Esan (Ishan) Homeland: Confronting the Crisis of Marginalization.

Today, the Esan land is cut off from civilization - no federal highway coming in and no federal highway going out. We are now a forgotten tribal enclave - no Senator and no House of Rep members to make our case at Abuja. Our number one citizen is arguably Senator Clifford Ordia and he is the main focus of this short essay. I understand that he is a gentleman and a nice guy. That may be true, but as of today, the Esan men and women at home and aboard deserve more than a nice guy at the National Assembly. It is about our interest and to what extent he has represented that interest adequately for the benefit of the Ishan folks. So far, it's been a disaster.

About an hour ago, I came across a post by my learned friend, Mr. Agboroh Francis, detailing his sad experience traveling by road through the entire Esan tribal region searching for escape routes, contending with incredible difficulties.

According to Mr. Agboroh "I just returned from a friend Mother's burial in Ekpoma. I have not experienced such a traumatic experience in my life. I spent about an hour in one spot between Benin and EKPOMA. The road is too bad and travelers are made to pass through the bush to find their way out. After the burial l decided to come back through Uromi, Iguebe, Ebele, Ekpon, Igbanke, Agbor, Abraka. My people, the story of the road is almost the same. The difference between the Benin / Ekpoma road and Uromi /Agbor /Abraka road is the difference between Christmas day and December 25th. Let's forget political parties, some of our politicians are wicked, heartless, selfish and bad. These roads are federal roads and the chairman of the party in power at the center and Edo State is from Edo State. The state governors can do something to these roads as temporary measures. I am really disappointed"

He is not alone. I had a similar experience in 2016 while traveling from Abuja via Auchi and Ekpoma to Benin City. I spent more than an hour at Ekpoma. Three years later, it is still the same sad story. And it is a federal road - a gateway between the South East, Niger Delta, and the Northern region.

At the state level, we are not fairing better, either. Thanks to the machinations and dictatorial vigor of our former Son-in-Law, Comrade Adam Oshiomhole, the entire race is now a caricature of "Esan the indomitable" of Chief Anthony Enohoro, Chief Ijewere, and Professor Ambrose Ali. Under the Comrade, no Esan man or woman was good enough to earn his trust for Gubernatorial nomination or for the post of the Deputy Governor.

And consistent with Oshiomhole's humiliation credo, the new Governor-elect, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, wasted no time escalating his master's blueprint disqualifying every visible Esan folk for a leadership position. No Esan man or woman was good enough for his Chief of Staff, as the Secretary to the State Government, or as the Press Secretary to the Governor.

Today, I am glad to declare that I have stopped complaining; it is no longer about the discredited, fraudulent, self-serving, and failed Esan players. But about us who refused to get in the game and get dirty.

Moving Forward.

Someone has to make a credible case for Ishan. Someone has to cry out loud about Odu River Work at Abuja. And someone has to ensure federal presence in Esan land as it is the case in most other communities in Nigeria. We have had enough of what Chief Anthony Anenin did or did not do. Or what Arch Mike Enolemenmen did or did not do for Ishan as a Minister of Works.

It is about the moment and it is about moving forward. We can't continue to tolerate ineptitude and tokenism. We can't continue to send backbenchers to Abuja as our leaders. It is no longer about what they have achieved or failed to achieve. Now, it is about us - about what we can do and do better than the players at the scene.

Therefore, it is time for Senator Clifford Ordia to go. HE HAS GOTTEN HIMSELF A CHALLENGER COME THE NEXT TIME. He has outlived his usefulness and we have no use of him or any of the leadership of the two major political parties anymore. After all, this is still the land of Chief Anthony Enohoro, the young Esan Parliamentarian who moved the first motion for Nigerian independence in 1993 at the Western House. We can do it again, and we will replace that lost glory by the Grace of God. Thank you and stay tuned.