Power, they say, is transient. With barely two weeks to the end of his second tenure as Governor of Ebonyi State, David Umahi, who is a senator-elect, is already facing the reality of what it feels like to be stripped of his political ‘armour’.
His aides, commissioners and many of the hangers-on that trooped daily to the government house, have begun to desert him. His kinsmen are also not left out as they have begun to give him the cold shoulders. This was made all the more pronounced when about two weeks ago, while inaugurating over a dozen projects, only a few of the aforementioned were present. Only five commissioners from his cabinet were present. About nine of these projects are cited in his immediate community but his kinsmen ignored him during the commissioning, barely recognising what he did, let alone showing some form of support or solidarity by being present.
This may come as a surprise to non-indigenes of Ebonyi, but not to the insufferable indigenes who nicknamed the outgoing governor ‘irongate.’ Umahi is regarded as an imperial leader after the order of King Nebuchadnezzar, the powerful but despicable king of Babylon. He is being accused of arrogating too much power to himself in a bid to tame both the rich and the poor. He exhibits his raw broth of power at will. From banishing journalists from the Government House where he holds court for life, for having opposing views, to openly bashing Ohanaeze Ndigbo for his disastrous outing during the All Progressives Congress, APC, primaries where he scored a miserly 38 votes.
While Umahi blamed his loss at the APC primary election on the then President- General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, late Professor George Obiozor, who he accused of sabotage and betrayal of the 2023 South-East presidency project, he was in turn blamed for his solo runs which robbed the South-East of the presidential ticket of the two major political parties.
As the chairman of the South-East Governors’ Forum, Umahi is also being accused of not organising the South-East political elite to work together. His poor leadership skill was also highlighted when he couldn’t use his position to push for a Nigerian President of South-East extraction but instead presented himself for the position knowing he stood no chance. His handling of security matters in the entire South-East under his leadership as the chairman of the forum has also been described as a disaster. Not only was he unable to ensure the proper establishment of Ebube-Agu, the regional security outfit and make it flourish like its Amotekun counterpart, his brother, Major-General Abel Obi Umahi (retd.) whom he appointed head of the Ebube Agu committee was forced to resign his appointment due to his (Umahi’s) lackadaisical attitude about the project. Naturally, the South-East has continued to pay the price through loss of lives and properties at the behest of unknown gunmen allowed free rein. What is more, the entire South-East allegedly blame him for leaving the zone vulnerable and miserable without a pride of place on the national stage, no thanks to his self- centered style of toxic leadership.
Ivory Ukonu is a versatile journalist with many years of experience, with entertainment and society reporting as her area of core competence.
