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| Chief Chris Anukam |
If pride, interest in material things, beautiful women, and exotic cars seemed important in my twenties, such pursuit and interests ended then as well. No reasonable person who has known me since then has ever associated me with ego. To the extent that I took part in vanities in my teens and twenties, I refer Chief Chris Anukam to the Bible. Specifically:
1 Corinthians 13:11, KJV - "When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish ways."
Chief Anukam should have learned to make that transition in his own life.
Chief Anukam’s post about ego is a shock to me, especially since he and I have not had much interaction to really reckon with, and to the extent that he knows me, he ought to have known better. For me personally, any residual ego and pride vanished when I had my first son nineteen years ago, as I immediately knew I was no longer the most important thing in my life.
I prepared a response that I thought was appropriate to the outbursts of Chief Cy Amako and his older brother, Chief Chris Anukam. But, upon advice, I’m substituting the following kinder and gentler response.
For those who may not look it up, the following post of mine is the crux of the matter:
“Unfortunately, one can be certain that Chief Ekwelibe is acting not for altruistic reasons, but self-interest, as usual. That is the sad part of it” ~ Agbara1 That message was a response to another message posted to the forum by one of my cousins.
“Unfortunately, one can be certain that Chief Ekwelibe is acting not for altruistic reasons, but self-interest, as usual. That is the sad part of it” ~ Agbara1 That message was a response to another message posted to the forum by one of my cousins.
One thing I avoid, and cannot tolerate in others, is hypocrisy. The other thing that I cannot tolerate is any attempt to silence anyone who does not share one’s views, whether they be personal or political. Allow me to take this opportunity to point out to my brothers, Chief Cy Amako and Chief Chris Nnamdi Anukam that the Eze of Irete is a political and public figure who was elected into office. That means that during the process, there were those who supported him and those who did not. Additionally, Chief Ekwelibe is paid from the public purse and he derives other pecuniary and tangible benefits from his constituents, all due to his position. He has been known to impose or attempt to impose levies on Irete people. It is ludicrous that anyone would think that Chief Ekwelibe's election victory would extinguish the rights of his existing or new opponents to challenge or criticize him. It is even more silly to suggest that an elected public figure may not be criticized at a forum simply because he is not enrolled or he does not participate in discussions in that forum. I am not aware that we imposed the same requirements before criticizing the likes of Rochas Okorocha and even dead former leaders who could never participate in debates even if they wanted to do so.
Unfortunately, I was one of those who not only supported Chief Ekwelibe, but paid for an Advertisement to congratulate him when he won. A portrait of my family members, including yours truly, congratulating Chief Ekwelibe appears in the coronation brochure. I contributed cash for the ICDU-USA congratulatory message in the same brochure. Besides, some of the education and Health-related relief projects that the Amanze Family has undertaken in Irete have been channeled through Chief Ekwelibe. Thus, Chief Anukam was dishonest when he wrote: ”Dr Emeka Amanze has never had one kind word for him since he ascended that exalted throne.”
However, because of his conduct in office, I regret that I supported him. Chief Ethelbert Ekwelibe is now an elected public figure who is subject to scrutiny and whose actions, in representing a people, must be closely watched to ensure that he is acting in the best interest of the people, and is not in any way, motivated by personal gain. To his credit, he does not pretend to be a hereditary potentate, as he freely engages in the same hustle and income-yielding activities as other ordinary people in Irete, including Irete youth, who wander around collecting what they call “development levy,” which they share with Chief Ekwelibe. Chief Ekwelibe also routinely appends his signature to land deals and collects money as a finder, agent, and witness, land deals some of which have turned out to be fraudulent.
Regardless of whether one “lives in a civilized society,” such accountability is a minimum expectation from a public representative, including the Eze. His “exalted throne” does not exempt him from meeting the minimum standards of any political office. Irete does not have a hereditary throne. We elect our Eze. That is why more than eighteen years after Irete became an autonomous community, we left that seat vacant until we could settle some of our disagreements. A whole lot of it remains unsettled today. But, we are forging ahead.
It has been said, “Our Eze is highly valuable to us.” I am aware that politicians, when they “ascend,” do so with some assistance. Those who provided such assistance often have a vested interest in protecting their investment. However, we should be cautious in how we go about this. While puppet masters believe only their puppets may be vulnerable, their hands are always exposed, even while their faces hide in the shadows.
With regard to the subject of “Ego,” I believe everyone on this planet has one. In Irete specifically, I had thought that in recent times there were only two oversized egos, Chief Cy Amako and Chief Nnamdi Anukam, two brothers who strut around Irete with egos and chips on their shoulders double the size of Horsehead Nebula, with Chief Cy, the self-proclaimed “Irete1,” the more explosive and cocky of the two, and my big brother, his more ”amiable” older brother, “Omeudo,” who operates with a little more finesse but is no less ruthless. For God's sake, those two brothers have egos so large they could not fit into the same last name. That is part of why they developed two different last names, Anukam and Amako, from their former last name in common, Anugwolu.
Ego, after all, is defined as “a person’s sense of self-esteem or self-importance.” This sense in all of us is defined and has been shaped by our history and experiences, good and bad, in this life. It is Ego that would cause someone to sit down and write: “One of the biggest problems Dr Emeka Amanze has is Ego, he thinks so highly of himself that he thinks he can say any trash nd get away with it as long as it makes him feel important.” It is Ego that prompts someone to write: “I know Emeka won't like this but if I that he calls big broda don't tell him this, who will.” It is Ego that leads people to assume positions that make no sense to reasonable people. It is Ego that makes us defend people who are unworthy. It is Ego that allows us to prevaricate, and say we are interested in unity and peace, even though our very words and actions indicate otherwise.
Other than that, Chief Anukam is my big brother, and I love him with all my heart. He knows that. ~~~ Agbara1
1) Chief Cy Amako wrote: "Oga, while I share in your views on some of these trending issues, I don't its very necessary to embark on diminishing/ disparaging the office & personality of your traditional ruler on this platform. I don't think it adds any value to you, me, or anybody from Irete. Just advisory plse."
No one who knows Chief Amako's high opinion of himself would mistake the sarcasm in his use of "Oga."
That and his older brother's crass attack expose the real reason that Chief Cy Amako tried so desperately to become the Eze of Irete until Eze Muruako of Ihiagwa and his team brought Amako's ambition to an end at Afor Irete. Chief Amako wanted to create a fiefdom where no one would question or criticize his conduct, past, present, or future. That is clearly a pipedream that will not be accepted in this time and age.
2) Chief Chris Anukam wrote: "One of the biggest problems Dr Emeka Amanze has is Ego, he thinks so highly of himself that he thinks he can say any trash nd get away with it as long as it makes him feel important. Unfortunately he lives in a civilised society where people think before they talk nd are measured in dea disparaging others especially people in exalted positions representing a people.I know Emeka won't like this but if I that he calls big broda don't tell him this, who will."
Chief Anukam claims he earned the right to launch the malicious attack against me because I once called him "big broda." That, and judging by the way the two brothers were high-fiving each other in Owerri-West WhatsApp Forum, it was clear that the attack against me was premeditated. I suppose my ego was not big enough to stop me from addressing him as "big broda." The character assassination gambit is, therefore, a reflection of the Okonkwo complex that Chief Anukam suffers from, the same character flaw that led Okonkwo, in Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart, to participate in the murder of a boy, Ikemefuna, that called him "father." However, Agbara1 is no Ikemefuna and Chief Anukam's pedestrian tactic has failed. He will have to try another method of attack.
The most idiotic part of his post is that he thinks I want to feel important in Nigeria or any part of it. What does it even mean to want to feel important? Is it to Chief Anukam or to whom would I want to feel important? Why would I want to feel important in a failed state environment where people like Chief Chris Anukam run scams against Nigeria and Imo State through schemes and purposefully delinquent debt at banks/AMCON, unperformed or poorly performed contracts with the Imo State Government and others, borrowing money from banks with no intention to repay the loan, entering into various agreements with a purpose of evasion, and a life riddled with conflicts of interest, allegations of fraud, and other ethics violations. It is a dangerous way to live.
My interest in Nigeria is situated in my unquenchable desire to do charity and help the less privileged, including the victims of Chief Anukam's activities, as well as the immutable truth that the duality of Ogbohọdụ and Nkọlọ Irete is my source, and both are located in "Nigeria".
References:
1) Chief Cy Amako wrote: "Oga, while I share in your views on some of these trending issues, I don't its very necessary to embark on diminishing/ disparaging the office & personality of your traditional ruler on this platform. I don't think it adds any value to you, me, or anybody from Irete. Just advisory plse."
No one who knows Chief Amako's high opinion of himself would mistake the sarcasm in his use of "Oga."
That and his older brother's crass attack expose the real reason that Chief Cy Amako tried so desperately to become the Eze of Irete until Eze Muruako of Ihiagwa and his team brought Amako's ambition to an end at Afor Irete. Chief Amako wanted to create a fiefdom where no one would question or criticize his conduct, past, present, or future. That is clearly a pipedream that will not be accepted in this time and age.
2) Chief Chris Anukam wrote: "One of the biggest problems Dr Emeka Amanze has is Ego, he thinks so highly of himself that he thinks he can say any trash nd get away with it as long as it makes him feel important. Unfortunately he lives in a civilised society where people think before they talk nd are measured in dea disparaging others especially people in exalted positions representing a people.I know Emeka won't like this but if I that he calls big broda don't tell him this, who will."
Chief Anukam claims he earned the right to launch the malicious attack against me because I once called him "big broda." That, and judging by the way the two brothers were high-fiving each other in Owerri-West WhatsApp Forum, it was clear that the attack against me was premeditated. I suppose my ego was not big enough to stop me from addressing him as "big broda." The character assassination gambit is, therefore, a reflection of the Okonkwo complex that Chief Anukam suffers from, the same character flaw that led Okonkwo, in Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart, to participate in the murder of a boy, Ikemefuna, that called him "father." However, Agbara1 is no Ikemefuna and Chief Anukam's pedestrian tactic has failed. He will have to try another method of attack.
The most idiotic part of his post is that he thinks I want to feel important in Nigeria or any part of it. What does it even mean to want to feel important? Is it to Chief Anukam or to whom would I want to feel important? Why would I want to feel important in a failed state environment where people like Chief Chris Anukam run scams against Nigeria and Imo State through schemes and purposefully delinquent debt at banks/AMCON, unperformed or poorly performed contracts with the Imo State Government and others, borrowing money from banks with no intention to repay the loan, entering into various agreements with a purpose of evasion, and a life riddled with conflicts of interest, allegations of fraud, and other ethics violations. It is a dangerous way to live.
My interest in Nigeria is situated in my unquenchable desire to do charity and help the less privileged, including the victims of Chief Anukam's activities, as well as the immutable truth that the duality of Ogbohọdụ and Nkọlọ Irete is my source, and both are located in "Nigeria".
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