I have always believed that constructive and incisive criticism is a fundamental component of every democracy, it is also an established fact that criticizing democratically instituted governments is a means of holding them to account and all through my life I have been a great apostle of holding public servants to account and that I have done by responsibly scrutinizing governments and its activities.
But looking at recent events in my state, I often ask myself when and how did we get to the level of such wickedness and gross injustice to the point where we now hide under the cloak of freedom of speech and social activism to conjure up falsehood through graphical distortion of facts to suit our evil and negative agenda aimed at attacking peoples image just to destroy them politically or ruin their businesses for political reasons.
At a time like this when world leaders are battling on how to save mankind from the dangerous grip of the dreaded coronavirus pandemic, it beats my imagination how a human being will hatch such a ridiculous and devilish plot by opening a pack of 10 Kg of garri emptied it, leaving just a little above half a cup snapped it and post it on social media with a claim that it was what he got from the covid-19 relief distributed by Hon. Chinedum Orji to his constituents.
Wherein lies our conscience?
Every Abian on social media must have seen a video that emerged a few months ago, where someone intentionally manufactured a video from only God knows where and superimposed a voiceover on it claiming that the heaps of damaged foreign currency stashed in a house belonged to Senator T.A Orji’ the former governor of Abia State.
What could be more damaging on some ones image than that and I dare ask what else could be the motivation for such wickedness and falsehood if not for political reasons?
I am one of those who had been pleading for the release of Emperor Gabriel Ogbonna but each time I retrospect on the reasons behind his incarceration I get bemused as to what could drive a legal practitioner who understands his legal limitations into propagating such malicious material targeted at maligning the image and personality of a sitting governor if not for political or financial inducement.
Most recently letters have been flying all over social media space purportedly written and endorsed by Governor Ikpeazu with his signature, letterheads and official seal. while the governors media handlers are saying that the governors signatures were forged, the opposition had insisted that the letters emanated from the governor’s office and Dr. Alex Otti emphatically stated that some aides of the governor authored the letter while the governor personally endorsed it, and as if that was not enough more letters surfaced with the governors signatures condoling with the IPOB family over the purported demise of their leader Mazi Nnamdi kanu.
While we are still arguing back and forth on the origin of those letters, my worry is the rate at which we demean the office of the governor and its insignia to the point that secret documents that are supposed to be an exclusive preserve of the governor’s office and its corresponding institutions are now reduced to a social media plaything.
It’s a shame that issues like this will be allowed to crop up at a time when scientists have all retired to their laboratories searching for solutions on how to get us out of the trouble we are in today and leaders at various levels are putting in all they have in order to ensure that we all are saved from death,
All of us must not share same political ideology and there is no edict that mandates that we all must vote a particular party or candidate in any given election, I recognize your right to critique politicians and public office holders and even your rights to political association but please be constructive and take cognizant of the fact that where your right stops is where mine starts.
There is need for us all to give dirty politics a well-deserved holiday this pandemic season and rather join forces with government at all levels to work towards a post covid-19 era so as to help navigate our state out of the pending social and economic down time about to be experienced.
Uche Aguoru
Writes From Umuahia
