By Austin Ogwuda
FORMER Deputy Chief of Staff in Delta State, Nigeria, Chief Emma Onyeka Ejiofor has lamented how his former principal, Chief Benjamin Elue allowed himself to be rubbished by accepting to be addressed as ‘Your Honour’ instead of the proper nomenclature of ‘Your Excellency’ and by extension robbing on the people of Anioma as being subservient to a particular ethnic group.
Going down the memory lane, Ejiofor in an exclusive interview with The Townhall regretted that even when an attempt was made to reverse the anomaly, Chief Elue kicked against it, claiming that he was comfortable with it.
Ejiofor dismissed the contention in some quarters that Elue was merely displaying total and absolute loyalty to Ibori and wondered why Elue who hails from Delta North should be the only deputy governor throughout the country who was addressed as such.
His words, “it was only in Delta State, throughout Nigeria except in Enugu because Chimaroke was a friend of Ibori so he copied Ibori’s style.
But what happened, on the 27th of May 1999, there was inaugural lecture and to be fair to Ibori, he (Ibori) addressed Elue as your excellency in waiting, go to the archive to confirm what I am telling you.
Only for him to finish and climbed down the podium, the caucus from Central (where he hails from) I don’t want to call names, called him aside and said how can you address him (Elue) as ‘Your Excellency’, reduce him to Honour.
“So, on 29th of May 1999, on the inauguration, he called him ‘Your Honour’ in his inaugural speech. Unfortunately, nobody from Delta North raised eyebrow, himself (Elue) too, felt very comfortable to an extent that when Pius Ewherido the then deputy Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly came to the office and said Your Excellency, I want to address this anomaly he refused.
“That is why as you asked some people say I am controversial because I know the genesis, how it all started and I know where we are and I am blunt. I was there in his office when Ewherido came, Elue said no I am okay, leave it.
“Let me tell you what happened at Government House, Unity Hall one day when the Ondo deputy governor came for boundary committee meeting, the protocol tried to reduce the deputy governor as they reduced Elue, the man angrily stood up and said don’t address me ‘Your Honour’ that I am ‘His Excellency’. He went on to say that if your own decided to answer ‘His Honour’ that is his business. He stood up and corrected them.
“That was when Anioma people started going down with the reign of Elue as the deputy governor because people were up before, it was when he came the political class in Anioma went underground”.
“To cut the long story short, he (Elue) did not serve our people. We were just docile. My friend that is not being loyal”.
Asked if he wouldn’t share from the blame for not advising his boss likewise, Ejiofor said, “if you talk to him he wouldn’t listen, I did my best, you can quote me anywhere, he would only tell you, do you want to remove this breast from my mouth?” he would ask you.
Ejiofor saluted the courage and political sagacity of the immediate past governor of the State, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa from Delta North who tried to redeem us (Anioma) that we can assert ourselves when he stood his ground on who would succeed him.
*Watch out for concluding part of this interview where he touched on the lingering kingship logjam in Ubulu-Ukwu among others