By Chief Charles Ogbonnaya (Evulogu Ibeku)
In logic, fallacy is a heinous crime because it renders an argument invalid. It is a reasoning that comes to a conclusion without the evidence to support it. Most times, writers resort to it when they lack empirical evidence to support their presentations. Oftentimes, such people wobble through hasty or sweeping generalizations in a bid to sound convincing. Invariably, they end up exposing their shallowness and, in the process, become a victim of their own plot.
Anyone who was unfortunate to read the trash written against the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representative, Rt Hon Benjamin Kalu, would have nothing but pity both for the hack writer and his paymasters. Their amateurish postulation, which was to whittle down the influence of Kalu and present him as ineffectual in the reelection campaign of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, fell flat on arrival because of lack of evidence to back up their vacuous claims .
If one dismisses the write-up as a product of envy and jealousy that would be giving them credit. But suffice it to say that it was a very poor and lousy attempt to malign the reputation of a man whose only crime is that he believes that President Tinubu has done much for his Ndigbo people and that they should reciprocate that gesture come 2027. Somehow, that singular truth became a lash at their cameleonic back since the glory would never be theirs.
From the misleading headline of the jaundiced article entitled BEN KALU’S NEEDLESS BATTLES WITH SOUTH EAST GOVERNORS to the erroneous conclusion that Ben Kalu’s reelection to the House of Representatives is not guaranteed, the real intention of the sponsors was revealed.
The innuendos, caustic attacks and even disdainful submissions against the person of Ben Kalu laid bare the fact that they are afraid of the rising political profile of the Deputy Speaker; that his closeness to the president is against their satanic interests; and more importantly that he should not take the glory when Tinubu is eventually reelected in 2027.
I had expected the sponsors to provide ample evidence to justify their putrid claims that Ben Kalu has been engaged in battles against South East governors, which may rub off negatively on the re-election of Tinubu But to my greatest surprise, I didn’t see any example apart from a tepid mention of the Deputy Speaker changing the list of South East Development Commission members submitted by Gov Hope Uzodimma of Imo State and Gov Francis Nwifuru of Ebonyi State.
So, the man they called an upstart had such powers to change the list? So, the man they referred to as not having structures could muscle his way to effect such a change? In other words, there were actually no needless or even needful battles? Ben Kalu has not alienated Alex Otti, Chukwuma Soludo, and Peter Mbah? His actions had not anyway jeopardized the reelection of Tinubu?
Their hypocrisy was actually exposed when they alluded to the fact that Ben Kalu promised Tinubu 70 per cent of South-East votes in 2027. Apart from the fact that they twisted the statement out of context, they shot themselves in the foot when in one breath they doubted the capacity of kalu to lead the campaign to reelect Tinubu and in another, they condemned his advocacy of 70 percent votes from the South East. Now, assuming, without conceding, that Kalu boasted of delivering such votes to Tinubu, when has it become a crime for a politician to aim high regarding the actualization of his personal, political party and collective goals? But Kalu never arrogated to himself the power to singlehandedly win such votes for Tinubu.
Rather, he took inventory of what the president had done for Ndigbo, which no other president has done since the end of the civil war, and called on Ndigbo to reciprocate that gesture. As we know, the South-East Development Commission is a product of Kalu’s legislative acumen, and he understands perfectly well its importance to Ndigbo. Those who deride him for boasting that he is number six should show us what they have done in the years that they became a Methusella in politics. They should also display their individual and collective accomplishments that have brought Ndigbo closer to the seat of power the way Kalu has done. Such pettiness should ordinarily be ignored because where they failed woefully, Ben Kalu triumphed gallantly.
But reading through the lines of the article, it became obvious where the bullets were coming from even when the sound of the gun intended to deceive. Irokanulo is an Igbo name. It is also an adage. You can only be hurt by those who know you. Again, the real enemies are within your household. The comparison between the Deputy Speaker of House of Representatives and Gov Alex Otti, as presented in the said article, was not a mere coincidence. Those who have elected to fight a proxy war for the governor (since I refuse to believe that Otti could stoop so low for this) actually need to be educated on how party politics works. Alex Otti is a member of the Labour Party. Ben Kalu belongs to the All Progressive Congress. The president of Nigeria, who will seek reelection in 2027, also belongs to APC, same as Kalu. So, what is the correlation between Alex Otti’s popularity and Ben working assiduously to ensure that Tinubu is reelected? Is it is a question of one drinking Panadol for another man’s headache or what judges often refer to as an interloper in court cases?
The reelection of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is a project being powered by all APC members in the entire federation. Ben Kalu, as the highest federal political office holder in the South East, has the responsibility to ensure that Ndigbo join the queue and be recognised in the scheme of things.
As the chief marketing officer, for Tinubu’s re-election, what the deputy speaker is doing is to point at the unique selling point of the president. For eight years, the South East was not appointed as Service Chief. Tinubu has done it. The South East Development Commission is here with billions of Naira to reconstruct our dilapidated infrastructure. Tinubu made it possible. And many other laudable projects and appointments. That, in essence, means campaigning with facts. If Alex Otti knows Tinubu personally, that is immaterial to this project. If he has connections, let him use it to his own advantage. In as much as Kalu would not chase away anyone willing to realise the reelection of Tinubu, he would not be seen hobnobbing with an opposition party, in the name of reaching out, which may have its own agenda as far as 2027 is concerned.
Now, as regards the reelection of Ben Kalu to the House of Representatives, it is the decision of his constituents and indeed beyond the power of Alex Otti. In 2019, Kalu was elected into the House of Representatives. Alex Otti couldn’t make it to the office of the governor. Providentially, Obi’s wave took him to Government House in 2023, and Ben Kalu was reelected to the House of Representatives and became the Deputy Speaker. Alex Otti could not influence the election of even all the members of the House of Assembly because politics is local. He may be doing well as a governor, the same way Assembly members both at the state and national level may also be doing well regarding what their constituents want. That is where politics is localized. Anyone who arrogates to himself the power to determine the results of election elsewhere doesn’t understand politics. At any rate, let’s just pray that the hunter does not become the hunted in 2027. Pride comes before the fall.
Finally, those who want to work for Tinubu are free to come on board. Nobody should be prematurely afraid of the influence of Ben Kalu. Chinemeze. Whether he is an upstart or a man without any structure, God has handed over the power to him. He is a team player. Only those after the glory and not the real work are afraid of Rt Hon Benjamin Kalu, the Deputy Speaker of House of Representatives.
Chief Charles Ogbonnaya is a Statesman and two time commissioner in Abia state
