UPON THIS ROCK…

KINGDOM Perspective June 24, 2007


It easy to reconstruct the scenario. A certain powerful man finally came to terms with the fact that he could no longer remain in power. He looked lovingly into the eyes of one his sons. He recalled the many late nights the not-so-young man had had to keep on account of he, the father, being a nocturnal animal who was not averse to working and playing afterhours. He recalled how many personal, possibly intimate issues he had efficiently handled to his pleasure. He could not forget that this dutiful son was the last person he saw at night as well as first thing in the morning.

This good and faithful son, he told himself must be amply compensated and he assured his son so. He must have sworn by himself to the son like God the Almighty who finding no one higher to swear by swore by himself to Abraham in the bible. This powerful man loves to play God, you see.

Anyway, he set about fulfilling his promise. His son has to become Governor of his (the son’s) home state at whatever cost. After all the state had then only recently been prised out of the vice-grip of his brother. He had literally been licensed to maim, kill, raze down properties and do whatever else caught his fancy in order to recoup his investment from the erstwhile custodian of the mandate they stole in 2003.
Fortunately, the man who would supervise the election was already beholden to his son, anyway – he holds office through the persuasive power of his beloved son. So that part of the grand scheme was all but sorted out. But this father, being a war general versed in the strategies and tactics of war by other means, visited the incumbent governor to serve him notice: “no second term for you, ok?” And just in case he was hard at hearing he applied a bit of visible and physical pressure, by way of causing the gale of impeachment to blow in that direction. Let him feel it, so he can know it, he must have thought.

As if in parody of the lawyer’s concept of “covering the field”, the umpire either operating out of the abundance of his thankful heart, or under orders, or both, decided to clear the field of any other potent opposition. He identified two and promptly pronounced them “disqualified by the constitution”. Nothing was being left to chances. Even the famous “G-Factor” was considered; a mass was said to have been booked at a certain church in Abuja to pray for the victory of the favoured child of his powerful father.

In spite of all these elaborate planning; the war-room was still not satisfied that all ends had been tied up. So somebody came up with this wonderfully effective idea: “have only symbolic election in this particular state; disenfranchise as many of the people. The worst case scenario, they’ll go to the tribunal and when we get to that bridge, we’ll cross it. “The author of this idea must have received a standing ovation. They did exactly that and before you could say “nba”, the favourite son had been declared winner of the non-election and eventually sworn in as Executive Governor.
A very satisfied father must have told himself, “I have delivered on my promise and we can both now live happily forever; albeit apart!” But that was not to be.

You see, while that plot was being executed, a sub-plot was unfolding in parallel. A certain well-known eagle-eyed lawyer had spotted an innocuous, harmless-looking clause in the laws of the land and flown a little kite. Ignored at first, the favoured son’s opponent caught a whiff of the sweet scent of victory through that clause. Through the usual tortuous route he had become familiar with, he persevered and 17 days after, Papa’s son was scampering out of Government House.

No prizes for identifying the actors in this drama: Father is Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, immediate past President, Federal Republic of Nigeria while the son is Dr Andy Uba. You also know that the great umpire is Professor Maurice Iwu, chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the hero is Mr Peter Obi, reinstated Governor of Anambra State.

Since the April elections which served as a rude wake-up call for many of us to open our eyes to the extent of evil that’s being perpetrated in our land under the guise of nurturing our “nascent democracy” and “moving the nation forward”, many spiritually sensitive people have sensed that God was set to move against the flood of evil.

In a recent piece, one had dared to intimate that a flood of righteousness was on the way. That flood, we said then, would sweep away the authors and beneficiaries of evil and uplift the victims of these evil machinations. As was implied in that piece based on the events before the Flood in the days of Noah, God will identify the righteous, protect them and assign them to fulfil his purpose for our nation. Without any equivocation, Peter Obi is one such person. And his reinstatement is but the early days of that flood.

Thankfully, he seems to know it. In an interview with Sunday Independent, which was held before the Supreme Court judgment that correctly put his tenure as enduring till 2010, but which was not published until after it, Obi was quoted as saying the following prophetic words:
"Mark my word, I will return to the Government House, Awka, to complete my tenure. I say so because the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria makes it imperative that I serve out my term as elected governor of the state. Besides, I see myself as a child of destiny raised by God to salvage my people and, as a Christian, I know that God does not lie…At the appointed time, the will of God concerning me and Anambra State will be made manifest. It may seem that justice is being delayed now, but definitely, it cannot be denied when that time comes…I have asked just one thing from my people, and that is: that they should continue to pray for the will of God to prevail in my situation and in the situation of Anambra. God, in his infinite mercy, should give the Supreme Court justices the wisdom and courage to do the right thing whenever they will take the final decision on his matter."
He did not have any doubt whatsoever about the triumph of good over evil. He was fully persuaded of the victory of righteousness over wickedness. And he did not mince words. As those of the school of political correctness would have cynically put it, he was “wearing his faith on his sleeves” or “playing the religion card.” But a man, any man who would swim against the swift current of evil flooding our land and stay the course must stand firm on his faith. That is what Obi has done and is doing. That is the secret of his success.
For this columnist, Obi’s statement on arrival on Monday was simply out of this world. It was simply Christ-like and I believe it came from a heart sold out to God. Listen to him: “This is not a time for division, but a time for unity .It is not a time for war, but a time for peace. This is a time for our perceived differences and difficulties to act as instruments of making us join hands together as a people with a common destiny. This landmark victory underscores the fact that our God is faithful. He has answered our prayers and indeed Anambra State is the light of the nation. We have continued to master our challenges without recourse to violence and bloodshed”
Is anybody out there as ecstatic as I am about this man’s comportment and what he currently represents; a new move of God in our politics and governance? Let’s together lift him up in prayer that he does not derail on the long journey to 2010 and beyond. I am so excited I want to mimic the Master’s words to an earlier Peter, Peter the Apostle in the bible, “you are Peter and upon this rock of revelation, of righteousness and of decency shall we rebuild our nation.”
You see, in my relatively short walk with God, I have found how the word of God amazingly always comes true. For Peter Obi, it is certainly true that: “Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all” (Psalm 34:19).
Thrice the forces of evil were arrayed against him; thrice he vanquished them.

As for the trio of ex-President Obasanjo, INEC chairman Iwu, and 17-day governor, Andy Uba, the scriptures did prove true too! Check out Job 5:12: “He disappointeth the devices of the crafty, so that their hands cannot perform their enterprise” or Proverbs 19:21: “There are many devices in a man's heart; nevertheless the counsel of the Lord, that shall stand; or even Psalm 33:10: “The Lord bringeth the counsel of the heathen to nought: he maketh the devices of the people of none effect.”

Are you a professing Christian? Don’t toy with the Word. Please.

*KINGDOM Perspective is published weekly in the Faith section of Sunday Independent, a Lagos, Nigeria-based quality newspaper.