A weekend in Jersey (1)

KWENU! Our culture, our future

A weekend in Jersey (1)

M. O. ENÉ

New Jersey, USA

Monday, March 27, 2006

No, I did not go back to Britain recently; yes, I am still in Jersey… New Jersey, USA. Those of us in New Jersey, regardless of our exit from the Turnpike -- up north by New York, down south by Philadelphia or down the Atlantic shore -- do not usually use the prefix “New.” We believe that there is only one Jersey worth writing about, and that is New Jersey, USA. The other one is in “old country”… something from the other millennium! Now you know why we have Jersey City, not “New Jersey City” -- as in New York City. Hey, you say what you want, we do not pump gas in New Jersey; how’s that for republican royalty!

Seriously and as I have communicated privately to those who emailed or called, there will be no “MOE meets... Orji Kalu.” It did not happen, and that is it really. Shoo? Oh no, it is nothing major, just one of those organizational snafus that bedevil African-timed events, especially where the organizers themselves are unmindful of the bigger picture. Of course, there is Murphy's Law: "If anything can go wrong, it will." It did. I am not blaming anyone. A friend found it curious that the man who would call me from Naija and London did not find time to say hello in New Jersey. I will explain, albeit belatedly, just so we do not mix apples and oranges.

First, let us catch up on the latest eruptions from Naija: The step-aside of Ngige and the step-back of IBB.

Na wah for Naijiria: a state where strange situations are standard.

THE STEP-ASIDE OF NGIGE

A cyberpal wrote to say that my “silence on the fate of Dr. Chris Ngige is deafening!” He opined,

“Although the mandate has returned to its rightful owner, every Igbo person should be proud of the kind of leadership that Anambra State got under Ngige. Eloquent voices such as yours should not be silent at this time.”

You see what I am seeing, you see me see trouble? He tells me to write about something, and he tells me what to say! Now consider that this same pal told me earlier this month:

“As a fan, I am puzzled, perplexed, and even saddened by your fascination with Governor Kalu.”

I am lost.

Why? You see, a part of the good things going for Orji Kalu amongst many pro-Ngige Anambraians (mind the spelling) was his strong support of Ngige while the fight for the soul of Anambra lasted. Ah ha, you see why I try not to curse the day before darkness; even when darkness comes, daylight is just some ticktack away. In other words, no matter Kalu’s shortcomings, the fact that he has kept an alternative-to-Obasanjo flag flying was worth talking about. And I did; nothing more, nothing less. I had never even seen the man!

Now that Alhaji Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (IBB) has stepped out to soak some of the heat off Kalu, he (Kalu) should now rest easy and clean up his act in Abia State. With the level of noise coming from yonder, he needs all his forces to stem the tide of in-house opposition. In fact, Kalu is currently getting more heat from Abia State than from Aso Rock and such agents as EFCC. [Whatever happened to Malam Nuhu Ribadu after Chief Olabode George's file went to the Villa? Just wondering… nothing major.] Anyway, now that IBB is in the line of fire, the equation has somewhat changed. I will revisit this issue later this week, if he declares as OBJ talks with Bush. Coincidence? No, this is Nigeria, a state where strange situations are standard. Thereafter, we should expect the likes of Prof. Pat Utomi to step out, and then there would be light... again.

Sorry to digress.

SON OF THE DITCH

I am not going to dwell on ex-Governor Ngige either; many people have said it all for me. Such great Anambraians as Hank Eso and Sam Obukwelu were on target. Acho Orabuchi and Ugo Ejinkeonye have also spoken. [See Views on Anambra] I will only add that I was in Awka late last year; the miracle that Ngige was supposed to have conjured in Anambra Central did not happen in Awka. The gully erosion issues still loomed large south of the capital. Entering Onitsha was still a pain. It is now over to Governor Peter Obi. My only concern is that Obi might not be the arrowhead that APGA needs to purge itself of petty politics and to mobilize Ndiigbo. Do not be surprised if Ngige picks up the APGA mantle. No, I am not going to dwell on Ngige. At a time like this, I get poetic urges. I tried not to add to my piece, You don’t know me from which we read:

He who toys with the tail of a tiger’s teen --

Dead or alive -- fools with furious fire in a tin.

The flimflam fireflies shall surely get their turn;

The “small clique of renegades” scares me not

Though its “connections in high places” are hot.

Honor among thieves is double the honor of one thief

So in rich Chrisland, there’s no judging thief nor chief.

On that trend of thought, I tried to do another piece that might capture and then predict where we go from here, now that we are no longer on the fence. I tried to predict that Ngige might bounce back if Peter Obi does not get the full four-year treat. I called the draft “Son of the Ditch.” I am still trying to put it together, but my cyberpal called to demand that I must praise Ngige. This draft is for him.

Son of the Ditch

Hey, hey, hey…

Stop, don’t touch me

No one touches me…

Where the rain beats a bird

That spot becomes its bed

So don’t count me out;

No one counts me out.

I am a son of the Ditch

A deity that does not ditch

All the naked runs at its coves

Nor the submission of its doves

And hawks and ghouls alike

So, this son you don’t dislike

Down there, out here I might be

I’m just nursing the sting of a bee.

When the rain stops, I shall return to finish the yam mound. Get it? Don’t worry; Plato had since figured it out: "Poets utter great and wise things which they do not themselves understand." Talk less on non-poets like me! So if I don’t return to finish the poem, Paul Valery had me covered: "A poem is never finished, only abandoned." I plead guilty -- in advance!

BACK TO KALU VISIT

Friday, March 10, 2006 turned out to be the hottest day of the year so far, with the thermometer clocking 75 degrees, and we were still in winter wonderland! Anyway, work comes first, so I worked; make that meetings, seminars, lunches, coffees, finger foods, and you-know-the-rest. It’s hard! I was tired, but it was TGIF. With two days to burn before a week of Spring break, I was quite upbeat about the rest of the week.

I arrived for a private reception for Governor Orji Kalu at the Maplewood mansion of Chief Austin Egwuonwu, former Chairman of World Igbo Congress (WIC). Some New Jersey’s “timbers and calibers” were already gathered and making small talks. At seven o’clock, two hours after the supper was set to have begun, the guest of honor was “still on the way.” An hour later, no more excuses would fly, so we got the truth: Kalu would now go straight to the rally, scheduled for 7:30 PM at Doubletree Hotel on Route 1 & 9 South (just opposite Newark Liberty International Airport.) We did justice to the C & D (chewable and drinkable) and headed to the hotel.

Women were dressed to impress. Men were... well, not shabby at all. People were already seated and eating. Some have finished eating and digging into dessert and drinking coffee. The organizers were keeping busy, going and coming as if the world would end if they stood still! Attorney Odunze from Houston, TX, national leader of Reality, was at one corner quietly observing. At 8:55 PM, things started happening. The Governor had arrived. Some organizers urged young ones and women to usher in the guest of honor and his entourage. Soon, they all matched in with a lovely tune from the popular DJ Paul.

I saw Orji Kalu for the first time.

He is the same as you see in recent photos. In fact, he is one of the few people I know that photography does justice: neither photogenic nor photophobic, just plain him. I also saw my old friend, Dr. Madukwe Ukaegbu. His wife, Rosemary, a hardworking activist in OUK’s campaign setup, had told me the previous week that he would be in town. The procession moved on, with Chief Egwuonwu's red cap marking the progression. Kalu stopped to shake outstretched hands. From where I stood, making those few extra steps would have crossed the line from engaged eyewitness to celebrity chaser. I did not. There is a place and there is a time for everything good and proper.

Soon after the Master of Ceremony, Prof. Cyril Nwako, had populated the high table and recognized the heads of major associations of Igbo-USA, NJ, a bowl of kolanuts surfaced. Community esteemed elder, retired international diplomat, author, and an old boy of Government College Umuahia, Chief Chike Momah, Nnabuenyi Nnewi, consecrated the kolanut and prayed for peace and progress as Nigeria inched towards a date with destiny in 2007. Then we prayed! I wonder why Ndiigbo do that: pray and then bless kolanut or, as in this case, bless kolanut and then consider another bout of prayers by a clergy necessary. I wonder why an Imam did not pray too – as is now common in pan-Nigerian events. Oh well, this was about politics, not culture.

The night moved on quickly with the usual microphone mania and background busy-bodying. No matter how important an event, you always find folks who colonize the hallway and make endless conversations with whomever comes along. I found myself trapped in one such “colony” and, before I knew it, I had colonized a space myself! In waltzed immediate-past ICAN-Dallas/Fort Worth president, Attorney Bernard Nwaiwu, Ezeigbo Dallas, as I call him. With him were ex-Commissioner for Education, Imo State, now DC-based Attorney Obinna Duruji, Dr. H. E. Nwankwo (HEN), and New Jersey’s Mr. Nice Guy, Nnamdi Okoro. There was another colony with veteran WIC board director, Dr. Sam Enyia and ex-WIC Secretary Ugo Uzodike. Within minutes, Dr. & Mrs. Tony Ejiofor and a few other folks in town to attend the WIC Board of Directors’ meeting walked in, and the colonies grew.

Governor Kalu spoke from the heart and very passionately about his quest for the presidency. He was specific on certain issues, especially those that concern the Americans (white and black) in the audience. In his presidency, many of the problems plaguing Nigeria would be resolved, he assured. He was so optimistic you could not help but want to give him a chance in your mind’s soul. Then again, wishes are just that: wishes. The buzz that President Obasanjo was on his way to life presidency (forget 3^rd term) was so thick in the air it suffocated the power of political punditry. It was so bad that a New York-based publisher of an African newspaper asked me pointedly if I thought Kalu had a chance.

My answer was simple: “Kalu has as much chance as anyone running.” I am not sure he knew what to make of my answer. I let him. The speech was ending. It was time to meet the visitor. The tip, by the way, was in the fact that Kalu was the only one running!

Soon after the applauded speech, Kalu received the usual proclamations and citations, this time from the City of Elizabeth and from the students governing council of a university. As the Igbo-USA women got ready to dance and I was inching toward the high table, the high-table occupants and half the hall suddenly moved to the right end of the hall and slowly filed out of the hall! I inquired from the MC what was happening; did he know that the women could take the departure as a slight? He offered that Governor Kalu was “losing his breath” and that he needed to get some rest. Well, when it comes to health, I am the first to backpedal. I did. The women danced and left the floor. The Umuchu Masquerade troupe came and danced to an almost empty hall; no problem, I am sure they were paid -- unlike the women.

It was not past midnight. The body was not winding down yet, but there was not much to do. Attending such social events is not always about the main reason for the gathering; it is more about the people you meet. You see, Africans in the tri-state area have very few places for regular, family-friendly socialization. There are few places to see African women in their gorgeous headgears and colorful dresses. The weekly summer parties provide the forums for most social contacts, even for friends. Some live too far apart that Essex County (great Newark metropolitan area) has become the place to meet. This day was no different.

I was happy to meet again a gubernatorial aspirant for the Lion Building (Government House, Enugu) Dr. Biko Agozino. I believe that listening to Governor Kalu must have strengthened his resolve to pursue the project, even now that the third-term turmoil has thrown up another big obstacle. You see, if Governor Chimaroke Nnamani decides to sail again with the third-term flotilla, since there might be no vacancy in Aso Rock, dislodging the Ebeano machine from Coal City would be even a bigger battle. Forget what Prof. Iwu told Acho Orabuchi; elections -- like census -- are no Sunday-afternoon picnics, and I told the good professor this much last September in Abuja, I wished Brother Biko all the best, introduced him to some home folks, and promised to stay in touch.

I was leaving to get my ride and head home when Dr. Ejike Okonkwo asked if I was going to Chief Egwuonwu’s place. I shrugged: I was at his place the previous Friday for a meeting, and I was there again earlier that Friday evening waiting for Kalu to come. In the vehicle with Prof. Ezejiofo Udeh, who had parked his vehicle in the front, one of the organizers drove past. I high-beamed him. He thought I was stopping him, and it was good he stopped. He was fuming mad and spoiling for a showdown. Apparently, the organizers did not script the departure of Kalu. Someone somewhere screwed the show. I told him I thought it very inappropriate that the man left just like that. The media never got a chance to ask a question or two. Many people wanted to shake hands and take photos with him. In fact, someone had asked me when the fundraising would commence, since there was no admission fee!

I must commend the organizers for putting up a great program that brought together some local politicians, Nigerians of all ethnic extractions, other Africans, and Americans in the midst of the usual suspects. Unfortunately, their lack of coordination and apparent internal disjointedness robbed them of a great outing. It was a serious miscommunication that the internal itinerary (in New Jersey) of Governor Kalu was so unclear he, I gathered, did not know of the private reception until the host told him of it at the high table. Noblese oblige, probably, the visitor decided to honor the invitation from his elder that midnight.

WIC…

I drove almost 40 miles home across Union and Middlesex counties and forgot all about the night. The next day was WIC Board meeting. Since I am not a director, I did not have to make the trip back to Essex County early in the morning. However, something else came up during the Friday night out: WIC would be announcing the appointment of its Executive Director (ED). I did not want anyone to sell me secondhand stories how that happened. You see, everyone had thought that the matter had been stitched (a kpaala ya akpaa) and set to go. Apparently, it was not; Chairman Chibuzo Onwuchekwe would later confirmed that there was no deal.