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Peter should read his books

By Ejimonu Udenka
23 September 2015   |   5:43 am
EZE Goes to School by Onuora Nzekwu and Micheal Crowther is a popular recommended text of the elementary school in the 70s.
Obi

Obi

EZE Goes to School by Onuora Nzekwu and Micheal Crowther is a popular recommended text of the elementary school in the 70s. The juvenile literature on the school-life of Eze chronicles the young chap’s determination to go to school despite obvious difficulties.

Like Eze, Chief Peter Obi, ex-governor of Anambra has gone back to school according to his agent provocateur, one Val Obienyem who announced during the final days of former President Goodluck Jonathan that he was embarking on a sponsored programme at Oxford University. Val also jocularly inferred that Peter may also need sandals, cabin, beverages etc. to help him stay healthy and focused at school.

However, recent events point to the fact that Peter may not be taking his studies seriously. Peter spends more time in Anambra exorcising the ghosts from his eight years in office and prompting proxies against his successor at the expense of his studies. Reliable sources say that Peter’s attendance register at Oxford is anything but encouraging following the loss of his last minute appointment by GEJ as Chairman of board of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Again, Peter unlike the waif Eze, is a wealthy man by all standards but one thing about the man Peter, is that he does not take responsibility, especially when it concerns spending money. He would rather attribute it to a third party than be seen to have done it himself. The man Peter wishes to be known and likes to be seen in the neighborhood as a nice guy whose escapades remain permanently at the realm of the imagination; a closet Capone ‎who likes to keep distance from the hit. Peter Obi likes to be the last man standing.

Such is the man’s penchant that when he pays money for anything good, he distances himself. The story is told about how Peter would deny ownership of a good cloth in order not to be seen to have money to spare. Even as governor, whenever Mr. Obi flies high profile, he attributes it to a favour from a rich friend. He prefers to be seen as the governor who queues for his ticket and flies economy, even though he could be offered the business class. Even now that he wants to lick the wounds of his recent political misadventure by attending a fellowship at Oxford, he would rather say that someone is sponsoring, with his aide calling for donation of sandals and school bag. How ridiculous?

Peter Obi has caught the bug of emergency philanthropist, and has been going round schools in Anambra State telling the management what he did for them and demanding photo Ops with the students. The drill, according to insiders, is that his aides convinced him that he has to remain relevant through public philanthropy hence the birth of the N1-2 million cheque presentation to select schools. Good gesture, but as always with Mr. Peter Obi’s intentions.

Peter suddenly realised that having tasted power, he could not afford a minute away from the limelight. As a late convert to media offerings, he enjoys the power and exposure it provides and he doesn’t want to fade out after his tenure. He remembers his gubernatorial exploits with a tinge of nostalgia and it leaves him with a sense as ennui. Hence he goes round schools in Anambra like an emergency philanthropist, to inspect projects and take pictures, under the watch of a substantive governor. Many would recall that Mr. Peter Obi cried and shouted over the same shenanigans allegedly carried out by Senator Chris Ngige who was said to have inspected roads in the early days of Peter’s tenure.

Lest some think Peter is being hounded, I have not heard a whimper from the current governor’s camp. I just know that there are many philanthropists in Anambra who support the course of education and other things in a quiet but dignified way rather than obvious display of philanthropy Mr. Obi suddenly discovered.

Peter has seen his political fortunes plummet following his miscalculations of joining the PDP camp of politicians he swore never to dine with few years ago. In his typical manner, he has accentuated the fractious Anambra PDP into more splinters with his arrowhead for his Machiavellian schemes in the state.

Apart from his school tours, Mr. Obi has upped the ante with his almost two-year old story of a phantom ‘N75bn cash‎’ he allegedly left in the coffers of Anambra. Tried as he did, I understand Governor Obiano, his friend, felt there was no need to engage Peter in a public spat. As an auditor, banker of repute and manager of men and resources, he is better placed to decipher the differentials in figures produced by a trader and that of a forensic auditor. More so, Peter never talked about liabilities, the multiple projects he awarded till last day, 6,000 teachers recruited without posting and the local government election he remembered after eight years, all few days to handover. That’s the proxy warrior in Peter.

Peter is supposed to be in school following his misadventure in PDP, and most people think it is probably the best option left. But alas PMB has crashed the board appointments. Let’s watch how he juggles the balls.

Another question is, can Peter sustain his newfound love for school tours and philanthropy, not to mention the new PDP dance drama in Anambra? But having been bitten by the political bug, Peter is beginning to display some desperation for control like never before; having failed to maximise the opportunity to build a pan-Igbo platform and galvanise people in his home state.

By choosing the part of the minimalist, Peter now have a lot of time on his hands to distract others who dare. He is watching another person excelling where he once played court and appears uncomfortable. However, it is late in the day because he can’t be governor again. That is the burden of Mr. Peter Obi.
Please help advise Peter to pay attention to his books.
•Udenka wrote from Orumba (ejimonu247@gmail.com)

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