By Osondu Shere.

The crowd is like a thermometer. It rises and falls as the ambient temperature changes.
The crowd is fickle. The same people that shouted hosanna to Jesus Christ were the same crowd that unanimously crowed, ‘crucify Him’, in less than a week.
They went notches higher by preferring a notorious criminal called Barabbas to be granted pardon as it was customary during the Jewish Passover feast, against the sinless, spotless Son of God. So, majority isn’t always right.

Matter of factly, as for Gburus, ever since his days in the National Assembly till date, I make bold to declare that I have not personally held any political position or appointment under his leadership.

It’s against this backdrop that I bold-facedly address all the duplicitous and Janus-faced politicians in Enugu State.

Ninety percentage of politicians in the Labour Party are what I dub—Old wine in a new wine skin. They are old pictures in new photo frames.

Peter Obi came and revolutionalized the Labour Party, a party that was at the fringe was bulldozed  to the mainstream by the immeasurable might of one man. Nigerian politics moved from a two horse race to a three horse race. Kudos to all those that made that happen. At the mention of Obi’s name now, some political heavyweights go into catastrophic spasm.

Back to my dear Enugu state, we, like most Southeasterners felt marginalised and rightly so. After the primary elections, it dawned on us that Igbophobia is still palpably thick, that some sections of the country are still fighting the civil war in their heads. Reason we keyed into the OBIdient movement. Some other fair minded, just and unimpaired Nigerians were miffed by a Muslim- Muslim ticket of the APC and a Fulani man handling over to another Fulani man by the PDP in a plural and diverse nation like ours. Again, those cream of Nigerians were bowled over by Obi’s showstopping pizzas and cosmopolitanism. 

So, people jettisoned party lines, partisanship became blunted and blurred, to key into a new Nigeria that was in the offing. And many people became OBIdient while still carrying their party cards.

In my own state, when Gburus mounted the saddle, some political vuvuzelas, Hallelujah crooners, hailers and praise singers  cordoned him off and serenaded him with worship songs and eulogies.Some few toe holders and those ready to hold him to account were hounded and shellacked with verbal missiles.  

Power, according to Henry Kissinger, is an aphrodisiac. Gburus basked in the euphoria of those panegyrics cascading upon him. 
Most of those dutiful toadies who kissed the Blarney Stone, fawned, apple-polished, ingratiated and kowtowed at his feet inadvertently railroaded him to political oblivion. Then again, they were the greatest beneficiaries of his political largesse and appointments.

But the moment Obi happened, some of those self-serving politicians, who felt disillusioned, disenchanted and disgruntled for not getting party tickets for various political positions began throwing barrage of criticism at Gburus for being a flawless non-achiever. Ironically, most of them were part and parcel of the non-performing administration, yet, mum was the word. Neither did they resign honourably.

Then, it became clear to me why it’s humorously said that it’s bad table manner to talk while eating. The moment their meal tickets were withdrawn, they opportunistically rode on the crest of the OBIdient movement and Peter’s popularity and began to harangue a government they just resigned from weeks back. I stood back and gawked in stupefaction.

 25th of February came and gifted most of the National Assembly members with electoral victory. Since then, the victors and their supporters have been gleefully gloating and revelling in bacchanalian orgies. They thumb their noses and snigger at the ‘ losers’. But let it be made known to all and sundry that they didn’t deploy any rocket scientist formula to coast to victory or get their slots. They all have Obi to thank for this. So enough of the swashbuckling blustering and bravados.

There’s no gainsaying the  fact that Obi has caused a seismic shift in our political landscape.

To the electoral victors so far, here is my two pennies—be prepared to wear the toga of Obi’s personality, demeanour, political ideology etc.

Like one sage said, ‘Labour Party is an attitude, it’s a way of life, a world-view. It is not a dress or a tag that you put on when you need it, and remove when it is expedient to do so. OBIdient is a marathon, not a sprint.

Now let’s anatomise the personality and temperaments of Peter obi— the poster child of the OBIdient movement. He is prudent, a Spartan disciplinarian. Moxie, self possession, sangfroid, testicular fortitude, stoicism, poise and apomb are second nature to him. His intelligent, emotional, social, adversity quotients and presence of mind are nonpareil. He did not attend smart mouth  college. He is level headed and even minded. Am I communicating? So, the stake is high. If you were piggybacked by Obi, be prepared to be Obi-like.😀

He came as a pan Nigerian to rescue a country on life support. He is tribal, ethnic and religious blind. Above all, a multibillionaire in hard currency, who came as a messiah to an ailing country. Obi made it clear in his different 
engagements that he was not 
desperate to be the president.

Permit me to quote the irrepressible Dele Farotimi, ‘The historical myth of the monolithic Muslim North and the unelectable Southern Christian, particularly the much hated Igbo, have been dissolved in the commonalities found by the many victims of Nigeria, and we shall not be daunted or broken.'

We are now few days shy of 11th of March. Let’s not allow prejudice, biases, clannishness, primordial sentiments, unalloyed envy and visceral hate becloud our sense of moral and electoral judgements in our choices of governorship and state assembly elections.

OBIdient Movement cuts across partisanship. Countless voters defied party lines and voted individuals. We have men and women of good conscience in the PDP. In both the PDP and the LP, there are turtle doves amongst falcons. So, let’s save ourselves the pious platitudes and sanctimonious preachments of one party being a congregation of contrite saints and the other a coven of Mephistopheles . 

This insane mantra of voting out the PDP in Enugu State is the vilest and the most invidious slogan invented by man.

Mbah was brought by Ugwuanyi and and since then, hell has frozen. Sullivan was foisted on us by Chimaroke— a man some of people love to hate. Yet Sullivan is touted as the best governor so far Enugu has had since the 4th republic. If Sullivan wasn’t CHIMAROKE’s stooge, why are you wary that Mbah will be a pawn on anyone’s political chessboard. Enough of these sentimentalism already.
This is an intellectual nourishment for the critical thinkers  who choose to be fair and dispassionate.

There’s no politician world over that is stainlessly Teflon. Every finger that visits the anus must return with either poop or fart. Show me a spotless politician and I will show you a virgin in a maternity ward.

We are yet to study northern political calculus. They vote individuals not party. 

I come in peace!