OPINION: How Desperate Can Rivals be Against Nwoye in Anambra

Posted by African Examiner Articles/Opinion, Featured Contributors/Columnists, Latest Headlines Thursday, March 30th, 2017

By Dr. Peter Ekwueme

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – It was laughable that rivals would resort to the gutter to press against the front line governorship aspirant for the upcoming Anambra State gubernatorial election, Comrade Dr Tony Okey Nwoye. The online rant by one Aniagbaso is even more so.

In this era of social media, misfits sit in the dark corners of their dark rooms and from their disturbed dark minds spew forth unfounded lies which the undiscerning and unsuspecting can fall for, hence my decision to put down these clarifications for record purposes as a concerned citizen of Anambra State who has a duty of patriotism to tell the truth as he knows it.

Firstly, only the uninformed will consider that crap about Tony ever being linked to the horrible murder of Barrister Igwe and his wife. As at that time, young Tony was still far away from Anambra State politics. He was not even remotely involved. For such a high profile case, it is instructive that NEVER had Tony’s name ever been linked to that despicable crime. And he has run for the House of Representatives twice and was the governorship candidate of a major political party. Not once did this come up! The little matter of the confessant not being able to correctly name such a close buddy, consistently writing ‘Nwonye’ instead of ‘Nwoye’ readily gives the faceless con artist away for what he is – a very cheap scammer.

But the one that takes the cake in that incongruous litany of fables is the allegation that Tony Nwoye belonged to a cult group while in school. Nothing can be further from the truth. Tony Nwoye had his university education in University of Nigeria (both Nsukka and Enugu campuses), and Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki. These are public institutions whose records the public can readily avail themselves of. Not for once was he ever accused from any quarters of belonging to a cult group. Not even the authorities he severally stood up against could trump up such charges against him.

The records of the universities’ security departments can readily be referred to and cross checked for this. Those at the helm of the schools he attended are all still alive and can be reached to get a clarification on Tony’s antecedents in school, even a characterisation of his persona. Tony NEVER was a member of any cult group! If anything, he deployed his time as a student leader both at the Enugu campus of UNN and much latter, at the national level (NANS) to campaign against cultism and campus violence. The records are there for those interested in truth and facts!

The other frivolities of kidnap, arson and their likes do not deserve any serious response. Anyone who knows Tony Nwoye can attest to the fact that his humaneness and innate detest for any form of oppression, repression and impugning on human dignity will never let him get involved in such acts. By his very nature, the Tony Nwoye I know so well simply cannot descend that low. I was in College of Medicine, University of Nigeria with Tony Nwoye at about the same time (I was a class ahead of him). We were active in the politics of University of Nigeria Medical Students Association (UNMSA). We were together in the Students Union Government House of Representatives. We even contested against each other for the Speakership of the SUG House of Representatives.

It is the stock in trade of dirty politics to try to impugn the character of adversaries but there is limit below which any self respecting politician should never descend. Fabrication of such wicked outright lies against an opponent this early in the contest will do the fabricator no good. The candidates should stick to issues, and there are many! We want to hear of their solutions to the myriads of problems confronting our dear state, Anambra. We want to hear of their strides in their former or present positions towards improving the lot of the common Anambra man. They may do well to provide us with verifiable accounts of their personal efforts in their personal capacities towards alleviating the suffering of private citizens of Anambra – the indigent, the unemployed, the widows, the orphans, downtrodden women and neglected children.

We want plans, initiatives, strategies and policy proposals; not poorly crafted lies, baseless propaganda and cheap blackmails. That crap by the faceless Anagbaso belongs to the latter. Because it is incoherent, facts challenged and downright pedestrian, it is, as Shakespeare would say, nothing but *”a tale told by an idiot – full of sound and fury but signifying nothing.”*

It shall be well with Anambra state.

Indeed, it MUST be well with Anambra state.

*Dr Peter C. Ekwueme (Leo P)*

Dr Ekwueme is an Enugu based medical practitioner and is the current Secretary of

Nigerian Medical Association, Enugu state branch.