Governor Ben Ayade, Prince Jedy Agba, Hon. Paul Adah, Barrister Venatius Ikem are all very big men from Obudu.
Our senior brothers who have helped in shaping the fortunes and misfortunes of the local government in no small measure.
The truth is that, we all love them. Public opinion in the local government, to my knowledge, at least in the past two decades, has been largely divided among their various camps and their taste has been the taste of the youths for this long.
Even Prince Jedy that people mistake for a new entrant has a father who has been paramount ruler of the LGA for decades.
When these big men are at peace, the local government is at peace. When they look like they are at logger heads, the local government also appears like it is at logger heads. Just like they appear at the moment.
But please don’t be fooled. They are not fighting! They is something that is bringing them argument and they are yet to find a middle ground.
The moment they find it, they will sheathe their swords. If anyone tells you they are fighting, tell the person it is a lie. I wish I knew what was causing the argument. But I don’t.
Just a few reminders, during the last campaigns, Jedy and Ayade made it look like they will sling guns if they see themselves.
But without notice even to their closest supporters, they spoke and released a statement. Jedy attended a meeting with his brother, Ayade, with a bandaged hand and the issues at that time were trashed out and they sent out a picture.
They later danced on the same pulpit and Jedy joined his brother, Ayade’s campaign team as Chairman of the Finance Committee which according to the former PDP chairman, Ntufam John Okon, raised ‘a chunk of the money’ the party used for the campaign.
Jedy’s younger brother from the same father and mother, KJ Agba, is Chairman of the New Cities Development Board in Ayade’s government.
He accompanied the governor last week along with the governor’s Chief of Staff to visit the IG of police to discuss the plan by the police to build a police barrack in the state. He was also on the governor’s entourage to Houston Texas where the state team made a presentation to prospective investors in CalasVegas.
Even one of Hon. Paul Adah’s brother, I understand is also chairing one of the numerous Boards the governor has created.
Jedy and Paul Adah were standing at two different poles during the last elections, now they are in the same camp as well as Vena. The relationship between Vena, Ayade, Paul Adah, Jedy and whatever made it sour can only be explained by the actors themselves.
For anyone of us from Obudu to think that standing behind any of these our brothers to abuse the others will be the best way to show our loyalty, I pity you because when they will settle, you will become the kolanut they will share.
After the elections, some of the supporters of the various camps remained enemies long after their principals had fixed their issues and moved on.
No let big man use you settle quarrel! As best as we can, we should encourage them to work from their different positions which they find themselves today (PDP/APC), with the interest of our state and Obudu in particular, at heart.
We must in our intervention be as objective and dispassionate as possible keeping in mind that whatever they are doing at the moment is temporary and sooner or later, they will find their rhythm and it will just be pats-on-the-back in a happy reunion.