From FRED ITUA, Abuja
Eze Festus Odimegwu, former Managing Director, Nigerian Breweries, is a man known for boardroom politics. But at a point, he decided to play the power politics and joined or indicated interest in the Imo State gubernatorial race.
That was not all. He was linked with plans and plots to entrench former President Olusegun Obasanjo for a third term in office. The chairman, National Population Commission, (NPC), explained what really transpired to Daily Sun. Excerpts:
My governorship dream
Somebody who saw me one day and said, “Eze, I had a dream that one day, you should really go and be Governor of Imo State and help your State.” The whole idea started from him. He took it to Baba, (Obasanjo), then they started calling me: “Come and be governor.”
I called the current Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator Pius Anyim, because he is my friend and my brother. He is the one who recommended me for this job before the President approved it. He is like my political mentor. I have a lot of respect for him. I called him and I called former governor Achike Udenwa, and I said: “This is what they are telling me. Three of you should go and have a meeting with Baba, whether he really means these things he is saying. Or when I come, he will begin to mess me up.”
Three of them went to have meeting with Obasanjo, four times in the Villa and I refused to be present in those meetings. Baba told them: “Yes, Festus should go and help his state. What he did for Nigerian Breweries, let him go and do it for his state. Let’s really have a governor that is performing.”
Three of them came and told me: “He said you should run.” I said: “Achike, but you know I am not a politician. I do not have a structure.” Achike said he would give me his structure, but that he had his reservations, as to whether the zoning arrangement in Imo State would allow me to run because he is my brother. That he wasn’t sure whether Imo people would allow, after an Orlu man has run, it is another Orlu man. I said ok ask.
I told Baba that zoning doesn’t favour me. He said what is zoning? “Your quality is good.” I called Morris Iwu who said, “Ah, with Eze’s quality, there is nothing like zoning. Let him run, I will support him.” and then I declared.
After spending money, trying to run to convince the people. Taking over the two radio stations, doing 2,000 billboards, moving to win on my own merit, that the people approved me. Twenty four hours to the primaries, I was asked to stop. I said, “What happened”? They said someone (name witheld) said the chiefs in his village said they would kill him if another Orlu man emerged to take over from Achike. That he was saying he was sorry,
I should stop. And because I wasn’t doing it for personal reasons, it is for service, I immediately stopped.
People said: “Run.” I said, “run for what? It is not necessary. I do not want to win against the wishes of the President of Nigeria who is my friend who told me to run. I don’t want to win and put Imo State in problem that another Orlu man left, Orlu man is coming.”
Even some of my friends from Owerri zone started making trouble with me. So, it was good for me to just stop. I went back to Lagos, bought two Rolls Royce phantoms to reward myself for trying and then started enjoying myself. I am not going to run for governorship again because now I am in Federal level, let us help Nigerians.
It is not about the job we have done or the job you are doing. It is about, have you impacted positively on the lives of Nigerians? Let me finish this population I am doing, to help my country to have accurate Demographic Data. That is my chart now and that is where I am.
In fact, later Baba told me, the best thing is that I shouldn’t run for election again. That I am a technocrat, intelligent, a professional. That I should help Nigeria in this type of job I am doing. I know Obasanjo should know because he has been in the field for a long time. I have taken his advice, I am not running again.
My role in the aborted Obasanjo third term bid
The Obasanjo you know, two-time Head of State, Army General, does he look like a man somebody will tell what to do or somebody will urge on? I think he is above that, that’s one.
Two, Obasanjo himself told me that he did not do third term, why don’t you believe him? He was our President. He is an elderly man. If he told you there was no third term, I should believe him because there was no third term. He handed over. I think Nigerians should take it as that.
Poverty in Nigeria
People in Nigeria are suffering together. They don’t have ethnicity or religion. All the rich men that are enjoying are enjoying together. You may think they are quarrelling. They know where they meet in parties. These things don’t run on ethnic, regional or religious lines.
People who use such things to take advantage of the nation, we will soon unmask those people. We have lived on falsehood too long and the time to stop it is now. It is not late for Nigeria elite, for the youth to rise up and begin to deal with us the way they dealt with people abroad.
The day they caught Ghadafi from a waste pipeline. Did you believe that in your lifetime that such a thing will happen in this world? Seen Hosni Mubarak in a cage in dark glasses in Egypt? The modern Pharaoh. Did you think it will happen in your lifetime?
That is the way some people can be making a fool of themselves in this country. Those things can happen here. The sooner we begin to do the right thing to save Nigeria and bring respect and credibility to our country, the better for all of us. That is all I ask for. I don’t want anything as a person. It is not my local government that is suffering most in Nigeria but I am here to do a good job.
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