Did you come across clowns in the course of your reading? They are characterised as jesters. They are not to be taken seriously. At best, they are mere entertainers.
Then, the plebians? You must remember the Roman Plebians. They do not have a mind of their own. They are swayed by every argument, moved by emotion and sentiment. They are not guided by critical logic. In the new public sphere, as it concerns engagement with Governor Alex Otti, I see an increasing crowd of clowns and plebians. I see a new wave of clowning as against committed citizenship.
The duty of committed citizenship behoves on us to raise constructive criticisms and set agenda for good governance. Committed citizenship stands for national or state interest and applauds a leader on the right direction while setting new agenda. This is why I am miffed by the new gang who have deliberately determined to be blind over Otti’s reforms and innovations that have changed the Abia State narrative. It beats my imagination that this new political ratings cannot see the massive expansion work going on along the Umuikaa to Owerrinta Road. They cannot jubiliate over the construction of the long stretch of road leading from Umuahia through Uzuakoli, Ovim to Ohafia. They pretend to be unconcerned about the flagging off of the expansion work on Onuimo to Abia Tower; the flagging off of the Ntigha, Mbawsi to Nsulu Road; the flagging off of the construction of the rural road from Omoba, Itungwa to Nkwowelechi in Obingwa. They are insensitive to the spate of road commissionings that this state has witnessed under Otti.
Clowns and plebians are experts in diversionary tactics. Insteading of raising the banner for the governor over the N150 miilion grant for best graduating students of the Ogbonnaya Onu Polytechnic and the commissioning of the newly renovated Rector’s Lodge and the Administrative Building, they are preoccupying themselves with the improvised academic gown worn by the Otti at the last convocation of the school, when the school just witnessed a convocation ceremony after 12 years. Instead of seeing the vision behind the new roads under construction and the ones newly flagged off, they are talking of caterpillars parked at Mbawsi. Instead of appreciating the sincere effort of the governor to structure and sanitise the civil service they are making a carricature content with the result of the just concluded promotional examinations of the civil service even when the workers have opportunity to retake the exams.
This is certainly not how to engage a serious-minded and highly-focused leader as Otti. I believe in checks and balances and in playing the watch-dog roles of active citizenship. I had also, in one of my writings, commended the governor for accommodating the alternative voice. But, I am afraid we have brought down opposition movement in the state to the sore level of clowning. Or how best will I describe the people misinterpreting the renaming of the polytechnic to honour the first executive governor of the state as an act of ethnic witch-hunting? How best will I describe those making a mountain out of the promotional exams? Or how best will I describe those who cannot be happy that Abia State money is no more being shared to godfathers but used for building a new future for our posterity?
I call for development citizenship. Students of modern Developmental Studies will remember the community model or the bottom-top approach where citizens are partners with government in the business of good governance geared towards development. Citizens must highlight areas of deficit in development, areas being neglected by government, areas needing urgent government intervention. Citizens must point out anomalies in society like drug bunks, underground crime rail lines inhibiting harmony in the society or sabotaging government efforts in delivery dividends. They must scrutinise policies and programmes of state and offer alternative voices or alternative choices.
The reform drives of governor are self-evident. We can see a sincere and altruistic commitment to building a new Abia State and doing things differently.
The best that Otti requires from us, I suppose, is patriotic citizenship and not diversionary clowning.
Adindu writes from Umuahia, Abia State capital
