Nwoba Chika Nwoba writes:
Sen. (Dr) Orji-Uzo Kalu is a media mogul. He knows what publicity means and how to achieve it at any given point in time. Of course, he’s the owner of The Sun Newspaper, New Telegraph Newspaper and IgbereTV. He’s contesting the seat of Senate President in the election that’ll hold on Tuesday, this week. So, giving effect to this, he had to break into tears and make some statements that evoked sobriety and solemnity. That episode indubitably must attract to him some kind of consideration ahead of the election.
The truth is that Sen. Orji-Uzo Kalu has given back to the Nigerian society, economy and leadership and in return, Nigeria has blessed him so bountifully. His early years trajectories don’t present him as someone born into wealth, or a person born into a political family. In fact, his parents were petty traders at the time. I shall be giving account of the little I know about him.
OUK is one of the highly destined African children who started early and made it huge in their societies. He was expelled from the University of Maiduguri where he was SUG President at the time over a disagreement with the management. That was when students unionism was still in the best of what it was formed to fight in Nigeria. When he was pardoned and returned to lecture class, he insisted that the other expelled alongside himself be returned. The school refused. He then refused continuing studying Political Science and went into skill acquisition and petty trading in Maiduguri as a child in his early twenty years of age. He even rebuffed efforts of his parents to return him to university. He was warned to stay away from politics, but he refused.
Later, he was contracted to furniture part of the University of Maiduguri as a very fine furniture worker in Maiduguri at the time. His wizardry in furniture and palm oil trading drew him close to some VIPs in the North of Nigeria.
The same contact took him to the then President Ibrahim Babangida who later approved his bid for production of NYSC clothes and kits. It was this contract and his appointment as General Manager of the Borno Water Board and Lake Chad River Basin that shot him to economic limelight. In his 26 years of age, he was given National Honour Award of MON – Member of the Order of the Niger. At 29, he contested for House of Representatives and won, though he lasted only for one year as the Military abrogated the civilian tenure.
Orji-Uzo Kalu at that age had become a multi billionaire in Naira. He had become one of the youngest economic powers in Nigeria’s South East alongside Chief Arthur Eze of Ukpo, Chief Annie Okonkwo of Ojoto, Chief Chief Cletus Ibeto of Nnewi, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu of Ikeduru, Chief Chief K.O Mbadiwe, Chief Rochas Okorocha of Ideato, Chief Matthias Ugochukwu of Umunze and others. Orji-Uzo Kalu gave PDP in 1998 the sum of N600 million to aid its formation. In 1999, the party compensated him with its governorship ticket in Abia State and he was 39 when he became Governor of Abia State. SLOK Group gave rise to his other fleet of businesses such as Slok Shipping, Slok Energy, New Telegraph Publishing Ltd., Sun Heaven Hotels and Resort, First International Bank (Sierra Leone, DRC, Liberia, Guinea and Gambia), International Insurance Company (Sierra-Leone, Liberia, Guinea and Gambia), Bende Export – Import Ltd operating in shipping, banking, insurance, hospitality, media and publishing, aviation, real estate and agriculture, among other businesses traced to him. He achieved these before becoming Governor of Abia State in 1999 at 39 years of age. He achieved all these without being a university graduate. It’s an uncommon show of capacity. Over 12 thousand Nigerians have been employed by Sen. Orji-Uzo Kalu till date. He has to his credit 170 chieftaincy titles in Nigeria.
So, he’s not one of the fortuitous politicians we have in Nigeria today. He laboured well and rose to a near- apex of his political life before clocking 60, a feat only few Nigerians have achieved.
Orji-Uzo Kalu doesn’t fall in the line of some controversial Igbo billionaires of his time such as Chief Hope Uzodimma of Omuma, Chief Chuma Achiekwelu of Achi, Chief Victor Okafor of Ihiala, Chief John Nebolisa of Awkuzu, Chief Polycarp Nwite of Abakaliki, Chief Arthur Nzeribe of Oguta, Chief Chris Ubah of Uga, etc.
Therefore, if we should be criticising Orji-Uzo Kalu, it should be on the ground of his foray into the APC, an action that’s not criminal, but a personal choice of which he has right to. My interest in this article is nothing more than saying that his breaking into tears yesterday was a publicity stunt and a way of drawing attention to himself.
NCN.
