Igede and leadership question, Correcting Ogewu's missteps
By James Ibechi
Let us be clear from the get go that ibechi.com has nothing, absolutely nothing, against the person of Rt. Hon. David Ogewu, the member of the House of Representatives for Oju/Obi federal constituency.
All we do here is to put the issues as they crop up in their proper perspectives as we carry out our time-tested function of educating, informing and entertaining our audiences.
That said, it is observable that Ogewu is almost one-year in the hallowed chamber of the National Assembly, and as the man on the spot, we do a bit of an x-ray of his few months of sojourn in the Assembly here.
However, this is in relation to his relationship with his constituents whom he leads as their professed political leader.
It is with this in hindsight that we aim to draw his attention to what roles leaders are expected to play towards their people as leadership is never a function of verbal outbursts, intimidation and brigandage.
The poser is why has Ogewu been missing in action when it comes to issues that border the illustrious sons and daughters of Igede people?
Again, why is the Honourable Member always conspicuously absent when his people roll out drums to celebrate their own who have attained lofty heights in their fields of play? Why? Why?
To buttress these all-important questions, a few examples here will suffice.
When General Ede Ode retired from the military and his kith and kin, family and friends, thought it wise to celebrate him and his milestone age of 60 years, all the creme de la creme of Igede nation along with other highly placed Nigerians were at hand in that epochal occasion, but Ogewu was nowhere to be found. Yet he is the self-professed leader of his people.
The Ad'Utu Obi, Chief Chris Ijale, recently had cause to celebrate one of his siblings who took his heartthrob to the Altar to say I do. At that occasion, all the who is who in Igede sociopolitical landscape were around the traditional ruler to rejoice with him, but Ogewu was not there.
Before that event, both young and budding Igede change agents under the leadership of Innocent Adoga held Igede Economic Summit in Makurdi — perhaps the first of its kind about Igede — yet Ogewu looked the other way.
Just recently, all roads led to Armed Forces Officers' Mess, Lungi Barracks, Asokoro, Abuja for the reception in honour of Dr Vincent Isegbe who was re-appointed for a second term in office as the Director General of the Nigerian Quarantine Agency, as well as for the honour of Pastor Omachi for his appointment as Permsec by President Bola Tinubu — two Igede illustrious sons — to celebrate that rare feat.
Needless to say that s significant number of Igede sons and daughters of 'timbre and calibre' made themselves available to rejoice with two of their own and Ogewu was expected to make a prominent attendee, yet he looked the other way.
Let's get one thing clear at this point; not all these examples given above were organized by politicians neither were they political events.
This is very important as someone may say that probably the 'leader' refused to attend any due to political differences. But again, is politics war? And should we not now focus on governance after elections are won? And have not even those who had fought in a fierce battlefield not having any contact or relationship again for life?
In leadership, you are not just there waiting to be deified but you consciously make your impacts felt by going to celebrate with your people in their high moments, and even be there for them in their low moments, too. So the Holy Book admonishes us.
Unfortunately, this 'leader' observes these time-tested functions and roles people in his mould are expected to play in the breach.
It is this kind of misstep that he, against all known traditions, mobilized unsuspecting igabwos to bestow on him an unavailable traditional title of odochu of Igede nation, and because it is not in sync with the cultural practices of the people for igabwuos to sit in their own c
