By Raymond Magen
There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it is right.
Martin Luther King Jr
The political season is upon us with actors guided and spurred by their ambitions and interests; moderated or not, by their values or total lack of.
In the last one year, one man who has shown it all, with regards highly treasured, strongly craved attributes of political compromise, brotherhood, loyalty, sacrificing individual interest for general interest, a demonstrated regards for collegiality and those other truly fine paraphernalia that makes the ideal party man, is Samuel Ortom of Benue State.
In the build up to the PDP National convention last year, Governors on the PDP platform had reached a position regarding the office of National Chairman of the PDP. The Governors had reasoned that, it was best for the position of the National Chairman to come from a State other than one in which a PDP Governor was from.
Not long after, Dr Iyorchia Ayu, a strongly connected and deeply experienced PDP party man, expressed interest in the position of National Chairman of the PDP. Iyorchia Ayu is from Benue State same as Governor Samuel Ortom. In the race for the position of National Chairman of the PDP, several other qualified Nigerians expressed interest. Many of them were from States that had Governors who were not of the PDP. A seeming advantage when viewed against the position of the PDP Governors.
To not belabour readers with details of the turn of events and twists that eventually led to a son of the soil clinching the position of National Chairman, with the full support of all PDP Governors, let me quickly draw from Senator Orkev Jev’s revelation on the outcome of their thank you visit to Governor Wike of Rivers State.
According to Senator Orker Jev, while addressing a mammoth crowd in Gboko to mark the decamping ceremony of Rt Hon John Dyegh, PDP stakeholders from Benue State had paid a visit on Governor Nyesom Wike to thank him for his support towards their son and brother Dr Iyorchia Ayu. Jev, to what would be received with a thunderous applause, said that, when they visited Wike and thanked him for the support in ensuring Ayu became the National Chairman of the PDP, Gov Wike responded by asking them to go home and thank Gov Samuel Ortom! For it was he, according to Wike, who persuaded the PDP Governors’ forum to rescind an earlier decision and support his statesman!
The reckoning with a brother’s ambition in spite of the excuses available for use to justify not supporting them, registered deeply with everyone in audience to Jev’s. The crowd applauded that show of brotherhood even as new PDP boy, John Dyegh might have subconsciously gotten into reflecting on how a different disposition was advanced by his leader when he aspired to be Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Soon after, the new PDP National Chairman swung into action. Trusting in Gov Ortom’s abilities, he had him head the party’s committee on the FCT elections for Chairmen and Councillors. The high powered committee delivered by defeating the APC where the President who is of their party, resides and works.
Then came the committee that every analyst in the country warned, might mean the end of the PDP if not well handled. The PDP Zoning Committee.
Interestingly, Governor Ortom, even prior to the formation of the zoning committee, had been vocal on his preference for power shift to the south. However, the PDP needed as chairman, someone they could trust to work in the interest of the party and country and not their personal interests. Very easily, that choice became Gov Samuel Ortom.
Governor Ortom enthroned the spirit of collegiality in his handling of this assignment. Strong arguments were advanced by all parties and they all had their day. In spite of Ortom’s thundering preference for power shift to the South, this assignment was for the PDP and he knew his personal interests weren’t to be more important than those of the majority of members of the Party. In the end, there was mutual consent that the party’s Presidential ticket be thrown open.
To have earned the trust of party men, to lead such a committee, in spite of his widely canvased position on power shift, speaks to how much trust he has earned when it comes to being impartial; when it comes to leading with a regards for the yearnings of those he leads even if he would have personally preferred differently. The PDP must not forget this.
Politics is a loyalty industry and while many politicians are quick to desert those they support at the slightest sign of a defeat, a more conscionable person, a more loyal ally, would show their loyalty to friendship and to causes especially in times of discomfort. And if that other ally had also identified with them in their time of need, as Gov Wike did to Benue when the attacks by herdsmen were at their peak with IDP needs spiking, then perhaps, better sense is made of the devotion to loyalty in this regards.
Back to the matters on zoning.
So, while left open, the Presidential ticket of the PDP, aspirants were drawn from all over the country. The contest, adjudged free and fair, was won by a true patriot, Atiku Abubakar. Gov Wike came second. The latter, being Gov Ortom’s preferred choice for the ticket. But Gov Ortom has always shown reasonable disposition to these matters and with that disposition as well, is a high sense of justice and of fairness for which when he senses a disregards for, gets him to strongly react as well. The same sense of inclusiveness Gov Ortom affords others, he also, quite rightly, demands from others.
Expectedly, unsolicited counsel and frankly insincere commentary has been coming in from an APC camp whose leader had on several occasions, said worse things about the person of the current PDP National Chairman…..and there’s no record anywhere of any rebuke of those outings at the time by any of these sudden more-Catholic-than-the-pope writers today. The PDP leaders will sort themselves, they will settle their grievances and Gov Ortom will be at the centre of engineering all of that, as it is inherently a part of his political CV to navigate these turns.
In conclusion, it is indeed a political season and while my focus with this piece is on the fine values and telling attributes Gov Ortom has shown in his political engagements and assignments, which I find applause worthy, I am of the firm belief, the resolution of conflict, is one of the basis for politics. Bernard Crick, it is, who defined politics as ‘the activity by which differing interests within a given unit of rule are conciliated by giving them a share in power in proportion to their importance…….” PDP shall definitely resolve whatever lingering issues there are. And they are firmly on that path.
Raymond Bemseer Magen
PSA New Media
To Gov Samuel Ortom
