Like Nnaji, the beast in Edeoga hiding
Ani Chijioke Godson
Like Ndi Enugu currently witnessed the brazen dictatorial instinct of the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress in Enugu, Uchenna Nnaji on Sunday, 12 February 2023, where he had displayed behavior similar to what Nigerians witnessed during the military coup; a situation where Nigerians were scornfully regarded as “bloody civilians” by the military who treated them with reckless abandon.
Nnaji had cared no hoot in battering a female journalist, naking her before the public and finally landing her body inside the stinking contaminated gutter water in the street of Achina, Idaw-River Layout for challenging his disorderly behavior. An act that many considered barbaric and likened to what was obtainable in the Hobbesian state of nature where life was solitary, poor, brutish, nasty, and short.
To Nwakaibeya Nnaji, since the APC has the federal might, and as far as his godfather, Hope Uzodinma of Imo State will always be swift in taking up his case to Mr. President, Enugu State shall be turned to a state of perfectly private judgment, in which there is no agency with recognized authority to arbitrate the dispute and effective power to enforce or sanction, hence his constant display of beastly burdened act. To him, might is right, and that was why he succeeded in landing the female journalist in such a pitiable and abysmal situation.
As the people of Enugu State would have thought that Nnaji is the greatest beast of all kinds, one would have known that the “super beast”, Chijioke Edeoga has yet to do the worst. Those familiar with the political terrain of Enugu State, especially since Edeoga was ushered into the ring will know that the political equation has changed because a beast would never refrain from exhibiting its known characteristics.
Chijioke Jonathan Edeoga believes in the state of nature characterized by “war of every man against every man”, a constant and violent condition of competition in which each individual has a natural right to everything, regardless of the interest of others.
Left to Edeoga, there should be an absence of a higher authority to adjudicate disputes, everyone fears and mistrusts everyone else, and there should equally be no justice, commerce, or culture. He believes that politics must go dirty if it is the only means of achieving his political gains, hence the recruitment of political militants, insurgents, and all manner of social media dragons to unleash mayhem within the political space of Enugu State.
Just like it has been recently pointed out by Frank Nweke jnr., the gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in Enugu State. Frank never minced words while stating categorically without fear of any contradiction that Edeoga has sponsored at least one thousand (1000) fake news against fellow gubernatorial candidates in the State. He further alleged that he (Edeoga) has honed his writing skills as a journalist by generating lots of abrading articles against guber candidates of which he (Frank) has received the venomous bite of Chijioke Jonathan Edeoga.
The former Minister of Information and Communication has on numerous cases called on NBC and other relevant regulatory agencies to censor the fake news sponsored by the guber candidate of the Labour Party in Enugu State. Thanks to Nweke who never delayed in reminding Chijioke Edeoga that the clock is fast ticking whereas none has ever seen his manifesto.
Edeoga in his beastly nature had inflicted lots of pain on his people during his days as the Local Government Chairman of Isi-Uzo by denying the workers of their salaries and had equally sacked the majority of the local government workers and employed his cronies.
As a man who believes in the Hobbesian state of nature, he saw might as right and had gone into the business of converting people’s lands, palm and plantain plantations, and above all having all manner of young girls delivered to his hotel room at his beck and call. This particular assignment of girls-chasing was then well delivered by one Mr.Shepherdman Iyorku.
In 2016, shortly after he was appointed the Commissioner for Local Government Matters, a position that he used in looting over N2.2b, Edeoga assumed a position of political generalissimo in Isi-Uzo, finding pleasure in the young widows, most of which he later relocated to Enugu city with the presumed motive of helping them start a new life only to keep visiting their abodes at night to warm his groin.
More pathetic among those whose cups of sorrow were filled was the case of Nkechinyere Ugwu whom the present governorship aspirant of the Labour Party got pregnant at the age of 20. Nkechi was the only daughter of the late Chief Mathias Ugwu of Ape-Mgbuji, a village in the Isi-Uzo local government. Her mother died while she was writing her West Africa Examination Council (WAEC) at the age of 19. Seeing how beautiful Nkechinyere was, Edeoga offered to help and train the young girl up to the university level. While she was struggling with her JAMB, and unknown to Mrs. Edeoga that her husband has a young beautiful girl he had brought and rented a well-furnished apartment for, the lady got pregnant and it was reported that the so-called “Uncle Chijioke” was responsible. In a bid to hide the shame, Edeoga relocated Nkechinyere to Kogi state since the lady refused to terminate the pregnancy as was requested by the now guber candidate of the Labour Party. Till today, no one knows the whereabouts of the innocent poor child since Edeoga has told her Kinsmen that she eloped with a man.
What shall we say of other young girls he has deceived with scholarship promises just to have a taste of their juicy pots? Just like it is being said, the evil men do, live with them, Edeoga since he resigned from the last position of authority has been facing severalties of lawsuits, most of which are coming from the people of Eha-Amufu he coveted their property. The fearful monster was recently seen in a video where he went to Mgbuji for a campaign wearing a frightful look. The report has it that he mobilized people from neighboring villages to fill the arena since he has no support from any mortal soul within his community.
The heavyweight monster has just been incubating, hiding in the dark and perpetrating all manner of evil, and causing tension in the social media space. If he truly meant well for the people of Enugu State, why have we not seen his blueprints or manifesto? Why is it that all the beast in Edeoga could do was spitfire by his incessant fabrication of lies? Have we had so bad of an election where lies were sold to the people in place of a manifesto?
Ani Chijioke writes from Ohodo in Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area, Enugu State.