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JONATHAN @ 66: CONTEXTUALIZATION OF THE BLIND MEN AND THE ELEPHANT IN THE QUEST FOR A NEW PARADIGM
JONATHAN @ 66: CONTEXTUALIZATION OF THE BLIND MEN AND THE ELEPHANT IN THE QUEST FOR A NEW PARADIGM
By Most Senior Comrade Wisdom Oniekpar Ikuli,
The date 20th November would have remained like every other passing day but for the birth of a unique soul Dr. Goodluck Jonathan who was born into the families of elder Lawrence Ebele Jonathan and Mrs. Eunice Ayi Ebele Jonathan of Otuoke and Akipelai communities respectively in Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa State on 20th November, 1957.
Although his birth was not significant or heralded with elaborate funfair at the then very remote Otuoke rural community because of the economic background of his parents who were average canoe carver and farmer, yet he grew up to manifest his destiny as one whose glorious light and destiny shall continue to illuminate countless lights all over the world.
Goodluck Jonathan’s consciousness and early awareness about the irreplaceable and indispensable place of education in the life of a people made him to strive to the highest level of academic excellence. His relentless efforts and sacrifices that resulted to his bagging of a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D) in Zoology automatically positioned him strategically for countless possibilities.
He is reputed for now as the only political leader that grew from the position of a State Deputy Governor to Governor, Vice President, Acting President and President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces within a space of eleven years (1999-2010). Barack Obama then President of the United States of America and other world leaders attested to the above fact some years ago.
But like every other human, President Goodluck Jonathan who is fondly called GEJ has a fair share of human flaws and weaknesses. As a humble, sincere, very accessible and unassuming leader, he has never portrayed any trace of perfection, rather he has maintained his humble and very peaceful lifestyle that endears him to multitudes all over the world.
The story of President Jonathan shall continue to serve as reference material and roadmap for students of history and societies that are striving for good governance. The ouster of GEJ is likened to the case of the Israelites who became tired of God’s benevolence with good leadership and they decided to demand for earthly king in place of divine kings that God always gave them and made them to prosper. The rest is history. We know the atrocities of king Saul and the Muhammadu Buhari presidency and the woes they brought upon the Israelites and Nigerians.
GEJ’s humility, peaceful disposition, anti-gay stance, his strong determination to eliminate the Almajiri system particularly the ever widening gap between the rich and the poor in Northern Nigeria and the country in general pitched him against the privileged class. Grand conspiracies between internal and external forces resulted in the outcome of the 2015 Presidential Election result.
Surprisingly, what the enemies programmed for the downfall of President Jonathan rather served as a channel for global honour and celebration of one of the greatest political leaders that the African continent has ever produced.
One author or book cannot capture everything about this leader whose personality has differed social construct. His story is likened to the Blind Men and the Elephant of Indostan.
Over the years, President Goodluck Jonathan has successfully INSTITUTIONALIZED his great name and students and scholars all over the world now study his style of politics which is popularly referred to as the ‘JONATHANIAN POLITICAL SCHOOL OF THOUGHT’.
Critics of President Jonathan are likened to the Blind Men who desired to have one on one encounter with the Elephant that they have heard so much about even though they were blind and could not see.
The Blind Men were availed the rare privilege and opportunity in one of the occasions when some persons were passing with an Elephant.
During the historic and memorable encounter, one of the blind Men touched the Elephant and said it was a Wall. The second said it was a Spear. The third said it was a Snake. The fourth said it was a Tree. The fifth said it was a Huge Fan and the sixth said it was like a Rope.
Thereafter, the six blind Men started quarreling themselves because each of them was trying to prove that they knew what they were talking about.
But sane minds with clear eyes know that the blind Men were totally wrong because Elephant never fix into any of the answers or descriptions that they gave.
The Blind Men never knew about Hippopotamus otherwise they would have even likened the Elephant to it out of their ignorance.
Wise people will liken President Goodluck Jonathan to a Dove which is the symbol of the Holy Spirit even though he as son of the most high God and the Ijaw Nation particularly with the baptism and covering of ENAI OGBIA and the spirit of Ogbia Brotherhood has traits of the unconquerable Lion.
The Blind Men during their arguments failed to see beyond their shallow mindsets, same way many who talk about development during the Jonathan administration fail to connect its Relativism.
But whatever is the case, the name: GOODLUCK EBELE AZIKIWE JONATHAN has become a household name and a recurring decimal especially in our polity. Those who fail to acknowledge the above shall continue to groan in avoidable pains.
The six blind Men represent the six decades that the Father of contemporary democracy has lived even as we march into the era of wisdom, maturity, awareness and self-realization when haters of truth and light shall acknowledge the special gift from Almighty God and learn how to humble themselves.
President Goodluck Jonathan is a special gift from Almighty God to Ogbia Kingdom, Bayelsa State, Ijaw Nation, Niger Delta, Nigeria, Africa and entire humanity. Those who love and bless are blessed, same way those who hate and curse him are cursed.
Overtime, it has dawned on the people class, elites, religious and traditional leaders, scholars and all those who strive for greatness especially in the Nigerian system that Goodluck Jonathan’s style of politics and leadership is the most suitable particularly for a diverse society such as ours.
A resounding Congratulations and Happy Birthday to my great father, hero, living deity, legend and hero of Africa’s contemporary democracy.
~~~ Most Senior Comrade Wisdom Oniekpar Ikuli wrote from the Federal Capital Territory FCT Abuja, Nigeria.
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LETTER TO INEC: “WAR OF TRUTH AND THE WOUND OF LIES” – WHY THE ERA OF MANIPULATION MUST END IN WARRI
Being A Heartfelt Message from the Ijaw Stakeholders of Warri Federal Constituency to INEC
Date: July 16, 2025
The truth has bled for too long. Beneath the creeks of Warri, the winds whisper a long-silenced history, yearning to break free from the chains of manipulation and falsehood. We are at a historic crossroad, one that demands courage, not compromise, clarity, not confusion.
For decades, a carefully constructed myth has masqueraded as fact, that the Itsekiris are the sole owners of Warri, that the Olu of Warri is a king over lands and peoples who never pledged him allegiance, that the Ijaws and Urhobos are mere squatters in their ancestral territories. These are not just lies, they are wounds inflicted upon truth and justice.
But time, like history, is a stubborn judge. And the era of fraudulent tactics, deceptive legal gymnastics, historical forgery and ethnic manipulation must give way to fact, to the future, to the spirit of the Nigerian constitution and to the principles of democratic equality.
Let it be known that the Ijaws of Warri were here before the crown arrived, before the Itsekiris crossed the Bight of Benin, and long before British officers drew artificial lines to ease indirect rule. The Olu of Warri, originally styled as Olu of Itsekiri, was never king over Ogbe-Ijoh, Gbaramatu, Isaba, Diebiri, Egbema or the entire Warri mainland. These lands were Ijaw and Urhobo long before they were ever claimed by colonial favor or diplomatic proximity.
In Suit No. W/148/78 (Itsekiri Communal Land v. Chief E.A. Sagay), the court warned against the “excessive territorial assumption” of the Itsekiris and reaffirmed that traditional titles do not translate to land ownership beyond ancestral limits. In the same legal spirit, the Supreme Court has in multiple rulings emphasized the right to self-governance, cultural autonomy and indigenous recognition as protected by the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).
To silence the voice of indigenous people through cartographic deceit and loud propaganda is not just an injustice, it is a violation of both natural law and constitutional integrity.
The policy of the future, if it is to lead Nigeria into peace and unity, must be founded on historical accuracy, not historical robbery. As U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis once said, “The greatest threat to liberty is not the lawbreaker but the law manipulator.” And Warri has suffered for too long at the hands of law manipulators disguised as landowners, liers with fake identity.
Let us be clear, no manipulation, no lobbyist, no fake census, no manufactured royal claim can stand before the supremacy of truth. The truth is the supreme court over every forgery and no amount of Itsekiri aggression will silence the ancestral voices that still echo from the banks of the Warri River and Land.
Today, we reaffirm that the lands of Ogbe-Ijoh, Gbaramatu, Isaba, Diebiri and Egbema are not Itsekiri. They are Ijaw. And we will defend this truth with facts, with documents, with court judgments and if needed, with our last breath. Truth has no fear. Only lies panic.
To INEC, we say, the time for submission is over. Release the final ward delineation. Stop allowing the ghost of colonial distortion to rule over a democratic commission. The people demand representation based on reality, not repetition of fraud.
To the Federal Government and the National Security Adviser, do not allow yourselves to be used as tools to validate deception. Nigeria belongs to all, not to any manipulative minority.
To the international community, bear witness to a struggle not for domination but for identity. Not for power, but for dignity. Stand on the side of history, not on the side of false royalty.
The Ijaw nation is not seeking war, we are seeking what is ours. We are not rewriting history, we are reopening it. And when history is opened, it will roar like thunder, the Ijaws were never conquered, never displaced, never ruled by the Olu of Warri.
Let every generation remember, you can manipulate land titles but not ancestral truth. You can twist legal language, but not the lineage of a people. You can silence a people temporarily but you cannot silence their God-given identity.
Let Warri breathe. Let truth prevail.
Signed,
Chief Tiemopere Joshua (President)
Chief Ebikeke T. Goodstime – Secretary
Ijaw Stakeholders of Warri Federal Constituency
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JOY AND PRIDE EXPRESSED AS RT. HON. ALUBEZE’S DAUGHTER, MISS PREYE GLORY JOSEPH ALUBEZE, IS CALLED TO THE NIGERIAN BAR
By: Divine Perezide
Abuja, Nigeria – It was a moment of heartfelt celebration and deep gratitude as the first daughter of Rt. Hon. Joseph Asiaye Alubeze, Miss Preye Glory Joseph Alubeze, was officially called to the Nigerian Bar on Monday, July 8, 2025, in a historic ceremony held at the Nigerian Law School, Abuja.
Miss Preye, who graduated with a First-Class degree in Law from the prestigious Abti-American University, Abuja, was lauded by family, frieds and well-wishers for her outstanding performance, not only during her undergraduate studies but also during Law School programme, where she once again, distinguished herself as a shinning academic star.
In a glowing message of appreciation and pride, Rt. Hon. Joseph Asiayei Alubeze, former Leader of the Burutu Legislative House, expressed very deep and profound gratitude to God Almighty, acknowledging divine favour and guidance throughout his daughter’s academic journey.
“To God Almighty, the Giver of life, wisdom, strength, and all good things, I return all glory, honour, and praise for this crowning moment,” he stated.
He described Glory as a golden daughter whose life have brought nothingbut all round pride and fulfilment to his family, describing her accomplishment as more than a personal achievement, adding that it “a testimony of God’s unfailing grace and divine favour towards him and the entire Alubeze dynasty.”
Rt. Hon. Alubeze praised his daughter’s resilience, discipline, and humility, which he said have served as key pillars of her statling academic success. He further describes her as a beacon of excellence and inspiration to young women across the country.
“Today, you stand not just as a lawyer, but as a trailblazer called, qualified, and favoured,” he said. “Continue to shine your light brighter as you lead the way for more Ijaw girls to follow, my darling daughter.” Alubeze added.
The proud father of a brand new “Barrister-at-the-Law” also used the moment to charge his daughter to uphold truth, justice, and professional integrity in her legal career, praying that her journey ahead be blessed with wisdom, purpose, and lasting impact.
Alubeze seized the moment to also expressed how pleased he was to see the daughter of the Burutu Local Government Council, Chief (Dr.) Julius Takeme, for being among those called to Bar along with his daughter. He congratulated Takeme, the performing Burutu Chairman, who also a proud father of a brand new Lawyer.
Alubeze also thanked High Chief (Barr.) Mike Loyibo, the Traditional Prime Minister of Esuku (Tuomo) Kingdom, a respected political leader of Burutu and a Senior Lawyer who shared the joyous moment with the Takeme and Alubeze families, adding that God Almighty will bless him for blessing the young Lawyers whom he called “his Junior Professional Colleagues.”
Miss Preye Glory Joseph Alubeze now joins the distinguished ranks of Barristers and Solicitors of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, and her name has quickly risen among young legal minds to watch. Her journey, from academic excellence to professional triumph, stands as an inspiring story for a new generation of Niger Deltan youths determined to rise through diligence, determination, and the grace of God.
Dr. Braduce Angozi, a two-time governorship contender in Delta State, has extended his heartfelt congratulations to the Governor of Delta State, His Excellency, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, on the occasion of his 62nd birthday anniversary.
Angozi who was a former commissioner of Delta State applauded the governor for the peace and stability in the state.
He further emphasised that the governor had taken infrastructural development of the state to another enviable level, citing numerous bridges and massive road constructions going in the state.
Dr Angozi praised the governor’s commitment to transparency, inclusivity, and progress, noting that under his leadership, strides have been made in various sectors including education, healthcare, and infrastructure development.
The former Chairman of Burutu Local Government Council Dr. Angozi commended the governor’s resilience and determination, pointing out that the governor’s ability to inspire unity and foster collaboration among diverse groups has been instrumental in driving positive change.
He encouraged the governor to remain steadfast in his mission to improve the lives of all Deltans and to work towards a brighter and more prosperous future for the state.
While Dr Angozi acknowledged the several contributions that Governor Oborevwori had made to the development of the state and the improvement of the lives of its citizens, he wished him good health, wisdom, and countless blessings in the year ahead.