By Ejimonu Udenka
The English writer James Hardley Chase in one of his crime thrillers, The Vulture is Patient Bird, portrayed Max Kahlenberg as a human vulture who is constrained by physical restraints but exploits the virtue of patience in perfecting his schemes. On the other hand, there is a fellow, Stanley Chira aka Mazi Odera, another shady and unscrupulous character; a unique breed that not only strives to kill but also feasts on the carcass. He is an uncanny predator and a purveyor of falsehood for hire against political opponents.
Though he is constrained by poor command of English and Igbo, his ability at deploying an admixture of the two in the service of willing sponsors, serves an audience that lives and craves for daily rumour especially when the details are salacious. Unfortunately, this ‘essential’ service, of Mr. Chira, aka Mazi Odera, OderaIgbo etc. etc. is sponsored by a former governor through his aide who funnels the package to rumour merchant Odera depending on the level of hit scored against his sponsor’s political opponents.
The latest attempt by the schemers to sully Governor Obiano before Ndi Anambra by presenting him as wastefully flying private jet to Abuja for an important engagement, when he actually travelled by Arik Air is the height of childish idiocy. They reportedly took photos of a private jet on the tarmac which conveyed the former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and sent it through their mischief conveyor belt to the vulture, Mazi Odera who immediately went to town shouting ‘Extravagance!’ even while Obiano patiently waited at the VIP Lounge for Arik Air boarding announcement. Pray, what does the Blackmailer-in-Chief and his sponsors gain from misleading Ndi Anambra about their governor?
There is an impression out there that Governor Willie Obiano and his predecessor, Chief Peter Obi, are at loggerheads. But the fact is that the governor has repeatedly told his aides to avoid any attacks on Mr. Obi and concentrate on projecting his laudable work. On the other hand, there is ample evidence that the former governor’s aide uses the services of the so called Mazi Odera to stoke the fire of disagreement with daily campaign of calumny against Obiano in other to earn fat. Granted that the man, Obi, is the only “saint” in Anambra, isn’t it high-time Ndi Anambra arose in unison to call on them to leave the governor alone to do his work.
Unlike his sponsors who live in perpetual denial, many do not know the low-life Stanley Chira. He is a man without compunction or ethical inhibitions, and takes delight in character assassination. Egged on by devious sponsors, Odera easily boosts of taking on any individual no matter how highly placed. Buoyed by an inflated ego built on mere assumption that he got away with previous acts of libel and defamation, he is fast taking himself serious.
The reality is that Stanley Chira who would rather be known with his aliases rides on the tolerance and humane disposition of the personalities he smears daily, but most of whom would rather square-up with his sponsors in the open rather than descent to the gutters where he pours odium on family and cherished privacies in the name of political squabbles. Such restraint is alien to Odera, who akin to the vulture feasts on his own.
To worsen matters, the little wizard as someone described him, misunderstands the restraint and preference for decency by persons he regularly maligns and calls despicable names. He operates in stealth mode and boasts of his exploits online, even as he lacks the courage to reveal his true identity lest his sins catch up with him. No wonder he resorts to the use of aliases on social media platforms in effort to create a distance between his true identity and his ignoble role.
Again, whereas Stanley Chira’s victims of unwarranted smear campaign are held back by genuine considerations and belief that the misguided enfant terrible and blackmailer would step back and think before pouring more venom on persons far above his station, the lure of his daily staple drives Odera the street urchin to show performance and earn his stipend. Hence, resort to more malicious fabrications. In fact, many who have been targeted by the man confirm that anyone capable of weaving such perfidious tales would definitely need psychological help.
Obviously the Odera fellow is irredeemably set on the road to Golgotha and cannot change. But it is important that those who receive his daily dose of lies should beware and thread with caution in reviewing his lies and fabulous tales of the absurd less they be misled. Since it is a given that Stanley chira aka Oderaigbo the vulture will feast on carcass, those who are fed on his daily diatribe are advised to ignore the rant.
Udenka writes from Orumba(ejimonu247@gmail.com)
