Prince Arthur Eze: The Man And His Political Philosophy -By Gozie Irogboli

Nigerian politics is described by observers and analysts as politics without ideology. The only prevalent ideological front seems to be ethnicity and tribalism. With over one hundred years of nationhood and about sixty years of independent and self-rule from the imperialist Britain Nigerian politics is still steeped in crisis and instability occasioned by adverse socio-political environment and the inability of the politicians to rise beyond petty differences and the limitations imposed by religion and regional sentiments. Nationalism and patriotism seem to be an aberration in the polity as true nationalists and statesmen are scoffed at while ethnic jingoists are hailed as heroes and sages.

Expectedly, just as it is difficult to underpin a clear-cut political ideology in Nigerian politics so it is difficult to identify the political philosophies of the political jobbers and gladiators. The dominant philosophy appears to be self-seeking, self-preservation and self-adulation. Our politicians see politics more of as a means to advance parochial interest rather general interest. The politicians come to be served rather than to serve the country or the citizenry. Thus, not guarded with defined purpose and sound political philosophy our politicians indulge in political grandstanding and personal aggrandizement to the detriment of the nation and the masses.

Ideally, political philosophy should be seen as the propelling force that tends to make one get involved in political activities. A sound political philosophy should revolve around influencing or deploying state powers and resources toward the achievement of the goal of nation building, and enhancement of the quality of life of the citizenry.

Thus, writing about political philosophy of an average Nigerian politician might be an uphill task given that many do not know what being in politics entails apart from the conspiracy to grab power. But in Prince Engr. Dr. Arthur Eze there seems to be a difference. If there is any politician in contemporary Nigeria that has subordinated personal interest under national interest and has demonstrated uncommon interest and commitment to empowering the masses that person is Engr. Arthur Eze the Prince of Ukpo Kingdom. Indeed, if there is any Nigerian politician who has identified positively and actively with the masses that person is the Prince of Ukpo kingdom. He is a personality that is too difficult to be ignored in the Nigeria of the present era. He is self-less and altruistic and because his ways are quite different from the generality of other politicians, he is most often times misunderstood by his compatriots who find it difficult to reconcile his unbridled act of generosity, openness and forthrightness.

Without vying for or holding any political office in the land, Arthur Eze has had great impact on the lives of the citizenry more than any political office holder in the annals of this nation. He has devoted his time, talent and treasure for the service of his people. And because of his supportive role and liberal nature, every politician desirous of political office seems to consult him for advice and financial support and he has supported every candidate he finds capable and credible irrespective of tribe or political affiliation. It may not be wrong to say that Prince Arthur Eze is not an out-and-out politician. It may be appropriate to describe him as a political activist or enthusiast for his level of patriotism and knowledge of politics is above that of the ordinary “professional politician” and thus his knowledge and the power he wields make him an influencer and a mentor. A little wonder his admirers fondly refer to him as the “godfather”.

Thus, his political philosophy is anchored on altruism, patriotism, pragmatism and service to the people. He believes in liberal democratic ideals and the sovereignty of the people. He believes that the task of national unity and cohesion can only be achieved by tolerance, peaceful co-existence, and creative integration of disparate interests through building bridges across political divides. His political virtues are guided by the ideals of respect for the dignity of man and the rights of the individual. And his mandate and motto is service to the people. No doubt, his political philosophy may have been shaped by his urbane nature, his royal bloodline and the liberal orientation he had in America where he had sojourned in the 1970s for higher education.

Generally, Prince Arthur Eze is many things to many people. He is a patriot, a jolly good fellow, an astute business mogul and a philanthropist per excellence. To his people, he represents hope, to the upcoming politicians, he is a lodestar; a quintessential statesman. But, to the crude politicians, he may be a bugaboo figure because of his forthrightness and sincerity of purpose. He may also be seen as an internationalist as his benevolence and philanthropy cut across religious, ethnic and international boundaries. He is a humanist who believes that the ultimate achievement of the individual is the number of souls he has touched. His notion about wealth and power is that they both belong to God and whoever has wealth or wields power is holding it in trust for God and should use it to advance the course of humanity.

Again, this probably explains why he tends to support the government in power, something that has been misconstrued by his traducers, because he believes that it is God that gives power and that the success of the government in power is to the benefit of the people.

It is not out of place to state that Prince Arthur Eze is a lover of his people Ndi-Igbo. He has done everything in his power to promote the interest of his people and hence the appellation Ozoigbondu—one who saves Ndi-Igbo—aptly attached to his name by his people. As a politician, he is not interested in political appointment or elective office rather his interest is to support and promote activities that will advance the political interest of his people. The All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) the political platform of Ndi-Igbo was formed in Arthur Eze’s house in Enugu. He funded the registration of the party and its take-off and ever since he has not stopped giving his support where and when necessary. His intention was to give Ndi-Igbo a voice and a platform to articulate and advance their political interest knowing full well that one of the reasons for the apparent political misfortune and marginalization of the Igbos in Nigeria is the display of apathy in political matters by Ndi-Igbo. Apart from using his personal wealth to empower his people, he has also used his position to influence development in his area. In the current regime, he has been able to influence the establishment of a police zonal command (Zone 13), the second in the South East Nigeria. This is upon the realization that security is a major challenge in this part of the country.

However, Prince Arthur Eze seems to clearly understand the variegated nature of the country and hence his aversion for politics of exclusion. He believes that consensus building, interest aggregation should be the panacea for political harmony. He is of the view that every politician interested in peace and development of the nation should rise beyond primordial and regional sentiment. To him, it is only the inferior minded that allows primordial sentiments to becloud their sense of judgment. On the issue of Igbo presidency, he is of the view that what Nigeria needs at the moment is a charismatic leader that will unite the country and usher in a new era of the much-needed peace, prosperity and progress in the land and not necessarily a president of Igbo extraction.

However, he believes that for the Igbos to take their rightful place in the country there would be need to close ranks and seek rapprochement with other ethnic groups and political blocs in the country.

He believes that the greatest problem of the country is that of the politicians and public office-holders who have wrong notion of their roles; that see their positions as an opportunity to indulge in primitive accumulation rather than to serve the people. And to continue to indulge in their stealing they play the religious and the ethnic cards to continually keep the people disoriented and divided. This is the root cause of corruption in the land. As a rule, he believes that public officers should be ethical, legal and civil in their conduct because the hallmark of public service is dedication to the service of the people.

As a seasoned political activist, he knows that in the process of authoritative allocation of values as politics is defined, conflicts are inevitable because of clash of interest but resolving and managing conflicts should be by means of effective stakeholders’ engagement, consensus building, dialogue, arbitration and other civil procedure rather than violence. He advocates tolerance and compromise where necessary for the interest of peace and national unity. He believes that those who play politics of bitterness and strife have nothing to offer; they are the jobless politicians who see politics as zero-sum game and a means of livelihood rather than a call for service.

Clearly, if there is any political gladiator in Nigeria with well-defined political philosophy, that person is Prince Dr. Arthur Eze. And if others should emulate him and play principle-centered politics our country Nigeria will be better for it.

Gozie Irogboli
An economist, media activist and public policy analyst
(goziei@yahoo.com)