we want to see Ndigbo get their fair share when it comes to any issue,” he added.
On account of his submission, Udeogaranya was taken on the issue of Ohanaeze Ndigbo having a gentleman’s agreement with President Goodluck before the last general elections. He was reminded that the agreement was for Ndigbo to vote for Jonathan in 2011, so that in 2015 when it would be their turn, the president would support their candidate for the presidency.
But he would have none of it. “I was not aware of such pact; that in 2015 an Igbo will emerge. If Ohanaeze did that, it is almost impossible for them to implement that. Usually, you don’t tell a sitting president to pack and leave. If a sitting president wants to continue in office, the best you can do is to support him to finish his constitutional mandate. Then it is also expected of him that when Ndigbo will be running for that office, he should be generous enough to compensate them for their support,” he told TheNiche.
He did not mince words on the fact that his group is behind Jonathan’s re-election.
His words: “For us in NCSN, our support to Jonathan is premised on the ground that he will support Ndigbo aspiration come 2019 when he must have vacated the office, based on the constitutional limitations.”
The NCSN president has a word for Northerners who think that Jonathan is not supposed to contest another election, claiming that a competent court of authority and jurisdiction has ruled on the matter. The court, he said, made it clear that Jonathan has the right to contest this election or right of refusal. “On this note, the remaining part of Umaru Yar’Adua’s tenure that he presided over, according to the court, was necessitated upon the National Assembly document on Doctrine of Necessity. Based on that, he had to complete the remaining tenure of his predecessor, Yar’Adua. After that, he contested for his own mandate, and Nigerians gave him overwhelming support. It is clear to everybody that the president has legal and constitutional right to contest the election, if he so wishes. In fact, our organisation has urged him severally to contest, and we are happy with the signals we are getting,” he stressed.
What are Jonathan’s chances if decides to contest, given that the North and South West seem to be in the opposition; leaving only South South and South East to support him? The NCSN leader expressed optimism that the president is more popular than any opposition leader in the country.
“Don’t be surprised that on the day of the election, majority of the Northern electorate will vote for Jonathan. People from the North have ruled this country for nearly 40 years, with little or nothing to show to the people of the North. It is Jonathan that took the bull by the horns, and, for the first time, sent the al-majiri to school. These (al-majiri) are people who Northern leaders have no considerations for. But Jonathan, even as a South South man, did it. He has done so well for them.
“Look at the appointments at the federal level. Look at the roads and bridges in the North. No president from the North has been so good to the North more than Jonathan. So, there will be an overwhelming support for Jonathan.
“Take a look at Ibrahim Shekarau; he was in the All Progressives Congress (APC). But he ran out and joined Jonathan because the testimonies are there. And you can see the crowd that embraced him in Kano. On the day of election, you will see Jonathan winning virtually all the states in the North. He has the teeming support of real Northerners who have the interest of the North at heart, because he is doing beyond their expectation,” he said.
For him, the insecurity in the North East is the handiwork of Jonathan’s detractors.
Nigerians, he said, have come to the conclusion that Boko Haram was introduced and being sponsored by the detractors of Jonathan’s government, adding that the menace has, however, turned out a blessing because people have ignored them, despite the high level of violence they unleash on the state.
On the allegation that leaders of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) gave Jonathan overwhelming support in 2011, which led to his landslide victory, Udeogaranya said: “In 2011, I was the Chairman of African Renaissance Party (ARP) in Lagos State. I was in full picture of what transpired in Lagos. As a matter of fact, I had already migrated to be the leader of the opposition parties in Lagos called the Lagos League of Political Parties. The people you mentioned were not in any mile in control of the Lagos or South West electorate. The same people you are mentioning fought tooth and nail and still lost the governorship election in Ekiti State woefully.
“So, I can authoritatively tell you that they have no hold on any electorate. No candidate from the North can defeat Jonathan in the South West any day any time. Jonathan is going to sweep the entire South West on Election Day, including Osun State.”
If Jonathan wins the presidential election in 2015, what’s in it for Ndigbo, our reporter asked the NCSN facilitator.
He remarked: “This is the first time a government is recognising Ndigbo. This is the first time we are having Chief of Army Staff (COAS). This is the first time we are having the Lagos-Ore-Benin-Asaba-Onitsha highway motorable. This is the first time we are given international airport – the upgrade of the Enugu local airport to international standard, etc.
“So NCSN is saying that the continuity of Jonathan is the continuity of these goodies, and more.”
In 2011, some groups like Neighbour-to-Neighbour (N2N) worked so hard to see that Jonathan was elected as president. For 2015 election, NCSN says it is not losing sleep over Jonathan’s re-election, as it is not seeing any real opposition.
“Every election year, you have a time for campaigns. When it comes to that, every group goes out to campaign. As you can see, many organisations are hooking up with the Goodluck Support Group (GSG). So the support is massive. We don’t lose sleep over Jonathan’s re-election. As far as we are concerned, there is no opposition. Who is the opposition; is it Muhammadu Buhari, Atiku Abubakar or who?” he added.