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DIG Onovo: Time for the Igbos to Fight for Their Rights By Saint Ikechukwu Okoroafor
In the last general election, the ruling
PDP won three out of the five states of the South East Nigeria as the
other two states were lost to Orji Uzor Kalu’s PPA for obvious reasons.
The credibility of the election is not within the purview of this
write-up. That is out of the question for now. The fact that the people
of those areas allowed the election to be rigged without much ado shows
that they have some sympathy for the party. After all, PDP did all they
could to rig elections in Lagos, Kano, Bauchi etc without success. Prior
to this period, all the five states namely Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu
and Imo were 100% PDP. This is a feat no other zone can boast of.
Suffice it to say that no part of this country can claim to be more PDP
than the Igbos.
In the light of the above, the Igbos are
entitled to a just and fair treatment from the PDP led government. They
have paid their dues and do not deserve to be taken for granted. The
recent sharing of positions by the PDP, unarguably an internal matter of
the party, does not favour the Igbos. It’s not too late to make
amendments. But this depends on how much pressure the Igbos put on the
party. If they do not fight for themselves no one else will. People will
trample on your head on the dance floor if you put your head down.
The gap created by the anomalies
associated with the lopsided appointments would have been closed if DIG
Ogbonoya Onovo had been appointed the Inspector General Police.
Unfortunately, the Yar’adua led government seems to be insensitive to
the plight of the Igbos and hence, decided to declare another officer as
acting IG after an earlier announcement that Onovo takes over from the
former IG. What informed this decision is still a mystery to most
Nigerians. And this singular act has portrayed the present government as
not different from the immediate past administration.
The question is not whether DIG Okiro is
Igbo or not. I am not out to contest that with the highly respected
officer. Just recently, I have seen that his middle name, Mbamaonyeukwu
(an Igbo word meaning a people who do not recognize greatness) is being
added to his add. Secondly, Okiro is no less qualified to occupy the
exalted position of the Inspector General of Police as Onovo is. The
question many are asking is that why did Yar’adua drop Ogbonoya Onovo?
Certainly not for lack of competence and/or integrity. Onovo is a no
nonsense cop who does not compromise on his professional calling. In
fact, he is regarded among other officers as one of the best police
officer in contemporary Nigeria police force. Is it not worthwhile to
reward this gentleman for his selfless service to the nation?
I am not an ethnic zealot and I am not
routing for Onovo because of my ethnic inclination. If I am not
mistaken, it was the late Sardauna of Sokoto, Sir Ahmadu Bello, who said
we i.e. Nigerians have to recognize and respect our differences to be
able to co-habit as a nation. Federal appointments have always being
made along the line of federal character. Every part of this country
cries of being marginalized whenever they feel they are not getting
their entitlements.
Another angle to this is that if no stir
has been caused by not choosing an Igbo in the person of Ogbonoya Onovo,
no one would have been telling us today that Okiro is an Igbo and we may
never have heard of the name Mbamaonyeukwu. Therefore, there is
everything wrong with the manner Onovo was treated. If five Igbos are
lined up for an appointment, is it not logical to give it to the most
qualified? Once we start to play mago mago with the selection,
then there is more to it than meet the ordinary eyes.
What is certain up till now is that the
federal government has not tendered any explanation for the unjust
treatment meted out to DIG Onovo. It is incumbent on all sons and
daughters of Igbo origin to demand for what is legitimately due to them.
Saint Ikechukwu Okoroafor
Petroleum Training Institute
Effurun
Delta State
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