Uwem Udoma and the Tragedy of an Impending Defeat (Part 1) -By AmanamHillary Umo-Udofia

In his famous ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail’, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. stated that “Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.” It is necessary to begin this response to Uwem Udoma’s latest cheap blackmail by reminding us of this fact.

I have deliberately ignored the antics of Uwem Udoma, especially his constant scheming and overtures since Hon. Emmanuel Ekon defected to APC. So far, I had refrained from responding in kind out of respect for him, hoping that he’ll learn lessons from history. However, it seems he has misread that maturity and respect for docility.

I now feel that the latest publications on social media and blogs that Ekon’s third term bid has been rejected deserves a reaction. While we cannot descend into the gutter with these characters, Uwem Udoma and his acolytes apparently are poor students of history. First, they have not recovered from Ekon’s overwhelming popularity. Secondly, they may have underrated our capacity to confront their concoction.

Uwem Udoma

Let me remind Uwem Udoma that for over a year now, we’ve fought the politics of propaganda, desperation and intimidation to a standstill; we’ve fought mediocre persons who taught they were political supremos; we’ve stood firm against those who preach zoning without recourse to performance and experience and that, further penchant for a rehash and regurgitation of old tales would be at his own peril. If he is in doubt, he needs to consult these known purveyor of lies.

It is even more surprising that Mr. Uwem Udoma is acting like a rain-beaten chicken, crying all over the place, as if Hon. Emmanuel Ekon is the apparition haunting his life and sinking aspiration. In a rush, Uwem Udoma forgets that the grounds on which he is being promoted as the alternative choice are not only shaky, but pitifully naive. Perhaps, he needs to tell us if he can win an election in Abak/Etim Ekpo/Ika Federal Constituency.

The position of Uwem Udoma and his cohorts for consensus candidacy is a mere wishful thinking. They will continue to dream about stopping Ekon from seeking the ticket of the party. Since the party has opted for direct primaries, Uwem Udoma who has been in the party for years should step forward and prove his electoral worth, not circumvent the increasing fortunes of the party with the charade of an aspiration.

The argument that the ticket of the party must come from Abak is only supported by ignorance and dangerous delusion. First, the APC does not practice zoning. Secondly, the constitution is clear that the party shall enable free, fair and credible primaries, with an assurance that there shall be no imposition of candidates under any circumstances that will exclude fair participation of any party member with legitimate rights to engage in or contest for any elective office.

I now make this effort to give these explanations because I have become aware that there are many political commentators who are inclined to treating pedestrian gossips as facts. Unfortunately, since they invariably also tend to have very little accommodation for the sanctity of truth, they spew out their degraded falsehood as facts and are unabashedly active, particularly in social media, in spreading their misinformation as fodder for the unsuspecting public.

I assure this garrulous, tactless and reckless aspirant shopping for shortcuts that Ekon enjoys the backing of the young, who remain our greatest assets. His illegal plots are inconsequential, can only feed his ill-fated ambition and keep him awake at nights. But it will remain an exercise in futility.

There are two options for Uwem Udoma in the coming days, step forward, or step away. The greater the challenge, the sweeter the victory.

AmanamHillary Umo-Udofia
21st September, 2018