FR. MBAKA IS NOT THE PROBLEM" Says Fr. Felix Uche Akam a.k.a Fr. Dragnet

At his maiden presidential media chat on December 30, 2015, the Nigerian President Muhammed Buhari while respond to the public outcry of marginalization of Ndigbo in the country rhetorically asked: “What do Igbos want?” This question has elicited many reactions. There have been brilliant replies from well informed Igbos as to what Ndigbo want. This piece is definitely not a footnote to those well-written treatises on the place of Ndigbo in Nigeria project. There are intelligent articles here and there but without undermining the ingenuity of Ndigbo those apologetics have not provided an answer if Ndigbo want to take that question seriously. Part of the confusion on want Ndigbo want is the glowing opposition against person and message of revered Fr. Camillus Ejike Mbaka of the Adoration Ministry, Enugu-Nigeria (AMEN). Fr. Mbaka incurred the wrath of many Ndigbo for his exceptional positions on issues where many Igbos have interest. Nothing is heard of Fr. Mbaka when he heals the sick, donates to orphanage, scolds Hausas, berates enemies of Ndigbo, promises people only want God can give, etc, but when Fr. Mbaka takes a stand against what is perceived as Igbos’ interest, the media are awash with criticisms. The questions to ponder are: do we suppose that God anointed Fr. Mbaka to prophesy in favour of Ndigbo alone? Granted that God raises a prophet to and for a people, does such position restrict the prophet to only oracles favourable to his people? A close reading of the Hebrew prophets does not suggest affirmative answers. In recent times, fearless men of God who deliver punches where they matter are advised by politicians, their cronies and the fainthearted to leave politics and focus on the word of God. Until I am enlightened on this seemingly unbecoming advice, I cannot come to terms with the idea of people advising priests to be church-minded and leave politics for those already condemned to die. How does the gospel forbid priest from condemning or commending political status quo? Jesus was the first Christian patriot when he wept for Jerusalem and predicted its fall. Did that make Jesus a politician or less godly minded? On my social media walls, those social misfits who do not know the working of social system occasionally come to advise me to quit politics. One who called himself Charles recently asked me even to face my work. My worry has been: which political post are they asking me to quit? The post of public affairs commentator or image maker of the poor masses whose food they smuggle and yet look more miserable than the poor? Those who understand that the Word of God is a double edge sword ought to know that it is sweet and bitter. The Word of God brings salvation to some and condemnation to others. What makes the difference is the state of mind with which one receives God’s word. For avoidance of doubt, there is nothing wrong with a man of God running socio-political commentary and taking side with the truth. Why the growing antagonism against Fr. Mbaka? Yes, Fr. Mbaka had at various times and for various reasons maintained controversial political positions that had pitched him against the likes of ex-Gov. Chimaroke Nnamani, ex-Gov. Ikedi Ohakim and of late, Gov. Rochas Okorochas. One would say there could have been better ways in which the matters which prompted the controversies could have been handled. Yet, Fr. Mbaka weathered those storms and retained his popularity. Before the New Year message of 2015, Fr. Mbaka was an Igbo saint more so as he had received at the adoration ground, the then almighty Dame Patience Jonathan to the cheering of Goodluck fanatics. But as soon as he thundered that message, “From Goodluck to Bad Luck” the tempo changed. The message did not go down well with many Igbos who were made to believe that Jonathan represented Igbo interest. In the message, Fr. Mbaka said the obvious- Jonathan had lost grip of the country’s leadership, factors behind it notwithstanding. The country was sitting on gunpowder. I personally disagreed with Fr. Mbaka not on validity claim of truth but of logic since he had endorsed Jonathan earlier during the wife’s visit. But that having been said, all the points he raised about Jonathan in that message were true. Jonathan had the goodwill and was a good man; a good man does not make a good leader. The message was concentrated truth. Was Jonathan not lucky by his uncommon rise to the giddiest throne? Was he not clueless in or afraid of confronting the cabals? Was it not under his watch that Dasuki shared the dollars? Was corruption not rife and our public naira stashed out? Granted that he appointed Igbos to top positions but did that change Igbos fortune? Didn’t men of God relocate to Aso Rock and soak religion in politics? Was his wife not one week, one troublemaker? Was Jonathan not president for six years and yet Enugu- Onitsha road, Enugu-Port Harcourt Road, Owerri-Port Harcourt road etc. Jonathan’s sympathizers till date come up with argument that others before him were not different from him; but progress means when we move from worse to better. Does that invalidate Fr. Mbaka’s observation? Those who rallied around Jonathan were simply getting their pie and cared not about the future of the country. By rejecting Jonathan, Fr. Mbaka endorsed Buhari, a reason for resentment by many Igbos. But the endorsement of Buhari was a natural consequence of choosing between two evils. And when Fr. Mbaka’s prophecy to the surprise of many came to pass, it made the wound which the message had generated in the heart of Jonathan’s fans to heal. Next, Fr. Mbaka harped on Biafra agitators advising them to go to work instead of being used by rich politicians to achieve their ends. Right or wrong, Fr. Mbaka said his mind. While I may not personally accept that our problem is Biafra because our leaders have failed woefully to utilize meager resources coming to Ndigbo from Nigeria federal allocation, I still insist that those who think Biafra is the answer and follow the law should be allowed by the law to express their demand. But it is curios that despite our dinning with Jonathan, we could not get Biafra under him. Was it because Igbos were well favoured in his administration? If so, how did that translate to springing up of social amenities which others take for granted in developed nations? And in the midst of presidential disregard of court orders, Fr. Mbaka was pictured with PMB at the State House, Abuja. I guess this is one of the incidents fuelling hatred against him. While everyone is entitled to his or her opinion, there is nothing wrong with his visit to Buhari who is Nigerian president, a nation Fr. Mbaka is aa true citizen. One of the old papal documents advises that we should let our love for the poor turn us hatred for the rich for both the poor and the rich are in need of God’s salvation. For more than six years, prominent gospel merchandisers flocked the State House with their private jobs and no Nigerian saw anything wrong. Rev. Oritsejafor was even implicated in illegal arms deal on behalf of the nation. Yet, Jonathan was a saint. Of late at his 2016 New Year message, Fr. Mbaka revealed that corrupt politicians are after the president to kill him. This is truly obvious. No president should think himself so loved that there can be people after him or her. By and large, Fr. Mbaka does not stand against the interest of Ndigbo but has restored hope that the church stands for justice and truth. He has brought particular respect to Catholicism especially from our Muslim brothers. He may not be at his best when it comes to politics but he certainly knows what he is doing. Looking at the divergent views, it is clearly difficult to know what Ndigbo want. Do they want Biafra to determine their own fate or want a pride of place in national leadership? If it is the former they want, Igbo leaders controlling resources due to the zone have not given us hope that Biafra is our final destination. If it is seeking national relevance, the six years Igbos called the shot in Jonathan’s administration didn’t add extra menu on our tables. Fr. Mbaka is right after all and Buhari’s question of what do Igbos want demands self examination and racial contrition. Fr. Mbaka is not the problem.