This particular piece was prompted, as a matter of necessity, by the recent happenings in Imo state political circle with specific reference to the just concluded gubernatorial election. But I do not intend to make it in the traditional mode of article writing as what it’s going to make the content of this piece will be as raw as life experiences and what really led to the failure of the closest rival of the governor, Rochas Okorocha having found myself almost at the centre of all the heat, playing crucial roles as well.
Before the commencement of the election and even before the primary election of the PDP, I wrote in strict warning of what was of the making, the ‘impending’ electoral defeat if they could not speak and work in one strong accord.
Loading ...I reminded them about their history of failure in the state and what led to such abysmal but avoidable failures, but as forgetful as they were like the forgetful clown who was too stupid to remember what hit him only a short while ago, thus, continued to bump on the same object again and again; It has become expedient and for the sake of future occurrences that this piece is written, it will service as a working document for those that will need the revelation in this piece I wish to dub as a “working document”.
What is relayed in here like I stated earlier is based on verifiable and factual experiences and thus, if anyone would want to be a serial loser like the PDP in Imo state as a party and for the first time, Rt.Hon.Emeka Ihedioha as a person, one must adopt the principles as his or her own working document, it will advertently or inadvertently have the person recording his first electoral loss or having the party recording three serially and consecutive losses.
For the sole purpose of want of space, I will propose to hinge and narrow this deliberation explicitly on the principal actor and challenger of the incumbent governor during the last gubernatorial election in the state, Rt.Hon. Emeka Ihedioha.
I feel there is a need to tell my own part of the story of what and how and why Ihedioha failed on his bid to oust the present governor, Rochas Okorocha so that it could actually serve as reference point and caution to those who may still follow the same medieval roads to electoral success.
This is solely for future reference purposes as popular saying has it that experience is the best teacher.
It is also of a popular saying that those who never knew where the rain started beating them will not know where to dry their body. If only he listened to the crying lone voices from the wilderness, if only, if only, if only and if only….’had it been’ is always the last crying litany of a failure.
Not to fall into the same disingenuous spell of had it been, here is some list of what not to do as a candidate contesting Imo state gubernatorial election, according to Ihedioha’s first electoral failure blueprint, if the best way to learn, indeed, is learning from the failures and mistakes of other people, then, this keenly studied manifesto of failure must be in handy for any prospective contestant of the state’s coveted seat to desires not to fail.
Recycle and recall all past (failed) politicians to work with
The first admissible and most positively proven recipe for Imo electoral failure is by reviving, resuscitating and bringing to full force, the hitherto ‘done and dusted with’ old politicians whom the people often refer to as those who ruined their future and state- back to active politics. This is a proven fact as it played a very major and crucial role at the just concluded Imo election in all ramifications. Now, this is not having phobia or disrespect to our ederstatesmen and elders as some would want to misconstrue it but baring the facts as it had to do with the last election in the state with no apology.
Ihedioha, having been brought up in a deep traditional respectfully inclined clan of Aronta, where elders are most sought-after in sensitive matters as with regards to the running of the community as obtainable in the whole of Mbaise and neighboring clans as we saw for three consecutive electoral times, when elders of the land would prevail on the people to toll a particular direction of electoral choices, made costly mistake of his life to think what was obtainable at Mbaise and environs, were to also to be at the larger state of diverse persuasion and belief system.
One of Ihedioha’s greatest undoing at the just concluded elections was delegating and leaving almost all the electoral affair solely on the hands of these ‘outlived’ politicians leaving the vibrant youths out of the scheme of things and retiring them to mere otimkpu ‘oYes’ boys- these are the youths that would have been effectively be put to our present day kind of ‘’good use ‘’, the fact of the matter is that Ihedioha was too honest for the kind of electoral practice that sufficed the day.
As a proven and potent recipe to failing Imo gubernatorial election, if one is set to fail on his/her bid to becoming the number one citizen of the state, he/she has this path to toll, ie, recycling past ‘failed’ politicians back to active politics.
Barricade and make yourself inaccessible
Barricading and making yourself extremely inaccessible by the members of the public is sure one of the surest way of pitching the people against you, Imo electorates are more or less like the elite voters that see inaccessibility to public officials as a major crime. While as a high ranking public person, which I defended at some point in time and still do, it is true that you must not reduce your person to the very lowliest in order to sway votes but it is not also true that you must delegate your aides to oversee everything even the very and most common.
There are things that your aide will do and things you will do, too. Your aides can never represent you to the people more better than you can represent yourself, at the so called common places and things- that’s why wiser politicians throws out all the administrative bottlenecks and run the open door kind of public relation, because people feel more confident and secure when they are dealing with the ‘main’ person. Ihedioha, unfortunately ran this very type of public relation at the just concluded election, where absolute power were delegated to aides and representatives.
You are either meeting with the aide or aide to the other aide or aide to aide to aide to the other aide every now and then even when pressing, decisive and important issues that may not need to be heard by two people are at stake.
These were the major constraint of majority of people who prosecuted the 2015 election had with Ihedioha. I personally was not spared by this ridiculous electioneering practice even from a sensitive position as social media image imaging.
My department during the period was the mirror through which the people saw our boss on the cyberspace, but, inquisitive readers would be tempted to ask what our relationship was like?
Unlike Rochas, who grasped all and ‘any’ opportunity at sight never failed nor missed any; but Ihedioha had no time with doing some of these so called ‘common’ things by himself but rather confident on relegating such to his aides which eventually boomeranged.
(TO BE CONTINUED)
(Hon). Ambrose Nwaogwugwu is a social critic and the 2014 winner of Imo State Social Media News Reporter of the year. Follow him on Twitter: @Ambrose_247; H/P: +2348151917762(texts only,pls).
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Email him on: Ambrosenwaogwugwungozi@gmail.com
