As Amaechi wins at supreme court
By
Odimegwu Onwumere
"Strength
does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go
through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength," said
Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The
supporters of one Felix Amadi, the gubernatorial candidate of the African
Political System party (APS), went home on 3rd of February 2012, frowning, as
the Apex Court
– the Supreme Court – threw out Amadi’s suit against Governor Chibuike Amaechi.
This suit was challenging the victory of Amaechi at the April 2011 governorship
election in Rivers
State. Amadi had claimed
that he was illegitimately skipped-over from contesting the election.
Amaechi
and his supporters are rejoicing over the judgment which was before dropped at
the Election Petition Tribunal and subsequently the Appeal Court before the Supreme Court
finally threw it out for what was described as “lack of merit.” Commenting on
the ruling, Mr. David Iyofor, the Chief Press Secretary to the governor said
that Amaechi-led administration is ordained by God. He further nailed his
comment by saying that the victory is for democracy, rule of law and for Rivers
people.
But
there are more to winning in anything than in losing. Now that Amaechi has got
the winning card, it is essential that he always play fairly in governance by
accommodating those who might have challenged him one way or the other that
still want to work with him in seeing the elevation of the status of Rivers State
to a magnanimous height. He should know that winning is not a one day thing, but
something that has to be bequeathed to generation through genuine exhibition of
talents, characters and works. He should not say that he has won just for
today; he should make sure that he wins all the time, because winning is
everything.
It
is because of winning that people keep score. One John Wooden appropriately
captured what winning should mean when he said: Winning takes talent, to repeat
takes character. And the president of America, Mr. Barack Obama
admonished that part of the reason that our (American) politics seems so tough
right now and facts and science and argument does not seem to be winning the
day all the time is because we're hardwired not to always think clearly when
we're scared. And the country's scared.
Amaechi
should not allow anybody or group to intimidate any resident of Rivers State,
by making the person think that he or she is a loser. Amaechi should always
welcome daring ideas when they are thrown to his desk. He should be addicted to
such ideas. They will make him to win whoever that is winning at the moment
Nigerian politics calls for a big caution.
Odimegwu
Onwumere, Poet/Author, Media/Writing Consultant and Motivator, is the
Coordinator, Concerned Non-Indigenes In Rivers State (CONIRIV); and Founder,
Poet Against Child Abuse (PACA), Rivers State
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