We read the article with the by-line of Barr. Willie Amadi on the Wednesday, August 25, 2021 edition of Imo-based newspaper, “Announcer Express”. It was entitled: “Governor Uzodimma’s Underground Balloons Drainage System Is Ending The Rainy Season Agony In Owerri Municipality.”
Surprisingly, the said article had a malicious derogatory kicker: “Aftermath Of Henry Ekpe’s House Flood Disaster”! Both of the issue of flooding and the issue of the sad swallow of Hon. Henry Ekpe’s house in Egbu area of Owerri were clearly misplaced. At least, reputable pundits feel strongly so!
We only hope Barr. Willie Amadi won’t recant as usual to detour and recant on his published insulting and abusive intervention on Owerri floods. Lately, he has been making sharp u-turns on critical issues associated to him.
Obviously, it’s the mockery of Hon. Henry Ekpe, whose house was eaten up by flood, and the simultaneous sycophancy of stating that Uzodimma is solving the problem of flood and flooding in Owerri Municipality, that must have irked the angry pundits.
How could Uzodimma be solving the problem of flooding when the same flood submerged Hon. Henry Ekpe’s house? That is simply a dramatic irony, which also qualifies as an unintelligent paradox.
We believe what Willie Amadi should have stated was the opposite and reverse of what he ended expressing. He should have said something like: “Aftermath of Henry Ekpe’s House Flood Disaster: Uzodimma’s Ballon Drainage System Fails Flood Intergrity Test” or something similarly negative to correspond with the equally negative incident of flood attack on Hon. Henry Ekpe’s domiciliary edifice.
However, since what he wrote was what was published, we’d base our response to the evidence before us. We feel that Willie Amadi was an unbefitting mission to sycophancy. He’s a bigger boy than that!
Why he chose to publicly mock Hon. Henry Ekpe the way he did is still baffling and subject to conjectures. Probably, they have axes to grind and the flood disaster provided his adversary an opportunity to say an “ntoor” to him! We’ll leave that to Hon. Henry Ekpe!
On the issue of flood and how Uzodimma’s balloon drainage system has ameliorated the horrible situation and condition of flood in Owerri city, we vehemently beg to disagree; with reasons.
One, each little rain that falls in Owerri city nearly, all the streets and roads get filled with water a.k.a flood! There are video documentary evidence of how terribly flooded Owerri city gets when it rains.
We wonder where Willie Amadi sources his contrary evidence to support his false claim that Uzodimma’s balloon drainage system is solving the problem of flooding of Owerri city!
The rain of Sunday, August 22, 2021 in Owerri literarily swallowed the city, sparing only very few areas. Probably, Willie Amadi’s “Ajuzieogu Lodge” wasn’t gulped by flood as Henry Ekpe’s house. But was Willie Amadi Street spared by the flood?
For us, in all sincerity that Uzodimma’s balloon drainage system is simply Uzodimma’s Imo Treasury balloon drainage hose, with which a deep dent has been hammered on the treasury of Imo State, by way of looting and stealing of public funds in the name of fighting a lost war against flood!
We will advise Willie Amadi to advise Uzodimma to do first thing first. He should advise Uzodimma to desilt the gutters, drainages and flood channels in Owerri city just as was done by His Excellency, Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, CON as governor of Imo State.
We hear Willie Amadi is anticipating a political appointment from Uzodimma. But doe he need to reduce himself to a naked sycophant and prove his sycophancy beyond reasonable doubt in order to be noticed by Uzodimma?
We’ll leave on the thought for food poser. But not without reiterating that Uzodimma has only playing the Omuma ostrich game as far as the management of flood in Imo State.
By Ogu Bundu Nwadike, M.A