Why Primus Odili?

(Chima Igwe)

Primus Odili has been under attacks lately. No thanks to few people who have decided to have him on toast, maligning him unceasingly. What is not clear is what the young Chief of Staff to the Governor of Anambra State has done or intends to do to stave off the attack as it appears not to stop anytime soon. It can only be a surprise if it does and a shock if Odili sits on his hands and hopes it will. His detractors appear to be out of humour with him for no obvious reason.

Before we look at possible reasons why the attack on Odili is persistent, it will be important to understand who Primus Odili is. What he stands for and why he was appointed as the chief of staff to the governor ahead of older politicians? What magic he has been able to work since assuming the office.

Odili did not join the government of Chief Willie Obiano as COS. He did as SSA Special Duties where he did not only excel, but showed aptitude for higher responsibility. And if the reward for a job well done is more work, he got his due reward.
And how well has Odili fared as the COS? Without eulogizing him unduly he brought youthful dynamism and promptness to the office. This was not the case before now. He does not dawdle and has no time listening to idle talk. Ordinarily, his office should expose him to routine talks of the kind that make less motivated public officers lose focus. But Odili knows better and seeks out committed people who are willing to add value to the administration he serves.

Something really happened in the Obiano administration that many people were not aware of. There was once a rumble in the House of Assembly few years back. It took prompt intervention of the young COS to arrest the situation. Odili was almost on his way out of town when his attention was called to the unusual development. He rushed down immediately to the Assembly and arrested the situation. While this endeared him to his principal, it pushed him farther away from his detractors.

It does not take long for the petty jealousy to snowball into a monster of defamatory writings. The idea to pull Odili down became a project which must be achieved. Loss of favour by some has become quite obvious and has to be fought. And “nothing”, in the words of Cardinal de Retz, “is so annoying as being the minister of a prince of whom one is not the favourite”.

But the scope of attack became widened the more with the coming of the 2021 governorship election in the state. Odili rightly or wrongly is seen as standing in the way of those who are angling to be deputy governor. And for those involved in this project they are ready to do anything, including wishing Odili and his family dead through Covid-19 disease.
But it appears lost on these people that death wish hardly works and that the person so wished is often last served. The politics of 2021 does not need what is being thrown into the mix already. Anybody can be what they want to become without overly compromising the reputation of anybody or wishing the other person death.

Primus Odili may not have served the interest of every tom, dick and harry well, but he has also not gone out of his way to malign anybody. What those who defame him do not know is that he has acceptance among people, especially the youth. He relates well with the people and makes friends easily. His detractors have time to retrace their steps and engage the people more profitably.
The political turf of Anambra state is big enough to accommodate everybody with less of the shenanigans. There was feeble effort to defend the COS from an unusual quarter, all in attempt to mask the enemy. But nobody is deceived. The level of blackmail by politicians, using various social media handles to destroy others is not a good development.
Everybody should have a life after politics. Everybody should work hard to leave some good legacy in this life that is becoming increasingly short. Let us operate in the realm of politics and let the pandemic be. There should be limit to hate. Let Odili and his family be.

(Chima Igwe,
Awka)