One of the few benefits enjoyed by people being ruled with an iron fist is that they enjoy maximum security as external forces or internal forces and non-state actors wouldn’t dare threaten the state or the people in it for the fear of the strong man in power, maka na ebube agụ na eche agụ.
It’s why a lot of lovers of Nigeria have briefly romanced the idea of a “Benevolent Dictator” as expressed by Chinua Achebe in his book, No Longer at Ease, when Obi Okonkwo returned to Nigeria and saw the level of the rot in the system and felt that maybe, a benevolent dictator could be the only way out.
Obi Okonkwo’s sentiments have been shared by majority of ndi Enugu who have felt that perhaps, an unfeeling governor who does whatever he wants without caring whose ox is gored would be best to lead Enugu into the 4th Industrial Revolution.
It’s why there seems to be a conspiracy silence and subtle acceptance of Gov. Peter Mba’s “unusual” methods.
Enugu people believe that if a total disconnection with their leader, some painful short notice demolitions without compensation here and there, a sprinkle of tiny painful over taxation, some slightly stringent policies on land use and sales,etc are the prices they have to pay for the development of Enugu State, then they wouldn’t mind as long as there are works being done.
And true to the word, there are works being done across the state and it’s there for all to see.
Whether the works being done are in tandem with the budgetary provisions, FAAC revenue allocations and tax revenue generated, is a topic for another day.
And the truth is, most Enugu people do not really care if you purchased a goat for 50 thousand naira and claimed that it was purchased for 10 million naira. They’re just glad to see that the goat was purchased.
However, what we have not seen is Gov. Peter Mba going after Kidnappers in Enugu State with the same iron fist he has dealt everyone else in Enugu State.
The lion that faced sit at home enforcers squarely and ended it, giving maximum punishment to civil servants who refused to go to work because they were afraid of Unknown Gunmen and forcing traders to open their shops whether they liked it or not, and didn’t flinch even when someone was killed in the same process.
The same lion that imposed taxes on traders, giving them ultimatum to pay and then proceeded to demolish their shops few weeks after they’ve just paid their taxes, and till today, has refused to show his face there, let alone look at the faces of the thousands of displaced traders and compensate them.
An attitude that literally says, “I don’t give f*ck”.
The same lion, when it comes to kidnappers at Opi-Ekwegbe-Ugwogo-Abakpa Nike road, suddenly turns to a squirrel.
In 553 days of Peter Mba’s iron fist rule of Enugu State, Kidnappers along that very road have operated freely with reckless abandon, as though the road was their inheritance for them to rob, kidnap and kill road users at will.
The worst part of it all is that almost all the reported cases happen during the day when all the nearly 15 police/army/vigilantes checkpoints are active.
The cases have even doubled since Gov. Peter Mba sent his Distress Response Squad (DSR) down there.
The kidnappers seem to be looking at Peter Mba eyeball 👀 to eyeball 👀 and telling him, “you can’t do anything to us. Your strong 💪 fist ✊ is only strong enough to deal with poor Enugu traders and civil servants, not criminals”.
If not, how can you explain that high and low profile individuals have been captured and dealt with by the kidnappers, including the Governor’s close friends and allies like his own Campaign DG, Chief Ikeje Asogwa, whom as a matter of fact, had security details and was still attacked.
Poor travelers in public transports are kidnapped daily, rich people in exotic cars are kidnapped too, top politicians and high ranking office holders with security details are kidnapped too.
I would have said that travelers along that road can only depend on the blood of Jesus Christ for protection, but a Reverend father was kidnapped too, just the other day. Even the Api Opi Deity located along that road couldn’t protect her own customers, allowing kidnappers to scare off her customers.
The situation is terrible. One might even assume that the reason Peter Mba himself hasn’t been attacked too on that road is because of his unspoken policy to remain completely unreachable and out of touch with the people he is ruling which has made it possible for him not to use that road frequently.
Gov. Peter Mba’s cluelessness in handling kidnappers colonizing one of the most important roads in the state, a road so important that he himself said he was in a hurry to dualize it and has gone ahead to flag off construction, is proving to us that maybe our strong man in power isn’t really strong after all.
Or at least, not strong enough to protect his friends and his people that made him Governor.
Perhaps, he could be likened to the Proverbial spider web; too strong for the weak, but too weak for the strong.
The Lion has this festive season to prove that he’s not a squirrel 🐿 hiding under the lion’s 🦁 clothing, by ensuring that there is zero kidnap cases along Opi-Ekwegbe-Ugwogo-Abakpa Nike road throughput this Yuletide Season.
It’s time for Peter the Rock to be hard on kidnappers and non-state actors, and be a bit soft on ndi Enugu.
Noting that Section 14(2)(b) of the Nigerian Constitution states that “The security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government.” Meaning that if this everyday kidnapping continues, Governor Peter Mba has failed in his primary purpose.
We cannot successfully make Enugu a 30 billion dollar economy if we spend everything we have on paying ransoms to kidnappers, repairing bullet ridden cars and burying dead bodies they left behind.
The “Tomorrow is here” mantra I supported and voted for, is not a tomorrow where I have to be scared of traveling home for Christmas.
Time is of the essence…
Ugwuagbo Emmanuel Chizoba is a Journalist and Scholar based in Enugu.
