By Ezeh Jude. O
An acute scourge of social plebeianism, peasant mentality, and anthropological mediocrity is plaguing our national consciousness, and it is very unfortunate. But that's what you get each time tribalism, nepotism and ethnicism take front seats as drivers of our national polity.
Citizens will inadvertently begin to drift from striking the gold mean and positing objective arguments into the myopic idiosyncrasy of judging every action from a debased prism of parochialism.
Nigerians are today taking solace in parochial jingoism. Almost every average Nigerian is becoming an ethnic apologist. We condemn anything (whether good or bad) that is done by people of other ethnic leaning. While we extol and defend the acts or utterances from people of our patriarchal ties. Even southeast with its legendary claim to superior virtues is not spared.
Two months ago, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka of the Enugu diocese was on news for the wrong reason for the third time in six years. He and the presidency exchanged vitriolic aspersions across the media spaces. He was roundly condemned by all especially after his followers broke into his bishop's court, desecrated the episcopal chambers, profaned the nave, and contemptuously abused the sacerdotal fount. I personally wrote an open (SOS) letter to the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN), to intervene in Mbaka's apparent vocation/identity crisis that is fast scandalizing the faith community.
But it was strange seeing many apologists of Mbaka, priests inclusive, mount an aggressive defense in his favor. Some took to social media to drum their sympathy for the controversial priest.
Why were they defending the indefensible? No better reason than the singular notion that he is their priest, tribesman, relative, friend, or benefactor. Therefore his misdeeds should not be subjected to criticism. In fact, one of his supporters twitted: "Father Ejike Mbaka is my brother, a Christian and most importantly my fellow priest. Regardless of his perceived human faults, which we all have, I will STAND with him. Those who are posting negative comments about him or judging him, remember that Isa Pantami is being defended vigorously by the power that be. Shine your eyes! #IStandWithFrMbaka"
Is that not nepotism? The self-same error we accuse President Buhari of. We all condemned not only Isa Pantami's indictable audio-visual clips emphatically showing him as a fan of terrorists. We also berated those who support him as being base, nepotistic and unjust in their judgment. But here we are, falling into the same error.
Nnamdi Kanu has been thrown to the limelight again. He had been a wanted man in the diary of the Nigerian government for almost four years. His modus operandi has been weird, irrational, and incongruous. He is the founder and leader of IPOB, a secessionist group, whose membership accounts for less than five percent of the Igbo population. Yet Kanu parade himself as 'Supreme' leader of the race.
Kanu turned himself into a vulgarian and had been venomously exploiting the valid angst of the Southeast in the current dispensation in Nigeria to rise to prominence. He opened too many warfronts and battlelines extending even to his own brothers in the southeast. Recall: ex-minister and former FRSC Boss, Osita Chidoka alongside other prominent Igbo leaders like Sen. Ike Ekweremadu and Sen Abaribe facilitated his bail process, only for him to come out of prison and order his follower to boycott the 2018 Anambra guber election in which Hon. Chidoka is contesting. He also incited his members to stone Sen. Ekweremadu in faraway Nuremberg, Germany; and insulted the then President General of Ohaneze Ndigbo, Chief John Nnia Nwodo.
He even ghosted the Yoruba tribe that produced his two staunch supporters across the Niger (Femi Fani Kayode and former governor Fayose) when he asked Igbos to denounce their membership of churches founded by Yoruba pastors like Bishop Adeboye, Pastor Oyedpo, and W.F Kumuyi. At some point he verbally accosted former President Jonathan, incurring the anger of his aid, Reno Omokri who had ab initio been Kanu's fan.
Back home, many started doubting his sanity when he was dishing out orders like a paramount ruler to his followers. He threatened that any Igbo man that does not obey his sit-at-home order for the May 30 commemoration of the Biafra program day should be killed! He made several other incisive comments that were inconsistent with the spirit of the Igbo brotherhood.
He was purportedly re-arrested on about 13 days ago, and his fanatic followers had kept advocating for him, demonstrating against his arrest and asking that he be not prosecuted. These are the same people citing the Buhari government's 'lack' of justice as one of the reasons they want to opt-out of Nigeria. What other name fits such narrative other than tribal bigotry?
According to Chidozie Okafor: "One of the dangerous narratives Igbos must dispel at once in this era is the argument that Fulani leaders do not criticize Boko Haram, Pantami is still in government, why should Igbos ask questions about Nnamdi Kanu? This is a silly and idiotic canard that must never be allowed to gain traction. Truth is that we are Igbos and have very little tolerance for nonsense. Pray, why are we opting to have a separate identity from our friends in the "Zoo" if suddenly we now look up to Fulani political leadership for guidance on how to play politics or embrace the violence of the Boko Haram, or Fulani herdsmen operatives?"
While the north condones with those who terrorize that part of the country, the Yorubas put up with Sunday Igbogho for the plebeian reason of protecting their own. Federal might have been deployed against Kanu and Igbogho, while the northern deviants have field's day, for the same base reason. Ethnic superiority has become commonplace!
Hypocrisy is the word!
Another evidence that unchecked bigotry is guiding the rudder of our sociopolitical ship is the avowed criticism many put on the presidency, while their respective state governors loot the billions from their federal allocation shares and security votes. It speaks volumes about who we are as a people. In the final analysis, we may be our own problems as followers in this country.
May daylight spare us!
...Eze Jude O.is a Medical Laboratory Scientist, a Columnist, and public affairs analyst. NNL.