SHOULD IGBO POLITICIANS THROW THEIR KINSMEN UNDER THE BUS TO BE IN THE CENTER?
What many people miss in this debate is the ugly price some Igbo political leaders are often made to pay to be “accepted” at the center.
Too often, that price is higher than what others pay. It comes with an unspoken condition: reject, discredit, or openly abuse Ndigbo, distance yourself from your people, and sometimes even deny your Igbo identity. Some are rewarded for it briefly; others are punished the moment they dare to remember where they come from.
This is not politics alone — it is psychological and political torture. And it raises a serious question: why must an Igbo man first disown his people before he is considered loyal or acceptable?
There is nothing wrong with Dave Umahi’s ambition. Aspirations are legitimate. But history forces us to ask uncomfortable questions. What happened to Rochas Okorocha? What happened to Joe Igbokwe, Chief Ogbonnaya Onu — with their input into the ruling party— who played by the rules, paid the dues, yet their kinsmen question the outcome?
Truth be said, Ebonyi is not the whole of Igboland. No single Igbo leader can get to the center by standing on the shoulders of his people and kicking them down to please power brokers, if we still agree every politics is local.
If the standard for playing at the center requires self-hate, public humiliation of Ndigbo, and denial of one’s roots, then that standard itself is unjust and dangerous. It doesn’t just destroy individuals — it deepens mistrust, resentment, and alienation. Where do you return after serving in the center?
This cycle must stop. The center must learn to accept Igbo leaders as Igbo leaders, not as political converts who must first renounce their own people, or even pick up strange ancesoral lineage to qualify.
Here are some splashes from history on this topic like I tried to point out.
- Dr. Alex Ekwueme (1979–1983)
Ekwueme was Nigeria’s Vice President, loyal to the Shagari government, widely respected, and constitutionally positioned. Yet when it was time to consider succession, the political establishment quietly shut the door. His Igboness became an unspoken barrier. No public disloyalty, no rebellion — just silent exclusion. - Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu (1999–2022)
A founding member of the APC, former governor, intellectual heavyweight, and early ally of Buhari. He sacrificed his own presidential ambition in 2015 for “party unity.” In return, he remained perpetually sidelined. Loyalty was not enough. Identity still mattered. - Rochas Okorocha (2015–2019)
Rochas went all in to please the center — publicly distancing himself from core Igbo grievances and branding himself “a bridge-builder.” The reward? Political isolation, humiliation, and eventual abandonment once he was no longer useful. Appeasement did not save him. - Post–Civil War Political Reintegration (1970s)
The policy of “No Victor, No Vanquished” promised inclusion, yet structural distrust of Igbo political power remained. Igbo leaders who aligned with the center were accepted only as long as they muted Igbo collective interests. - The 2023 Election Narrative
Peter Obi’s rise exposed the discomfort of the political establishment with an Igbo candidate who refused to disown his people or beg for acceptance. The backlash wasn’t just political — it was cultural and psychological.
The Pattern:
Igbo leaders are often told — subtly or openly — “first prove you are not too Igbo.”
Others are allowed to represent their people proudly. Ndigbo are asked to apologize for theirs.
That is not competition.
That is an unfair entry fee. It must stop.
“History shows that the problem has never been Igbo ambition, but rather the unjust conditions attached to accepting it.”
-OdogwuGNR
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