RE: Ifeanyi Ubahism as a political ideology, a combination of selfism and welfarism (the aftermath of the post birthday interactive session we had with him)

I have read with keen interest, the submissions of Mr. Nnanna Nzewi in his write up coined "Ifeanyi Ubahism, a combination of selfism and welfarism (the aftermath of the post-birthday interactive session we had with him)". While I admire and appreciate his views, I submit that a lot has been misconstrued and written without proper knowledge of the man "Dr. Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah".

"I spent more than 14 hours with Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah and I can confidently say that his political ideology is anchored on I, me and myself" - Nnanna Nzewi (2016). Whilst I am unaware of the writer's familiarity with the subject matter (Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah), based on the aforementioned quote, my first impression is that the writers essay is based solely on deductions from a "wrong perception". As I acknowledge what is often said about perception, it is also my belief that when one decides to elucidate on someone's personality, an extensive research into the life and times of such a person is of utmost importance. Hence, deductions from one media appearance can and would not suffice.

Permit me to state that I am an avid follower of Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah, in all spheres (both in person and on ALL social media platforms) and as such, I believe that I am in the best position to enlighten Mr. Nnanna Nzewi about the man he sought to define. While the issue of Dr. Ubah's welfarism is undisputed, I beg to differ on what he ascribed to Dr. Ubah and termed "Selfism".

Your definition of selfism is highly misguided and misleading as the word itself is synonymous with selfishness. Selfishness simply put is concentration on one's own interests. In one breath, you ascribe selfishness to Dr. Ubah and in the same breath, praise Dr. Ubah for as you coined it "welfarism". One thing that remains unclear to me is - how can selfism (or selfishness) and welfarism dwell in the same body? Shouldn't they be adjudged as two horizontal lines? It is pertinent to note and I wish to point out that Dr. Ubah, his antecedents and propositions is synonymous with selflessness and not selfism.

However, if I am to entertain your definition of selfism, the manifesto which you sought to base your submissions on is tagged "Let's make Anambra Great" not "I will make Anambra Great". Does this reflect selfism (as you would term it)? The contents of the manifesto in elucidation of what Dr. Ubah sought to achieve contained phrases like "we will tackle insecurity", "we will ensure that no child is left behind in the quest to ensure greater literacy level", "we will develop a youth re-orientation programme to emphasise hardwork, patriotism, self reliance, honesty and a new sense of value" to mention a few. The use of "WE" shows the value that Dr. Ubah attaches to teamwork. I also enjoin you to read "Hour of truth" by Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah on his thoughts towards the escalating rate of the USD and how it can be curbed via this link: https://goo.gl/NlUJYU . In his submission, Dr. Ubah constantly ascribed whatever he sought to achieve to the competence and skill of his team, again using the word "WE". As Dr. Ubah would always say, he has the best team in reference to his staff at Capital Oil and Gas, Authority Newspapers and FC Ifeanyi Ubah. Does this reflect your definition of selfism? My dear brother, Nnanna, you might have picked out these points which your write up is based on from the media chat, yet, you have to accept the fact that while listening some of these conversations, which are most times, passionate and spontaneous, you should rather focus and try to relate with the genuine intentions one is trying to pass rather than the use of English and all the syntaxes that lies therein.

Conclusively, it is also my belief that the writer's submission on the use of "I" by Dr. Ubah lacks depth and could misinform the reading public of Dr. Ubah's genuine intentions. When the great American Civil rights activist, Martin Luther King (Jnr) said he had a dream, it would be utterly simplistic to ascribe those dreams to him alone because he used the word "I". Martin Luther King (Jnr) shared the same dream with every American who was regarded as minority. Alexander earned the title "The Great" due to his unparalleled success as a military commander. However, Alexander is tagged the great and not the army he commanded. This is not to take away the strength and greatness of his army but in recognition of how great a leader he is.

At this juncture, I would like to point out that just as leaders always take the glory for successes, they also take the fall for failures and all the bashing that comes with it. This is common knowledge and can found in every sphere of life - business, sports and governance. God forbid but if any of the companies owned by Dr. Ubah fails today, Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah will be branded a failure. The pages of newspapers will be awash with stories of Dr. Ubah's failure, accompanied with his picture. His team will not be held liable or accountable in the court of public opinion.

Dear Mr. Nnanna Nzewi, while I am highly appreciative of your deductions and opinion which in truth you are entitled to, I wish not to make this lengthier by stating categorically that Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah is not a "selfist" (as you term it). Your earlier deductions, while being your honest opinion, could be qualified as a hasty conclusion born out of your stereotypical views which you have erroneously attached to Ndigbo.



I rest my case.



Daalu!



Udogu Chigozie (also perusing but this time, from Abuja)