Buhari’s Imo visit: Opposition Will Continue to Fail
The opposition in Imo State will continue to fail in their desperate bid to undermine the government of Dist. Senator Hope Uzodimma and by extension, that of President Muhammadu Buhari.
Following President Buhari’s visit to Imo State last Thursday, September 9, 2021, generally adjudged a huge success by men and women of good will, the miniscule opposition in Imo State have been looking for a way to discredit the visit and embarrass Mr. President.
But they have failed again.
In their desperation, they doctored and proceeded to post on social media platforms, a misleading video on President Buhari’s remarks during his Town Hall Meeting with highly respected Igbo leaders who were in audience at the exclusive meeting, in total disregard for the good intention of Mr. President’s remarks.
The opposition mishievously posted a lie that President Buhari told Governor Uzodimma: “I’ll be careful with your future invitations.”
President Buhari who spoke extempore had commenced his speech with humorous remarks about being pleasantly surprised by (and grateful for) how Governor Uzodimma was able to pull the galaxy of Igbo leaders to Owerri to receive and interface with him contrary to the “intention” of the visit.
This is President Buhari’s extempore remarks: “I am overwhelmed by this reception, overwhelmed in the sense that when I accepted the invitation by the Imo State Governor, who wants to justify investments the government has done to the people of Imo State, I thought I would see the bridges, the roads and a few renovations.
‘‘He didn’t tell me he was going to get the whole Igbo leadership here. So in the future when he invites me, I’ll know what to do. But I think he has done what the military didn’t like. He has achieved surprise. He has surprised me beyond description.’’
His humour was greeted by large applause.
In his concluding remarks at the same event, the President made reference to his earlier remarks on the ‘‘surprise’’ action pulled by the Governor.
President Buhari again humorously quipped: “Governor of Imo State, I cannot thank you enough. But in your future invitations I will know what to do. I will be careful with your future invitations. I am overwhelmed by the reception.”
The ending remarks attracted even bigger applause from the audience.
Because the opposition in Imo State are too bitter with hate to notice even the smallest of humours, nobody would have been surprised if they also lost their sense of understanding when President Buhari went humorous in his remarks.
Let me explain to them what Mr. President meant in the language they will understand if at all they would be ready to learn.
Pronto, President Buhari in appreciating Governor Uzodimma and the good people of Imo State for the superlative host would want to be as prepared as the Governor and the State next time he is visiting so as not to be “surprised” again.
Only those who do not mean well for Imo State will travel this lane that the opposition chose to travel to tweak Mr. President’s comment they know is absolute lie.
Governor Uzodimma has done what no Igbo Governor, dead or living has been able to do with a sitting President’s invitation.
I thought the opposition in Imo should be grateful for this rare feat, swallow their pride and commend him rather than destroying what is left of opposition politics. The earlier they realise that what they are doing is not about Governor Uzodimma the better for them.
Oguike Nwachukwu is the Chief Press Secretary to the Imo State Governor and writes from Owerri.
10 Unique Qualities of Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu
Last September 4, tributes adorned the public space, to mark the 79th birthday of a Chief Dr. Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, MFR, OFR, CFR, publisher of Champion Newspapers Ltd. I was not surprised.
Chief Iwuanyanwu is a great Nigerian. An accomplished businessman, publisher, humanist and motivator, he rose from humble beginnings to the apogee of success in business, the engineering profession, philanthropy and service to humanity. Iwuanyanwu’s successes and ‘failures’ are as large as his physical size. So also is the way people see him. Both physically and figuratively, you can position him as an elephant; too huge to be described from one viewpoint. But no matter how he is seen, one thing stands out: here is great man who God has used to touch lives and to make a difference, to his environment.
For 20 years, starting from 1988 when the Management of Chief Iwuanyanwu’s Champion Newspapers Limited appointed me pioneer editor of the Daily Champion through to 2008, the last eight of which I spent as the helmsman of the newspaper, I had the rare privileged of getting close to this unique Nigerian. Below is my intimate recollection (call it unauthorised abridged biography) of a few of those qualities that have stood him out as an ICON of not only his generation but of a long time to come.
Before I continue, I wish to enter a caveat. When some people criticised former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s book, “My Command”, (he wrote it long before he was elected President in 1999, the former President retorted: “Did I say Our Command? I said My Command. If you have issues, please go and write your command!” What you are about to read is not: “Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu: Our Testimony”. No. It is Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu: EMMA AGU’s TESTIMONY.
LARGE HEARTEDNESS
Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu’s heart for philanthropy is as large as his physical size. All along, his selflessness was epitomised by the institutionalisation of his philanthropy by the Iwuanyanwu National Ambulance and the Iwuanyanwu Foundation. Through the first, he ensured that accident victims, nationwide, received prompt first aid and subsequent assistance while through the later, he gave scholarships to Nigerians from every part of the country. Ironically, while that was what the public knew, those two represented a tip of the iceberg of his philanthropy.
What was not open to the public was the fact that, at least, till the period that I was aware of, every Friday was dedicated to the “needy”, however the ‘need’ was defined. His dependable secretary of many years, Patricia Braide, later Patricia True-Love Davies (a role that was taken over by another personal assistant when Patricia left for the United States with her husband), would dutifully write all the introductory letters and requests which Iwuanyanwu personally signed. She would also envelope all the cash to be given to sundry beneficiaries who needed money for all manner of responsibilities: school fees, house renovation, medical bills, transport fares (as in the case of a politician from Owerri zone who collected transport fare to travel to Owerri to submit a petition against Chief Iwuanyanwu!) etc. I was not always in the picture. But one incident bears recalling.
To mark his 60th, Iwuanyanwu who scarcely asked for any favour from the newspaper, had requested for a vehicle, preferably, a sport utility vehicle, SUV. We agreed. About a month to the birthday, which had been deferred to December instead of September 4, the phone rand and Chief Iwuanyanwu was at the other end. He intoned: “Emmanuel, you remember that my birthday is around the corner?”. I replied: “Yes Chairman”. Then he asked: Have you bought my car? To which I replied: “No, but the money for it has been set aside”. Thinking that was the end of the matter, he waxed on: “How are your staff doing?” Not aware that an ambush had been laid for me, I replied confidently: “Chairman Sir. everybody is doing well”. Then he asked: “Are you up to date with salary payment?” My response was no longer as prompt and confident. I managed one: “I think we are good. We are paying November now (We were in December at the time.) By the end of the month, we hope to pay December”. From his tone, it was obvious that he was not impressed. But as usual, he put his view across in the most paternal manner: “You see, Emmanuel, I know you mean well. But from my experience, workers do not like any one patronising them by trying to manage their salaries for them. I thank you for setting money aside for my birthday gift. Your intention is more important than the actual gift. So, take it that I have received the gift. I hereby donate the cash to the company. Add to it and pay December salaries before the workers go home for Christmas”. That is the quintessential Iwuanyanwu.
EQUITY FAVOURS THE WEAK
While in reality, the weak is most of the time vulnerable, throughout the period that I interacted officially with him, Chief Iwuanyanwu believed that equity should favour the weak. For the period that I have known him, unless it is practically impossible, he would always stand with the weak. Again, another illustration from Champion Newspapers. The management had decided to ‘right size’ (a euphemism for retrenchment), as its response to dwindling revenues and declining performance. Most newspapers were doing similar things contemporaneously. At least, that was the truth. So, the Management had dutifully compiled a long list of workers to be axed. That recommendation had scaled through the due process: Management to Board Finance Committee to Board Establishment Committee, all headed by very accomplished technocrats and administrators. In the past, the recommendation would have scaled through without any eyebrow being raised. Not on that occasion. For some reason, Chief Iwuanyanwu was unusually pensive. Actually, lunch was served early and he still had his tooth pick in his hand. Did he reserve it to pick through the ‘right-sizing’ list? By some happenstance, he kept picking at the least and after a long time, during which the meeting went dead, he asked: “Is this your list or do you have a longer one?” I guess no member knew where he was coming from. When he got the reply, NO, he turned to the managing director and said: “I cannot accept a list that throws up scores of junior staff for sack. Why would you sack the most vulnerable when all you need to do is sack 10 senior managers and you would get the same saving as sacking over 100 junior workers?” If my recollection has not failed me, I think he also made the point that Management, not junior workers, should be held responsible when a company is not doing well. The Management took the list back. That was Iwuanyanwu.
CHARITY BEGINS AT HOME
Chief Iwuanyanwu is proudly Igbo and he makes no apologies about it. When many of his contemporaries took pride in establishing their businesses outside the East, he located most of his choice businesses in the East. Owerri, the Imo State capital was the greatest beneficiary. Once, in response to the rationale for his locational decision, he said God had reason for endowing him with some business acumen and that if most businessmen located most of their businesses in their places of origin, not only would there be rapid development but also the pressure on a megapolis like Lagos or a political capital like Abuja would reduce. Moreover, social vices, disenchantment and youth restiveness would abate. Thus, at one point, he had over 10 major thriving businesses headquartered in Owerri.
In 2001, when the Management of Champion Newspapers took the decision to install a second web offset Press in Owerri, to commence the first “simultaneous” printing of the same edition of a newspaper, in Nigeria, Achike Udenwa who was Governor of Imo State at the time told a delegation of the Champion Management that after the state Government, Iwuanyanwu came a close second as the biggest employer of labour in the state. For much as I knew, he retained that distinction for over two decades.
AN UNREPENTANT NATIONALIST
Can one be a solid Igbo man and, at the same time, an unrepentant nationalist? Difficult. But Iwuanyanwu is one. As shown above, he prides himself as a foremost Igbo man. But he also believes in the promise of a great Nigeria. He believes that, if administered on the basis of justice and equity, Nigeria has all it takes to accommodate the interests of its many ethnic nationalities and provide a decent living for all its citizens. Though he was a major actor on the Biafran side during the Nigerian Civil War, a role he relishes with nostalgia, he will be quick to remind you that there is a time for everything. Thus, he actively encourages dialogue, conciliation and fairness as the solution to most human problems. In recent years, I am pained to see a hint of disappointment in his tone; though I have not discussed it with him, something tells me that he is frustrated by the current dialogue of the deaf where, in the face of glaring marginalisation of the South East, everybody is talking but no one appears to be really listening to the other. That is not Iwuanyanwu’s way. But that is life.
DIVERSITY IS KEY
Chief Iwuanyanwu believes in diversity and inclusion, in all ramifications. Taking the example of the Champion Newspapers, I am aware that at inception, the diversity principle was implemented to the extent that, unknown to Chief Iwuanyanwu, some people started referring to it as “reverse discrimination” or “inverse tribalism” against his Igbo ethnic group. The policy was both novel and noble: no ethnic group should occupy the two most senior positions in any department, at the same time. What it entailed was that contrary to the expectations of most persons from Iwuanyanwu’s Igbo ethnic group, of which I am one, once a person of Igbo extraction occupied the position of Manager, every other Igbo person became ineligible for the next lower position. The same applied to other ethnic groups. In retrospect, I cannot say if that policy was his initiative or that of Prince Henry Odukomaiya, founding Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of Champion Newspapers who, with his colleagues on the Management team, did a great job. I am sure that there are people who would consider the policy as naïve, even stupid. But I would do the same thing today, despite the petulance of many Nigerians and the unsupportable mutual xenophobia ravaging the country. If every person in Iwuanyanwu’s position endorsed the same principle, Nigeria would have been far away from the current inter-ethnic crisis fuelled largely by cries of marginalisation and violations of the Constitution. It is one of those ironies of life that, despite all his patriotic effort, a man with such a large heart for equity and inclusion, could not get the opportunity to lead the country.
RESPECT FOR CONSTITUTED AUTHORITY
Iwuanyanwu is a respecter of constituted authority. This has been misconstrued by those who labelled him “AGIP”, a derisive acronym for someone who supports “any government in power”. But Chief Iwuanyanwu believed and, I expect, still believes that power comes from God. Thus, once an election is over, he does not see why opposition politics should be carried to the disrespectful level of publicly abusing leaders. He has stood by one principle: never you publicly offer advice to a leader who grants you access whenever you want. To him, it is not only an abuse of privilege; it is akin to playing to the gallery. Iwuanyanwu would not do that. I respect him for that. During my brief stay in the Presidency in 1993, I witnessed, to my dismay, how those who were applauded for criticising Government in the afternoon, ended up at the seat power in the night, to the obvious ignorance of their daytime supporters. That is Nigeria for you. God willing that is a matter for another ocassion.
LOYALTY IS EVERYTHING
Should I call this a super quality? Iwuanyanwu believed in loyalty to a fault. Of course, that meant that he hardly abandoned those who kept faith with him. There were people who felt differently. Some actually approached me, to “talk” to him. But he had a standard response, that he never shut the door against anybody. I can say this: For the twenty years that I had the privilege of serving in his business empire, starting as pioneer editor of the Daily Champion in 1998, all through to January 2008 when I voluntarily disengaged, as Group Managing Director, Chief Iwuanyanwu for the most part stood with his close allies whether in politics, business, community service and related engagements. When it came to physically attending events of his associates, I know of no other person that rivalled him. Did the “loyalty” always work out well? He is in the best position to say. But in all, he related with associates with the best of intentions.
PASSION FOR HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
All his life, Iwuanyanwu’s greatest passion is the development of other human beings. He chose three areas to accomplish this: business, politics and philanthropy. Through his several companies, he created opportunities for many people to be gainfully employed. In these companies, thousands have honed their skills, fulfilled their dreams and contributed to society. By attracting many young men and women into politics, he has helped to produce leaders many of whom have surpassed their wildest dreams, in terms of accomplishments. They can be found through the length and breadth of Nigeria. The other day, an Alhaji from Bauchi State excitedly told me how he was Chief Iwuanyanwu’s campaign director for the north east during his quest for the presidency. He said it with a hint of satisfaction, read nostalgia. I also recall an occasion: I was seeing him off to the MMA in Lagos after a meeting of the Board of Directors of Champion Newspapers. He was on a call when his other phone rang. He asked me to take the call. The guy at the other end did not care to know who answered the call before he blurted out: “Chief praise the Lord! I am your boy from Akure. I am very grateful Sir. I have just been appointed Secretary to the Government by His Excellency.” I knew Chief had to take the call so I had to literally shove the handset into his engaged hand. “Ah, my boy…you are a very good boy. I always knew you would make it. It is God’s doing. Congratulations (and on and on)”. Yours sincerely was among the thousands who have been privileged to pass through his business empire. Another example: sometime in early 2008, that was shortly after I left the Champion Group, I was privileged to be in the midst of four prominent Nigerians. One of them is late Ali, who was the executive governor of Yobe State at the time. Immediately he knew that I was an alumnus of the Iwuanyanwu business empire, he launched into praises, extolling the qualities of the man whose company, Hardel & Enic Ltd, gave him his first practical lessons in life, as an engineer. I am sure that, like me, many others will attest to the ladder provided by Chief Iwuanyanwu, to climb the rungs of success and fortune, in whatever way these are defined.
RISK TAKING AS A WAY OF LIFE
Anybody who has ventured into business will confirm that, without a great dose of courage, it is difficult to venture into any form of investment. People who are risk averse, those who are afraid of losing, hardly start any business. Where they do, they chose the “less risky” areas, where return on investment is quick and high. Certainly, like every businessman, Chief Iwuanyanwu loves profit. But he is not always driven by profit alone. He is ready to take a risk so long as there is a window to create jobs and boost the economy. Check out some of his investments: Hardel & Enic Construction Company Limited (Construction), Oriental Airlines (Aviation), Champion Newspapers Ltd (Publishing), Iwuanyanwu Nationale Football Club (Football), Sunrise Insurance Brokers (Insurance), ABC Merchant Bank (Banking) etc. He did not tread the fashionable path of importation that promised the highest returns on investment. To Chief Iwuanyanwu, any legitimate risk that opened employment opportunities, that had a multiplier effect on the economy, was worth taking. From my recollection, that was one of the main reasons that he ventured into aviation. Looking back, I can say without fear of contradiction that, but for him, the Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport would not have been the huge success that it is today. Oriental Airlines, owned by Chief Iwuanyanwu was the catalyst that propelled the airport to becoming, at a time, one of the four most active airports in the country. In retrospect, that will remain indelible, as one of his greatest contribution to Nigeria. The same thing played out when the Management of Champion Newspapers which I had the privilege to lead, decided to commence the simultaneous printing operation at Owerri. The rationale was straightforward: boost brand equity by serving readers in the East the current news; enhance revenue, open a new vista of business opportunities for suppliers in the newspaper value chain and create employment opportunities for the people in the ‘catchment area’. Emotions ran high as experts debated the ‘metrics’. After three Board meetings, Chief Iwuanyanwu ended the expert conversation on just one ground: if it was going to create employment opportunities without compelling him to recapitalise (from his pocket!), go ahead. We did. In retrospect, it was a wise decision. Shortly after our effort, the Sun Publishing Company opened its printing shop in Aba. The Punch and The Nation followed suit. The rest, as they say, is now history.
HUMILITY AS VIRTUE
By the mid-eighties and early nineties, Chief Iwuanyanwu was easily the most visible Igbo man. Whether it was in business or politics, he stood out like a Colossus. Thus, in a crowd, even if you did not notice him by his sheer size, his introduction would stretch from Calabar to Sokoto. Yet, these never got into his head. He has remained the ‘home boy’ at Atta, Ikeduru LGA of Imo State, who would acknowledge the pre-eminence of the traditional ruler and, in the church the devout Anglican, who greeted every pastor and bishop with utmost courtesy. As Chairman of the Hardel & Enic Group, Iwuanyanwu always treated Management and staff with decorum and respect though that would not stop him from wielding the big stick whenever the occasion arose. I can confess that those occasions were rare indeed.
ABIDING FAITH IN GOD
Like any other human being, Chief Iwuanyanwu has experienced life’s inexorable vicissitudes. He has experienced both the good times and the bad times; he has moved from travail to triumph; I have seen him descend to the nadir of human despondency and rise to the zenith of personal applause. In all these, his abiding faith in God has been the only constant factor. The crash of an aircraft in the fleet of Oriental Airlines in North Africa, in 1994, gave me a rare insight into the inner workings of his heart. He was thoroughly devastated and kept on wondering why such a tragedy would befall him. By tragedy, he meant the death of the pilot and another person. He grieved deeply. But as he did, he kept muttering, “Only God knows why this has happened”. Then looking at me as if I was the one who needed to be consoled most, he said: “Well, God who has allowed this to happen, will make a way out of it”. I was touched. Deep inside, I bled but I did the most to conceal how thoroughly famished I was. I remember that it was my secretary, the late Aloy Onyechukwu, who typed out the statement that Chief Iwuanyanwu read out to the Press the next day.
A FORGIVING HEART
Chief Iwuanyanwu professes Christianity. But who can tell who a Christian is or not. Only God can tell. However Jesus Christ, the Author of Christianity provided a rule of thumb. He said that, by their fruits, you shall know them. No doubt, forgiveness is a strong Christian ethic. In that wise, Chief Iwuanyanwu excels. Like every human being, he gets hurt. But once the offender apologises, he forgives. I guess that is one of the virtues that have kept him going.
POSTSCRIPT
It is indeed welcome relief that Chief Iwuanyanwu has finally quit partisan politics, a request I had made in an article to mark his 70th birthday. He has played his part and paid his dues. Long before now, he had transited into the pantheon of Elder Statesmen, only that he refused to migrate to that hall of fame. Yet, no one should be surprised if he continues to play active (not partisan) roles in matters of Igbo survival (very important), national unity and stability and above all, the consolidation of the work of Christ, through the Anglican Communion. In case he has forgotten, and I do not think he will, many years ago, during the investiture of his childhood darling and first wife, the late Lady Eudora Iwuanyanwu (nee Awurum), Chief Iwuanyanwu had promised to donate the greater part of his wealth to the Church and humanity. There could be no greater attestation to his middle name: CHUKWUEMEKA (God has done great things).
This is by way of a tribute to Chief (Dr.) Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, MFR, OFR, CFR, Ahaejiagamba of Igboland on the occasion of his 79th birthday.
