The Presidency: 72 garlands to the man who gives everything, including his heart…!

By PRINCE EMEKA OBASI

Two years ago, Dr Peter Odili attained the iconic age of 70 years. To mark the historic occasion, the government and people of his beloved Rivers State held a banquet in his honour, of course most deservedly. Sadly, for me, I was not at the event. I was not invited which was not the reason why I didn’t attend. Ordinarily I should have been, given my status as a life member of the Odili family. But I had been away from the family loop for too long to merit an automatic invitation as usual. But unknown to him and other “members” of our family, I was at the same time engaged in an epic battle for my life. If not, I would have gate-crashed the event in the best traditions of the quintessential reporter, and forced myself to the podium to render my tribute to this great man.

On the surface, especially at first glance, it is not an easy undertaking to make the acquaintance of Odili. His demeanour is usually detached, serious and decidedly unfriendly. My conclusion subsequently, is that it is a defence mechanism. For him, a stern look is a screen to protect him from the world. But once anyone succeeds in breaking through the hardcore of that false persona, the real Odili emerges. And that personality is a phenomenon, a truly unique human being, a paragon of kindness, a humanist of unbelievable charity whose belief in and commitment to the cause of goodness, is breath-taking in its broad and limitless dimensions.

By the time I was admitted into the Odili family court around the mid 2000’s, I was late off the mark. A large number of my professional colleagues, especially from the Lagos area, were already adjunct members, feasting at the master’s table. It is now an open secret that there was hardly any major news medium that he didn’t support in one way or the other. For a hard-pressed profession that was in perennial need of patronage, he turned out to be a God-sent benefactor. His interventions provided a lifeline to many media establishments and in the process ensured that many journalists remained gainfully employed, while also providing for their families. However, despite arriving late at the gate of the family court, I was soon admitted into the inner sanctum and made a bona fide member of that sprawling family, thanks to the guardian angel who kept pulling for me – his wife of “inestimable value,” Justice Mrs Mary Odili.

The first thing that struck me about Odili is his intelligence. I mean, this might sound patronising; after all, he is a medical doctor and so ought to be intelligent. But his intelligence and easy understanding of issues, was very remarkable, and in some ways, rather shocking. In the course of my career, I have dealt with lots of politicians of different hues. I have also related with many highly placed political leaders and even worked for some. Not many of them pack the intellectual punch Odili has. I think his intelligence and kindness are natural endowments; gifts of nature! It must have been God’s deliberate decision to make him a highly cerebral and kind person, for His own reasons.

Given my disposition, I am often drawn to people who are warm and kind. Indeed, it has been my great fortune to make the acquaintance of such people at various stages in my life. But I make bold to say that none of those people, not even the legendary MKO Abiola or the evergreen Babangida – both of whose kindness is legendary – compares with Odili. He is a class act. One protégé, Emma Okah captured it beautifully when he said, “Whoever Odili carries, his feet no dey touch ground!” It is a sentiment I identify with in its entirety.

He is not only about kindness, but also about harmony and peace. In the Rivers State government house while he served as governor, he created a pervasive atmosphere of harmony, drawing everyone into his warm embrace. His was a family environment, with state functionaries carrying on as members of one huge family. He extended support to everyone who had a need. It didn’t usually matter who that person was, where he or she came from and which political party he or she belonged. On the core issue of implementing his governance agenda, he didn’t discriminate against any section of the state. He saw every side of the state as deserving of the dividends of democracy. He particularly went out of his way to encourage the emergence of young leaders.

As a true believer in the immutability of the human essence, he recognised only too well that the young shall grow. So, he set in motion the process of cultivating and grooming a new generation of leaders, despite their youthful ages. In hindsight, one cannot but applaud his remarkable foresight. It is credit to this that today; we have had and still have at the centre-stage today, the likes of Rotimi Amaechi, Nyesom Wike, Uche Secondus, Austin Opara, Magnus Abe, Desmond Akawor, Abiye Sekibo and Dakuku Peterside. All these great men were the storm troopers of the Odili Restoration Team. I became personally acquainted with each of these eminent people and can testify to what extent Odili impacted on their lives and careers.

His broad reach also extended beyond Rivers State. He embraced young professionals from different parts of the country and supported their careers and businesses. Indeed, there are many political leaders at the national scene today whose rise may not have been possible without his support.

What was also remarkable about him was the sense of dignity and grace. He never wore his charity on the sleeves of his clothing. He helped in the old-fashioned way; without his left hand knowing what his right hand was doing. I recall the story a prominent politician once told me: “That Peter is an extraordinary person. I had approached him to buy one of my properties to enable me pay the school fees of my children in London. You can’t believe what he did… he flatly refused, and instead gave me the full amount I was in need of. I was shocked beyond words!” Another prominent Nigerian, a former Vice-President once sought an appointment with him for an urgent discussion. Odili readily met with him. At the meeting, the man made a passionate request for land allocation in Port Harcourt. Odili promptly sent for the government official in charge of land allocation and instructed him to allocate a plot of land to him and process all the necessary papers and bring same for his signature that same day. The stories can go on and on. Indeed, the list of his humanitarian interventions is endless. From medical bills, to school fees, family upkeep, repayment of embarrassing bank loans, etc, there was almost literally no need placed before him that he did not respond to most generously.

There are some uncharitable people who have dismissed it all as mere political gimmick. Some even say it was all part of his campaign for the Presidency. But it is not. Of course, there is no denying the fact that his easy connection with people enriched his politics and added great value in his campaign for the Presidency. From across the six geopolitical zones of the country, thousands of people lined up and plumped for him. His aspiration bucked the trends of Nigeria’s factious and divisive politics and shattered traditional stereotypes. His was a rainbow coalition that spoke to a new Nigeria, a resurgent country pulsating with the immense promises of its diverse peoples united in a burning desire for National Greatness. It is now commonly accepted by all those in the know, that he was poised to win the presidential primaries of the PDP, if it had held as originally scheduled. In the event, it didn’t. It must rank as one of the greatest ironies in the hall of infamy that his political mentor and ostensible godfather, Olusegun Obasanjo, turned out to be his Achilles heel. Obasanjo, a devious and serial political manipulator, lent himself to a coterie of vengeful business and political merchants who bound themselves in an inglorious plot to torpedo Odili’s presidential aspirations. And what was their reason? Odili, a principled political leader with puritanical old school values, had shunned their cult of self-aggrandising debauchery and elected to maintain fidelity to the values of honour and integrity which had always been the linchpin of his remarkable life and career. They felt threatened by the prospects of his imminent victory and so plotted his downfall. They engineered a phony security report and used same to hoodwink a feckless Obasanjo into abandoning his protégé. In the process, they paved the way for the emergence of Goodluck Jonathan.

Two remarkable facts have emerged since then. The first, which should interest everyone, especially chroniclers of the era, is that Mallam Nuhu Ribadu has since disowned that notorious security report. Secondly, Mr Obasanjo is said to rue that incident especially how it impacted on the successor government. The Jonathan he had opted for turned out to be his ultimate nemesis.

Odili did a lot for me. But more than the material, he granted me the indulgence of being true to myself in relating with him. So, I was free to be frank and outspoken, during the multiple conversations we had. I realised that he is a very emotional man, fiercely loyal to his friends and protective of them. Yet, that didn’t stop me from being forthright in my assessment of some of them, like Obasanjo. But he would not brook any criticism of the man. Unknown to many, he was Obasanjo’s strongest backer and the main stabilising factor of that wobbly presidency. Not only did he trust Obasanjo, I suspect that he even loved him. I was puzzled that he could not see through the man. That was not my only source of concern. It came as a shock to me that this towering intellectual with such an outstanding political instinct could also be incredibly naïve! He apparently refused to see the downside of people. Each time my newspaper published any story against the interests of his multitude of friends, he would read me the riot act. He was a sweet man, who was sadly out of tune with the rough and terrible realities of our political milieu.

I worried endlessly for him, even though he did not know it. Life as a reporter has afforded me a ringside seat to observe the burlesque that pass for life in Nigeria. The polity is in truth, a theatre of the absurd. Here scoundrels, looters, egomaniacs and putative dictators manipulate a greedy and cheap populace to dub them heroes, champions of democracy, and apostles of good governance. Cash and carry journalists, bereft of honour and professional dignity eulogise them. Meanwhile, the authentic heroes are bludgeoned and blackmailed into silence. As the late Concord newspaper columnist, Labanji Bolaji wrote a long time ago, “We have found the enemies; we are the ones!” Yes, we are the ones who murder the heroes and hoist up the villains.

Peter Odili affected my life in many ways. He supported my publishing enterprises greatly. But even beyond that, he made me a member of his awesome family, offering me unrestrained access even without a prior security vetting. I owe him so much, as he also once acknowledged, “not only morally but also financially!” Unfortunately for me, newspaper publishing remains a troubled business, perennially hampered by funding challenges, a situation that is now seemingly worsened by the disruptive influences of the social media.

But the truth really is that no one; not I or indeed any one of the multitude of his beneficiaries, can adequately pay Odili back for all his kindness. No one would have pockets deep enough. He is an unusual phenomenon, a rare gift, raised by God in every generation to impact on humanity. So, it is only God, the one who made him that can, and will pay him back. The good Lord does not owe anyone. He rewards and makes everything beautiful in his time!

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This truism should provide a calming balm and help assuage the depth of anger and disappointment at the various acts of betrayal he has suffered. Betrayal is a very painful experience. I should know. For the last six years I have been fighting for my life, against a vicious attack by my brothers and sisters. Often, the question one keeps asking is “Why me? What did I do wrong?”

Odili was too nice, too good and too kind to deserve the fate that befell him and the actions of people, especially those he loved and supported incredibly. He should never try to understand it. It is not understandable. It lacks rationality. Let’s just say that his profile was too luminous and so he became fair game. It could have been worse.

I join my voice with that of many others to thank God that it was not. The joke is on all those who repaid evil for good. They will account to God. Among all peoples and ages, the hands of those who give are always on top.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, OGBUAGU…. everything considered, you still remain the greatest…!