Article written by Reno Omokri. Read on.
By now, I am sure my readers have read
the very disparaging comments against
former President Goodluck Jonathan which
were credited to the leader of the
Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu.
So pedestrian are those comments that I
will not repeat them here. You can Google
them on your own if you have not read
them but I will not stain my writing space
by republishing them.
Ndi’Igbo needs friends and support. No
one can win in life if they walks solo.
Ecclesiastes 4:11 says ‘if two lie together,
then they have heat: but how can one be
warm alone?’
It was for lack of friends that Ndi’Igbo
were defeated between 1967-1970. Is
history about to repeat itself? You do not
alienate the few friends you have and
expect to attract more friends.
This is the advantage the North has over
Ndi’Igbo. They know their friends. If with
all Jonathan did for Ndi’Igbo someone can
dismiss him with the wave of the hand so
casually and accuse him of doing nothing
for Ndi’Igbo and Ndi’Igbo would applaud
such a person instead of calling him to
order, then do not expect those who are
watching Ndi’Igbo acquiesce to this
mistreatment of Jonathan to do anything
for Ndi’Igbo when or if they get into
power.
If Jonathan can be so treated, then who is
sacrosanct?
There are those who have said Jonathan
lost the 2015 elections because his
fondness for Ndi’Igbo alienated him from
other sections of Nigeria. Today, people
who hold such opinions are laughing at
Jonathan.
The fact that not even one prominent
leader amongst Ndi’Igbo has stood up to
condemn the hate speech against Jonathan
is telling.
This is a man who was the first person
since the end of the civil war to make
Ndi’Igbo Secretary to the Government of
the Federation and Chief of Army Staff. For
41 years before Jonathan, not one Ndi’Igbo
came near such position.
Alas, none of the many Ndi’Igbo who
benefited from appointments under
Jonathan could stand up to defend him
against those very mean words from
Nnamdi Kanu.
What a lesson to anyone who may be
planning to toe the path of Jonathan! What
a lesson.
My advice to you and the Igbo race, go and
learn diplomacy. It will help you more than
physical strength and academic intelligence.
Only a month ago, In my widely published
article ‘Hegemony: What the Igbo can learn
from Yoruba and Fulani about power’, I
advised Ndi’Igbo, saying that the Igbo
often mistake discretion for weakness.
Nnamdi Kanu proves my point! Calling Dr.
Goodluck Jonathan weak is just a
manifestation of what I wrote about.
Nnamdi Kanu needs to understand
something about leadership. Leadership is
a platform that gives you the opportunity to
increase your influence or reduce it until it
is eliminated.
Upon his release, public sympathy for him
increased his influence. The successful sit at
home further increased it. However, his
utterances since then have been steadily
reducing his influence.
I know Chief Femi Fani-Kayode very well. He
will soon hear the things Nnamdi Kanu said
about the Yorubas. He has already heard
about the things Nnamdi Kanu said about
Jonathan. It will not be very long before
Nnamdi Kanu loses one of his most valiant
non Igbo supporter. Apparently, what the
Nigerian government couldn’t do to
Nnamdi Kanu, Nnamdi Kanu is using his
own mouth to do to himself!
Why does this keep reoccurring? Anytime I
read or hear about Madiba Nelson Mandela,
I have bittersweet memories. Why? Because
we could have had our own Mandela in
another Nnamdi!
Nnamdi Azikiwe was at one time known all
over Africa as Zik of Africa. It was a thing of
pride and joy to pre-independent Nigeria.
Everyone was proud of Zik including
Northerners. This is a fact.
But the story ended tragically. No matter
what may have happened to him through
his political choices and alliances, it was a
very great disappointment that a man who
reached the peak of his political career as
Zik of Africa ended up allowing himself to
be known as the Owelle of Onitsha, not
even of Nigeria, or Igboland or even
Anambra, but of Onitsha.
The new Nnamdi ought to learn from this
tragedy. When he was released, believe it or
not, he was hailed and celebrated far
beyond the borders of Igboland.
On social media, every Wale, Dakolo and
Nosa sang his praises. He was Nnamdi
Kanu, the hero of the oppressed.
