THE PRESENT CAN OF WORMS BY OHI EHIMIAKHE Any unbiased reader of Rev. Chris Okotie’s commentary on Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor’s link with the $9.3 million arms deal scandal should observe that he has nothing personal against the CAN President. Rev Okotie merely spoke truth to power. Simply put; Pastor Oritsejafor should save the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN’s image, and by extension, Christians in Nigeria, from being dragged into disrepute by this sordid deal. Fact is that Pastor Oritsejafor should be impeached, because he is using the office for personal aggrandizement. When one-time President of CAN, Cardinal Okogie said, “Oritsejafor has fallen from grace to grass… the leadership of CAN is zero”, the organistion did not attack him. When Rev. Francis Kukah likened the Jonathan-Oritsejafor matiness to fellowship with Caesar, there was no indignation, but when Rev. Okotie ventilated his own opinion, it provoked a diatribe from CAN. But rather than address the issue which Rev. Okotie raised, Oritsejafor’s CAN chose to use this chance to launch a personal vendetta against Okotie. This is highly irresponsible, and a cheap blackmail by a group of people using an ecclesiastical umbrella to pursue a personal agenda. We know that Rev. Okotie cannot be blackmailed into silence- his public stand in the Joshua-Oyakhilome liason and even Pope Francis heretical utterances, when other ‘men of God’ feigned ignorance or silence, is evidence enough. It is indeed ludicrous that CAN will resort to name-calling on a national issue which affects the integrity of its President. The authenticity of Rev. Okotie’s Christianity as questioned by the body, the charges of his domestic affairs and his need for popularity are totally unconnected with the issue, especially the expediency of the advice which was given to redeem the battered image of CAN under Pastor Ayo. The venom of the CAN response appears to be an expression of Pastor Ayo’s hauteur. Rev. Okotie had it coming and they would not let this opportunity pass, even though it is unwarranted and unconnected with his counsel. This was an opportunity to challenge Okotie’s bravado and curb his ‘excesses’, at least, so they thought. The scandalous aspersion of CAN against Rev. Okotie is outrageous, especially seeing the way government is going about trying to exonerate Pastor Ayo from any complicity in the matter. If he hadn’t embraced chumminess with Citizen Jonathan; if he hadn’t gone to great lengths to ride on his kinsman-ship with the president, then the use of his plane would not have raised eye brows and become his albatross, casting him in a bad light. There are too many twist and turns in this soggy affair, and it is clear that when government goes out of its way to defend anybody, then there is something lurking in the shadows. The shroud of political secrecy that enveloped the Oritsejafor affair is more than meets the eye- there is no smoke without fire, and the smoke here is really thick. Contrary to claims that this is a normal transaction, purchasing arms on the black market from mercenaries who probably supply insurgents, militants and drug cartels is illegal and is not exactly an easy affair; it’s not like buying fish at the market. Ferrying undeclared money is illegal. Is government hereby endorsing this trend? Besides, who are these people who were contracted to purchase arms on the black market; since when have they been doing this; who have they secured arms for; who introduced them; are they licensed to deal in arms in Nigeria? What if they had absconded with the cash; what if the aircraft had mysteriously gone missing or crashed? How did the money get out of Nigeria without being declared; how come they did not make necessary provisions to meet South Africa’s customs requirements if this is a normal affair? Many unanswered questions. Government and CAN’s defence rests on the claim that Pastor Ayo contracted out his plane, and is not involved in its day to day running. But will the operators of the aircraft, without his prior knowledge, decide to engage in this act of ferrying money illegally for purchase of arms, against a string of financial, aviation, customs and immigration laws, with an aircraft registered to engage in evangelical work, without the consent of the owner, knowing full-well that not only can the plane be impounded and lose its license, but could also tarnish the image of the owner? And how come after this unfortunate crisis, they are still operating the aircraft? Any right thinking businessman would see the clear and present danger in allowing this, as they may well lease it out for more sinister purposes. The probability that the weight of evidence and questionable discrepancies in this untidy affair do not point at the possibilities of a consenting involvement is almost non-existent, so defensive arguments in favour of Oritsejafor being ignorant of the deal is like an argument that he might not be aware of CAN’s insulting response to Okotie. In jurisprudence, a shadow of doubt can affect a case. Here, there are simply too many which cannot be wished away. Government cannot be trusted to exonerate Oritsejafor; it is party to the questionable deal gone awry. CAN on its part lacks the intellectual capacity and investigative acumen to conduct an un-jaundiced and forensic analysis of the details of the case. This blight is self-inflicted as Pastor Ayo did not think deeply on the consequences of his public relationship with President Jonathan, and how it can be easily misconstrued. All he saw was the opportunity to take advantage of the presence of a kinsman at the helm, under the guise that he was being hamstrung by northern and Muslim fundamentalists seeking to frustrate his government. CAN had obviously been waiting long time for an opportunity like this, but now that it has gotten its distaste with Rev. Okotie off its chest, maybe they should look for more salient issues to hinge on him. Pastor Oritsejafor should resign or be impeached if possible, and let’s get on with more important issues, because time has a way of bringing truth to the surface. Jonathan will not always be President, and someday, a Pharaoh that does not recognize Pastor Ayo CAN will come along. What happens then? Ohi Ehimiakhe wrote from Edo State.
Posted on: Thu, 30 Oct 2014 09:21:42 +0000
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