By Chimezie Ashuke
One problem with Mr.
Ikem Okuhu, who claims to be a journalist but never underwent any journalistic tutelage or training, is his suffusion with self-importance, propensity for pseudo intellectualism, belligerence and uncoordinated sensationalism. Yes, the only thing that qualifies Okuhu to claim being a journalist is that he read Mass Communication. That is all. That is why there are too many mechanics that have made it difficult for people to identify mad men and quacks.
In journalism practice, especially with the ubiquity of social media platforms, weak regulatory framework has created fertile ground for sensationalism and fake news. That is also why their compromised and biased articles and fake stories can not pass rigorous editorial test in any national daily of repute. It is an axiomatic fact that journalism goes beyond procuring a degree certificate in Mass Communication without undergoing journalism training and practice, where discipline, professionalism, and objective reportage remain the hallmark of the profession.
Okuhu is better known and described as undertaker, guerrilla writer, social blackmailer, and jack of all trades and master of none than a journalist. This is obvious and could be confirmed from his disposition, engagements, and his write ups that have always lacked objectivity, substance, professionalism, and decorum. It would be recalled that when Okuhu was thrown out by the immediate past administration in Enugu state for lack of capacity, character, sincerity, commitment and inability to redeem himself, he joined forces with Enugu Labour Party and has remained erratic, rattled, unstable, fixated and unsettled, following the defeat of Labour Party in Enugu Governorship election, which was his only and last hope of political survival, relevance and recognition in the state.
That is why since Governor Peter Ndubuisi Mbah and his Deputy, Ifeanyi Ossai, assumed office and hit the ground running with their people-oriented programmes and policies that have been receiving people’s support, commendations and applauses like never before, Okuhu has made himself a desperado, cog in the wheel of progress and object of mockery. He has taken to writing all kinds of smearing, libellous, malicious, and fallacious articles and stories against Governor Mbah, his Deputy, Ossai, Secretary to the Government of Enugu State, (SSG) Prof. Chidiebere Onyia, other top government officials, and state government’s policies and programmes on his Facebook page and Enugu Labour Party’s notorious fake news blog called Enugumonitor.com.
The latest of Okuhu’s wiles in this direction, which has been his stock in trade, is his recent article tagged “Barr. Ifeanyi Ossai, The Unforgotton Deputy Governor of Enugu State.” In the article, Okuhu in his usual verbose and meaningless way of writing gyrated, circumloctuted, parambulated, rigmarolled and ended up saying nothing, except insinuating and alleging that the Deputy Governor, Ossai has been sidelined or abandoned without any incontrovertible evidence to substantiate such inciting, mischievous and phony claim.
If not that Okuhu is a professional mischief maker and hypocrite, how can he write with such finality that the Deputy Governor, Barr. Ossai has been sidelined in a government that is less than three months in office and has a constitutional four years term? How can Okuhu allege that Barr. Ossai has been abandoned when his presence and contributions in the government are noiselessly obvious and felt? Is it because Barr. Ossai is not noisy like an empty vessel that makes the loudest noise like Okuhu? Does Okuhu expect Barr. Ossai to be in competition or at loggerheads with his boss, Governor Mbah, always? Perhaps this is what Okuhu wants Barr. Ossai to do and be doing against his boss in his jaundiced article. This is what Okuhu will do if he is in Barr. Ossai’s shoe, because O
