The great Bishop Soni Akoji don speak out. Bishop Soni Akoji vs Jonathanians. Read this Soni Akoji THE AMAECHI I KNOW IS A LION - Nicollo Machiavelli in one of his famous quotes in his book, THE PRINCE ask the question whether it is better to be loved rather than feared, or feared rather than loved. It might perhaps be answered that we should wish to be both: but since love and fear can hardly exist together, if we must choose between them, it is far safer to be feared than loved. Among the animal species in the jungle, Lions have been mistakenly called the king of the Jungle, but the fact is, lions do not inhabit jungles. The Encarta English Dictionary defined the jungle as an area of tropical rain forest covered with vegetation so dense that it is largely impenetrable. Do any lions even live in jungles? Lions are known to live in massive fields, heavily wooded areas as well as savanna and desert areas. This prompts the question; Why are lions considered as the king of the jungle? Lions are mistakenly referred to as the king of the jungle because theyre the largest and most feared of the large cats. Lions have also been referred to as the king of the beasts. This is only partially true. Lions, in their habitats, are kings of the predatory beasts, but they can be easily backed down or killed by elephants and water buffalo. A pack of hyenas can also hack down or even kill a solitary lion! No one made the lion King of the Jungle. The lion took it because it is safer to be feared than loved in the jungle! The Lion of Ubima as Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers state is fondly called by his supporters, is not only a Lion, but an enigma - somebody that is not easily explained or understood. I have followed the trajectory of this ebullient Trojan from the Niger Delta as he transversed across the political terrain of Rivers state and how he has been able to alter the power equation of the Lugardian state, backed by trusted allies. I have been one of his greatest admirer from a distance. In all his political struggle, shoulder to shoulder I stood firmly by his side in the trenches firing revolutionary salvo from my control centre - BLOGOSPHERE at his traducers, who go all the way to vilify him. To me, Rotimi Amaechi is someone who has been misunderstood because he dare to stand alone and make a difference. An African proverb aptly puts it that, until lions have their historians, tales of the hunt shall always glorify the hunter. Thinking along this line, friends of the irrepressible governor came up with a hash tag #THEAMAECHIIKNOW as part of activities marking his 49th birthday anniversary. The idea was to get a total of 49 critics and supporters from the two major political parties in Nigeria - PDP and APC, to participate in an interactive forum with Governor Amaechi, so that he can tell his story. Social Media has removed the restrictive barrier between leaders and their followers. This is evident from the way the Obama - YES WE CAN campaign was anchored on the power of social media exclusively on its social aspects: through interaction and participation. The Amaechi I Know hash tag campaign was in furtherance of this two-step communication model between leaders and their followers using social media as a platform for conversation with opinion leaders, colleagues, friends and acquaintances who can either consolidate or weaken the opinion the general populace. I have built my voice over time on social media using Facebook as a platform, and have become one who has been noticed and sometimes listened to, so an invitation to this event was sent my way. Why didnt I turn down the invitation because am a critic and an advocate of good governance, some may want to ask? After all I have said about Amaechi, should I miss an opportunity to meet him One-on-One and demand from him answers to questions his critics daily taunt me with on Facebook so that I will be able to speak confidently about #TheAmaechiIknow? HELL NO! But there is something I need to know, so I ask the convener a question; What is the motive behind this meeting and what is in it for participants? You know that there is going to be an uproar and the tectonic plates of the Lugardian state is going to be raised a notch higher when the words goes out that Governor Amaechi invited critics of government to Rivers state for his birthday. Of course we are all familiar with the brown envelop syndrome prevalent in Nigeria. He assured me that they [The organizers] are NOT sharing money and that they are only going to provide transportation, feeding and accommodation. So I went to Port Harcourt. I have never hidden anything about me. I am the one who uploaded a group photo taken with Desmond Oogwu, Theresa Ugwuanyi, J Japheth Omojuwa, Petra Akinti Onyegbule and myself announcing that we are all in Port Harcourt, even before we met the Governor. Does that look like people who sneaked into town? No I dont think so, lunkheads! I know, youre probably thinking I woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning and all I need is a few good cups of caffè latte to get rid of some crankiness, but that is not the case. What Im about to tell all you lunkheads out there is of vital importance to you. So you all went to bed last night feeling eerie and supernatural after you bought the dummy I sold to you in effect that I was going to deactivate my account because of the tyranny of an inconsequential minority career Jonathanians latching on my visit to Port Harcourt? Mr Mafioso, in Crushing Your Enemy Completely, taught me that; First off, as much as you think youre a great guy and that everyone loves you, Im telling you that you have enemies. Everyone has enemies. Enemies are a reality of business as much as death and taxes. If you could eliminate death and taxes forever, would you do so? Of course you would, so why would you not eliminate your enemies too? La Famiglia has taught me many things, namely: you can get around paying your taxes; you can even occasionally cheat death before the Grim Reaper finally makes you pay the final toll (unless you already live in Jersey, in which case I offer you my sincerest condolences). What you cant do is let your enemies get away from you if you have the chance to ruin them. Career Jonathanians thought they have ruined me, when they went to town and concocted all sorts of villainous stories to gag me and obtain amnesty on behalf of Goodluck Jonathan from my sarcastic and acerbic criticisms! I hope you collected your booty in cash last night since you guys dont do cheque, because I sold you a dummy! I can imagine the mourning that have enveloped you when you discover that your nemesis whom you thought youve jumped is still out there haunting your dreams. I dont underestimate what I do, so I was prepared for some heat from detractors on the grounds of loss of objectivity. To my friends and well wishers, I have responded privately to the queries I have received and stood by my integrity. I have read people say they stay on Facebook to read my posts. You make us laugh, they say. Im sure there are people who log on daily and rush to my thread, more than the joke I make about a ministry, that is a real ministry all by itself. For a hundred clowns who rose against me from the Port Harcourt debacle, there were a thousand warriors who stood by me. Just yesterday, I got over a thousand messages in my inbox, excluding phone calls, all urging me NOT to deactivate my account. How would I want to please an inconsequential minority instead of the majority? Cmon, that is the tyranny of a brutal minority, but then the knowledge of artillery and the artillery of knowledge are not the same, as admonished by Emperor Fabio Contactus Maximus, the Great Roman General and victor of many wars who authored The Fabian Strategies of War and Peace. NO ONE, I REPEAT NO ONE CAN MUSCLE ME OUT OF BLOGOSPHERE on account of them not being comfortable with my revolutionary dispositions! Enemies, my friends, are much like a fire that hasnt been fully extinguished — one gust of wind and it will be burning in full force in no time. Life has taught me that some people just won’t like you in life, so don’t waste your time fretting about why they don’t like you. LEARN HOW TO DEAL WITH ENEMIES! Ignore whatever they say. They are probably only insulting you because they are jealous. No matter what they say, it can’t offend you unless you let it. Just remember when they say something nasty to you, they want you to react. So pretend you didn’t hear it. Don’t acknowledge them or give them any attention for it. If they continue insulting you or bothering you in any way, walk away from them. Don’t look at them or talk to them; just walk away. After a few times of you doing this they will probably get bored and stop picking on you. NOT CAREER JONATHANIANS! HATING IS THE CORE OF THEIR DNA AND GENETIC MATERIAL! At this juncture, I most express my sincere appreciation, to my friend and Mentor, Professor Pius Adesanmi who took me, Kelechi Deca and Petra head on in an IN-HOUSE inquisition on the whole debacle as he became the Juror and the Judge. Here are some of his posers; 1)What were the exact circumstances of this tour? 2) Do you see yourselves in the position to comment or react when next Jonathan or any of the regular corrupt Governors sponsors good governance inspection tours? 3)Should you have considered Kayode Ogundamisis model? He arrives Nigeria, picks a state, sponsors himself there, and does a public service inspection videography of infrastructure which is then disseminated on social media and other places. Incidentally, he did one for Rivers state which you can find on youtube and gave Amaechi a pass mark. But he paid his way 100%. That approach is more independent. You can see that Tope Fasua does it from time to time. 4)I suspect the three of you may have underestimated the status you have all come to acquire nationally in public leadership. You think your world is restricted to the limited space of your respective Walls. I am afraid, you have all acquired social, moral, and ethical capital. You are public leaders in your own right. Whenever Petra tries to resist the tag of activist, I laugh and tell myself that Petra is underestimating who and what she has become. Similarly, kelechi is deceiving himself that he is just a journalist. No sir, you are a public leader. You no longer own yourselves. Everything you do, every step you take is under scrutiny and you cant do jack about it. In my own case, people even want to dictate what I have for breakfast! That is how invasive the scrutiny is. You signed up to worry about Nigeria and make her better and you have risen in that track. You must never underestimate your capital. Any step you take henceforth must be preceded by the circumspect self-questioning: can the words jamboree and waste of public funds be associated with this step by cynical members of the public? The answers to these queries have been severally dealt with in the public and much as I hate to fuel the egos of Career Jonathanians who sees the backlash as a PAY BACK for my criticism of President Goodluck Jonathan and his bacchanalians, I have to admit that it was a major distraction for me. Kelechi Deca sums it up for me when he posted, be wise enough to walk away from the nonsense around you. I refused to be cowed and it took the cyber koboko of Pius Adesamni to bring me back to my senses. In his words, Soni, by the way, I hope you are seeing the foolhardiness of your continuing to bandy words with mean spirited detractors over this matter. You are dealing with folks who not only forged a check in your name but also cloned Sahara Reporters page with a fake report. It simply means these are gutter lowlifes and you are there thinking you can roll in the gutter with them? I told you that all any of you owe your followers and the public is at least one statement and maybe one or two clarifications on the Walls of people you respect and you move on. That is what Kelechi and Petra and a few others have done. But you are out there exchanging filth with an unhinged lady. This is what happens when you underestimate the status you have risen to. You go and start granting mean spirited riffraffs audience they dont deserve. Soni, move on and stop feeding the ego of your detractors with responses. This sums up all my long grammar! Alright, I guess you all thought I was going to tell you about what when down in Port Harcourt, with #TheAmaechIKnow . You just bought another dummy! But then keep it locked on this dial, perhaps when my N5 million cheque clears from the bank, I shall tell the story of my encounter with the LION OF UBIMA, in a series. Have a great Sunday! SA
Posted on: Sun, 01 Jun 2014 09:30:16 +0000
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