By Edidiong Umanah
There is always a defining moment in the life of a people when they must decide whether to remain where they are and perish quietly, or rise and confront their fears, even if it means walking into the camp of their enemies, speaking audaciously, daring them and facing their fears. Abak has arrived at that moment.
For years, our people were persuaded to believe that zoning was a political arrangement and a sacred covenant of fairness among the clans and communities that make up our Local Government Area. We were told that patience would be rewarded and that every section of Abak would eventually have its opportunity to participate in the leadership and representation of our commonwealth Many of us believed it and quietly waited while supporting other clans to take turns one after the other.
Many accepted political disappointments and backed down their ambitions because they trusted the process. Many of us kept faith because we believed that agreements reached by stakeholders who naturally are seen as custodians of orderliness should be respected and not treated as mere ordinances or as pieces of paper to be discarded at convenience.
Today, however, we are witnessing what appears to be a determined effort to test whether the people of Abak truly believe in the principles they have preached and believed in for decades and the irony is breathtaking.
Those who once presented themselves as custodians of zoning now appear cold feted, dumb and remarkably comfortable with circumstances that many perceive as undermining the very arrangement they once celebrated. The same principle that was described as necessary for peace, inclusion and balance suddenly appears negotiable because powerful interests are involved.
Apparently, zoning is a noble principle when it benefits some people, but an inconvenient obstacle when it is another person’s turn.
And again, agreements are binding only until they become inconvenient.
We have now seen so too that fairness is sacred only when it serves certain political calculations.
And then, the people of Abak are expected to applaud as the goalposts are moved before their very eyes.
If indeed the established rotational understanding can be ignored at this critical moment, then perhaps the people deserve an honest announcement. The Governor who is the man behind the mask in the complete distortion and destabilization of the existing zoning arrangements earlier adopted across state and federal constituencies especially in Abak in a bid to install his stooge Elder Udeme Otong to return for a third time should publicly declare that zoning has expired and get ready to start a fresh term again from Uyo senatorial district since justice can be bought with just 20cents or with the people’s sensibilities.
Perhaps someone should tell the clans that patiently waited for their turn that they misunderstood the arrangement all along and that the sacrifices made in the interest of unity were merely exercises in political endurance.
The greater tragedy is not the ambition of any individual because, every citizen has a right to aspire to public office. The greater tragedy is the potential destruction of trust in a system and principle that has held the various clans of Abak together for years.
Trust, once broken, is difficult to rebuild and if the impression is created that political influence can override established understandings whenever convenient, then future appeals to zoning will no longer command the respect they once enjoyed.
That is why this moment is bigger than any one person. It is bigger than any single election, even bigger than any temporary political advantage.
As critical as this moment is, It is about whether agreements still matter or whether the words equity, fairness and inclusion still have meaning in Abak.
Those who believe in zoning must speak now and show accompanying actions to justify their words or ever remain silent later because if the rotational principle is set aside today, then future generations will be entitled to conclude that zoning was never a principle at all but merely a political tool deployed when convenient and abandoned when inconvenient.
In this defining moment, the people of Abak must therefore ask themselves
If a long-standing understanding can be altered at the very point where it is expected to benefit another section of the Local Government, what exactly remains of zoning?
If agreements reached in good faith can be disregarded when power intervenes, what exactly remains of trust?
And if the principle does not apply now, when does it apply?
History often turns on moments such as this. Moments when silence becomes consent and when convenience attempts to masquerade as justice. The choice before us therefore is either to defend the credibility of the rotational arrangement and preserve the trust that has sustained political coexistence, or abandon it and accept the consequences that follow when people no longer believe that agreements will be honored.
If zoning cannot survive this test, then it may be difficult to persuade anyone to believe in it again.
Conclusively, if Midim is denied the chance to produce the next House of Assembly seat, then no one should come up with a new zoning template in the build up to the next election whether for Chairmanship seat, House of Assembly or other positions because Zoning in Abak is dead because injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.
Edidiong Umanah writes from Abak Village