‎Third-term desperation and the twisted chant of Ugboju turn: ‎An examination of Mike Audu’s role in Ugboju Assembly seat struggle since 2007

‎The political landscape of Adoka/Ugboju State Constituency has been unsettled and hostile in recent days, this is not because political leaders are moved to respond to the plight of the suffering masses, but primarily because the neglected masses who have endured eight long years of misrepresentation have risen to demand accountability and to question the rationale behind an unpopular attempt to replicate failure for the ugly third-time.

The desperate third-term move is viewed by the majority of Ugboju and Adoka people as an affront to their patience and a display of ex excessive guts, given the abysmal performance that characterizes the two terms already spent.
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‎There has been agitation and counter-agitation flying all over the Internet regarding whose turn it is between Adoka and Ugboju to produce the next House of Assembly Member (HoA). While this agitation from different groups and personalities is valid, it is pertinent to draw a line between those whose agitation is genuinely centered on fair play and those with hidden motives to mortgage the political landscape of the constituency for self-aggrandizement.
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‎An odd scenario that has been stressed and is gaining wide traction regarding the ongoing agitation can be traced to the confrontational manner in which supporters of the current HoA Member have decided to present their claims of “it must be Ugboju’s turn.” They assert this not out of love for Ugboju District but to further an egocentric third-term ideology that is mired in gross incompetence and misrepresentation.
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‎To further this discussion, it is crucial to present a historical foundation which will form the basis for these political demands. Prior to the 2015 general election, when the cry for the marginalization of the people of Ugboju District had become more intense and started gaining commendable support from political leaders across the board, the need to seek an amicable solution through wide-ranging political consultation by Ugboju political leaders, led by Dr. Dickson Akoh, the Oyachaba K’Idoma, became very necessary.

Visits were made to Adoka political leaders across political parties, and traditional and community opinion leaders were not left out; even the clergy were involved. The aim of this marathon consultation was singular: Adoka District, which has held onto the HoA seat since 1999, should, out of brotherly fair play, allow Ugboju District to ascend to the seat. It was this diplomatic approach and style that facilitated the rise to power of Hon. John Okloho in 2015, despite all odds and frustrating efforts by some Ugboju sons, particularly Hon. Audu.
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‎Having laid the foundation, it is crucial to unearth the detrimental role played by these sudden “Ugboju political agitators” in frustrating every effort by Ugboju sons to ascend to the HoA seat. To avoid an exhausting read, I will focus my discussion on the period from 2007 to 2015.
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‎In 2007, when Hon. James Adalichi contested the HoA seat with strong support from Hon. Sunday Ikpe (Sunday KK), may his soul rest in peace, the incumbent HoA member, together with some foot soldiers of the PDP at the time, did the dirty work for Austin Awodi in Ugboju, allowing him to secure his second term.

At that time, I was the interim National President of the Ugboju Students Association and had been engaging in efforts for Ugboju District to produce the HoA Member. Barr. Oscar Agbo, of blessed memory, was one of the loudest voices for Ugboju’s emancipation at the time. To this clique of sellouts, politics is transactional; hence, the highest bidder takes the day. Hon. Adalichi lost out as Ugboju groaned under marginalization while the selfish Ugboju sellouts were in a jubilant mood. The same scenario played out in 2011, leaving Ugboju in a continuous political quagmire.
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‎The most recent of the anti Ugboju political outing by the incumbent HoA Member was in 2015. After Hon. Okloho clinched the APC ticket, it became clear that Ugboju has gotten another chance to break the sixteen long years political jinx. Ugboju sons and daughters across political divides took up the challenge to ensure an Ugboju son wins the election, the agitation at that time was devoid of any acrimony, it was a challenge and an opportunity that must be converted to success. This onerous support saw many of Ugboju sons and daughters traveling from far and near to monitor the process, which would later turn out to be victorious.
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‎Many believed that, while Dr. Akoh championed the Okloho cause, the victory came as a result of the collective efforts of all and sundry. While all these strategic efforts were ongoing, the incumbent HoA ymember was busy leading the campaign for Hon. Joshua Ogbole to return to the state HoA, thereby widening the gap of non-Ugboju HoA members for twenty long years, should Hon. Okloho never win.
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‎It is crucial to note that Hon. Ogbole, together with the incumbent HoA Member, didn’t stop the fight after Hon. Okloho’s electoral victory at the polls. They committed to a marathon electoral struggle, from the election tribunal until they exhausted all the legal processes that ended at the appeal court.
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‎The belief among these sudden Ugboju political agitators was premised on a demeaning and provocative assertion that “Ugboju is not ready for the HoA seat yet.” In 2015 and after sixteen years, Ugboju is still not ready? Does this in any way suggest that Ugboju’s readiness for the political seat should be tied to when the current HoA Member is ready to contest for the same seat? It is shocking that someone who should be apologetic for his past stance against Ugboju District is the one who appears to be the loudest in trying to play the victim card.
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‎Now, to focus on the erroneous agitation of “it must be Ugboju’s turn” by supporters of the incumbent HoA Member, certain critical questions are begging for answers: As of 2015, when he led the fight against the Ugboju son, was there any political agreement between him and the Adoka HoA Member that he would hand over power to an Ugboju HoA Member, probably him after Adoka completes twenty years in office? By insisting now that the zoning favors Ugboju and that Ugboju must complete its term, does this in any way suggest that Adoka and Ugboju will be observing a sixteen-year zoning formula?
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‎As it is now, Adoka stances a better chance to make any demand for power shift than supporters of the incumbent. And even if thorough zoning arrangement is to be considered if the HoA seat is zoned to Ugboju in 2027 for instance, the law of natural fairness will favour Ugboju-Otaje when micro-zoned.
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‎I have looked critically at the political outings of aspirants like Hon. John Ojila of the ADC and Hon. Francis Abutu of the PDP, both of Ugboju extraction, and discovered that they anchored their campaigns on appealing to the conscience of the electorate and their capacity to deliver the dividends of democracy to the people of the constituency, rather than on any mediocre belief of “my turn.”
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‎After the failed endorsement macabre dance, it is clear that the Benue State APC has set the rules and prepared the ground for all aspirants to test their popularity at the primary. While this is ongoing, we have seen the enormous developmental efforts achieved by Hon. Philip Onyilo, a councilor representing Adoka-Icho, who has barely spent two years in office. To many, his few years of developmental antecedents position him for a strong fight at the APC primary.
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‎What is at stake should be who can provide effective representation to the people of  Adoka/Ugboju Constituency. Personal capacity to deliver good governance should be key in our consideration of whom we should vote for next as the incumbent HoA exits that office on May 29th, 2027.
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