By Basil Okoh
Anioma State is possible and will be created. The fact of its possible creation is now a public matter as the senate bill for its creation goes through public hearing in Uyo beginning from July 4.
The agitation for the creation of Anioma State has never gotten this far before.
This is the inspired message senator Ned Nwoko is sending to the nine local governments that will form the founding territory of Anioma State. This gives us self belief and the confidence to hope.
The possibility of the creation of a state for the Anioma people will form the basis of engagement with the rest of the country from July 4 onwards.
It is the day of the American independence and we hope the day will begin the public engagements that will herald our Anioma state.
To be or not to be is truly the question that the hopes and aspirations of the Anioma people hangs on.
We will make the most of that day and the subsequent days that require our engagement.
The halls will be full and overflow into the streets and that’s how we are going to keep it until we have our state.
For the Anioma people, there should be no need to be overawed by the hurdles in the long process to state creation.
Difficulties are made to test the will of men. Anioma people are strong and resolute. And we are long distance runners.
And for the man who champions the cause, Ned Nwoko, his self belief and confidence is so strong and infective to everyone who meets and engages him on the cause of Anioma.
Ned Nwoko has not asked for anyone’s financial assistance, even though we all need to make contributions to achieve our collective goal of a state of our own.
Then the maleficent conditions set forth in the constitution as requirements for the creation of states should not kill the zeal to achieve our dream.
More importantly, the fear of failure must not be allowed to kill the collective passion for our cause.
For a people that are inherently cynical of political promises and commitments, we are confounded by the single minded pursuit of the Anioma goal by Ned Nwoko, who for all intent and purposes, has very little to gain from the creation of Anioma state.
He is a man of the world with the capacity to make a home in any part of the world. But we question his intent, his interests and his commitment to stay so focused on the goal.
He is spending tonnes of his own money for the purpose but our only response is to doubt his intent. Why?
Why is Ned Nwoko spending so much of his own money to pursue the cause of the creation of Anioma State? What will be his gain?
One man told me a few days ago: “You must be bloody fooling me, saying that Ned does not want to be governor to recover his money and gain from his effort? No sir, Ned just wants to remain a senator.
Ned Nwoko is a hard nosed businessman, he must have a hidden interest in Anioma that we don’t know about yet, another said to me.
I was forced to answer. “What if Ned truly has a vested economic or political interest in the creation of the state? Will his interests, whatever it is, take away the fact that we own a long desired state of our own?
Can Ned Nwoko become the king of Anioma? Will he own all infrastructure of the state or seize the vote of everyone?
Our people have been so politically and economically abused, cheated and oppressed for so long that we no longer recognise good intent and goodwill when we see one.
For us, every goodwill has a snake coiled around it and we must first deal with the cobra, viper or python before we accept the goodwill.
One of my kinsmen, an old guard of the Ifeanyi Okowa group called and yelled at me on the phone when he read my announcement of a public hearing.
”How can an educated man like you, someone we thought to be an intellectual trust a politician like Ned Nwoko? Can’t you see that he is playing us on the Anioma matter”?
“Anioma state cannot be created. The process is too daunting and have you considered the political balancing between North and Southern Nigeria”?
My answer was simple. Of course I shouted back: “What’s wrong with being played? I’ve been played many times before, on big and small issues and sometimes I lost money.
”This may just be another round of being played. And yes, I know the politics of Nigeria better than you do. I’ve lived it all my life”.
There was silence and a defeated finality when he spoke, as if he was talking to himself, he said: “You’re a shameless man. Ned has given you money”.
Maintaining my equanimity I responded: “Yeah, I don’t see anything wrong with getting money.
By the way, what do you think he will be paying me for, for supporting the creation of my own state”?
I’ve been supporting the creation of Anioma State since 1981 with senator Nosike Ikpo, Dr. George Orewa and many others who have passed on”.
He was silent for a while and then he just said: “get lost” and cut the call.
The truth is that we are so sold to mistrust and unbelief and beyond cynicism, we are so lacking in the will to act for the collective good, so we make projections that everyone has been bought who supports Ned Nwoko to agitate for Anioma State.
This is an evidence that the will of the people to act for collective progress is being undermined. And so like Plato’s cave men, we are so afraid of the consciousness of light or progress that we are ready to undermine anyone who promises us light.
We are ready to argue that motion is not possible even while standing on a macadamized road.
In my very encounters with Ned Nwoko, I’ve come to see that he is a man with very strong self belief. He is also a man of strong will.
On the matter of Anioma State creation he has set his mind on it and is determined to see it through.
Anyone will be wasting their time, trying to convince him to lay off. He has the energy, enthusiasm and the unwavering commitment to see his mission through, no matter the obstacle placed on the way.
The obstacles he sees on the way are actually coming from elite Anioma people, politicians particularly, who are deeply jealous of the love and popularity he is getting from the masses of Anioma.
These jealousies are actually what propels him on. Ned Nwoko is the kind of man who in the face of criticism, doubles his efforts to succeed. Because he is a man of means, energy, education and strong character, he has no fear of human challenges.
He believes his wealth, energy, education and strong character will come useful in his confrontation of challenges.
The Anioma state will be created, if only for the boundless energy and commitment of its Chief Protagonist, Senator Ned Nwoko. But he needs the crowds of Anioma to stand by him as he gets into fights for what he has taken as a personal challenge.
That it has never been done before is no reason to believe that it cannot be done now.
After all, someone untied the Gordian knot which had never been done before. And you see, God wants us always to do new things.
@basilokoh.
