A powerful cartel against Taraba’s Commissioner of Finance
By Williams Ayooso
Whosoever that wants to run aground Hon. Dr. Sarah Enoch Adi, Governor Agbu Kefa’s Commissioner for Finance, Budget and Economic Development must be an influential figure. But it appears more of a powerful cartel at work, looking at the extent of the wiles and energy that is been deployed for the mission. The cabal might be lying insidiously in the comfort zone of the administration’s corridor of power.
Incidents as these unfold, when a person or group of people perceive an individual or a system as a stumbling block to their mission, mostly one that is self-serving. It also occurs as a result of a vicious jealousy, where a person or group of people feel that a system that they all belonged to is patronizing an individual to his or their detriment. The Dr Sarah Enoch Adi crisis symbolizes this scenario.
At first, it was a labour action in the state that called out for her head. But one must not be a labour activist or technocrat to be informed that the Commissioner of Finance is just but an appointee of the Governor, carrying out the fiscal policy direction of the state in line with the mandate of her ministry. One need not be a technocrat to understand that a commissioner drives his or her official activities on the wheels of the policy direction of a State; most especially, from resolutions of the State Executive Council. In the circumstances, it was unfair to single out the Commissioner of Finance for vilification and punishment. But this has come to pass. Fortunately, she was not relieved of her job as the protesters demanded.
But that was just but the beginning of series of mindboggling attacks that were lined up on her way. Bill boards, showcasing her solidarity with her boss, His Excellency Dr Agbu Kefas were profiled and mutilated at Wukari, her own town. When measured on the scale of civility and rational thought process, the reasons for this emotional intimidation, as permeated the social media space, a week ago, by an unidentified group, were as weak as they were baseless. They were more of blaming Governor Agbu Kefas for appointing a commissioner in the person of who is not supposed to be appointed, someone who is not popular in their community.
Just before the euphoria of the politically driven attack, with its likely attendant emotional trauma to the Commissioner will wither in the space of time, Dr Sarah Enoch Adi was called out again. This time, it’s a video footage of a lady, caught red handed in an ICAN examination class, claiming she was hired by the Commissioner for the dirty deal. Maybe they got her this time, maybe they did not. Time and circumstances will determine this.
But while this is being awaited. There are worrisome gaps in the trajectory of Dr Sarah Enoch’s bad personality branding. At first, labour in the state, narrowed their demands for her removal, few weeks after, her billboard showcasing solidarity with the Governor was mutilated. And now, a high-profile case of an examination malpractice is linked to her. These happened in a quick succession. From the way that things are weaving around her, it is not out of place to predict that the Commissioner would be called out again soon, for another mindboggling accusation.
Is it a mere coincidence that these series of incidences, with grave tendencies to obliterate the young lady’s political career are reeling out in quick succession? After all, when was this ICAN exam taken? Did any of these traducers with stones in their hands cared to check? Viewing the emerging scenarios from the standpoint of objectivity and discerning spirit, it’s difficult to answer this in affirmative.
Yet, another shadow of doubt hovers on the video footages of the ICAN’s exam malpractice. ICAN, as we are made to believe, is a conserved and respected examination body that survived over time, not only for its professional code but also for its integrity and discipline. Why did such a body prioritize social media space, as a platform for vilification, censorship and punitive measures? The ICAN we know, will in the circumstances, especially that it is a matter of grave academic concerned, would have activated a coordinated administrative action, to investigate or interrogate the culprit and thereafter make their findings public, by way of an official position. This was not done.
Now, ICAN has released an official document alluding that it will investigate the matter and publish its findings. This means that, as a body, it is officially not privy to the incident. Again, here lies another towering concern. If ICAN authority releases its findings to the contrary, what becomes of Dr Sarah Enoch’s battered image? Who can she hold responsible for this emotional and moral damage? That is why the ICAN dimension of what many people believed that it is a pull her down syndrome, remains suspicious.
As earlier said, Dr Sarah Enoch is dealing with a powerful cabal within the system. For them to transcend the community, state and national environments to execute their inglorious project of uprooting the commissioner’s political career means they are vicious, connected and dangerously shrewd. People who have their moral sanity weeded off from their conscience template can go to any length to plunder, or destroy, just to get what they want, even if it is at the detriment of the system or society.
For these people that are calling for Dr Sarah Enoch’s head, what they want to achieve, might not be far from the fact that the Commissioner is too strict in implementing a fiscal policy that does not provide any room for looting or manipulation, as it was in the past. She is now an obstacle. Therefore, pushing her out of the system is to them, the only alternative. It can even be for envy purposes or both.
Be it as it may, Dr Sarah Enoch saga has revealed two incongruous tragedies of human nature. These are tied to man’s inhumanity against man, as well as the selectivity of peoples’ consciousness over the consequences of atrocities that they commit for their personal gains.
It is believed that those people, overstretching their negative skills to run the commissioner aground are also being sheltered by the same Governor Agbu Kefas led administration. By pulling down the commissioner in the mud on a global stage, they are also weakening the moral and integrity ligament of the Kefas’ administration. In other words, they are pulling Governor’s Kefas’s administration down. It is no longer about Dr Sarah; it is about the people of Taraba State and Governor Agbu Kefas’ administration. To think that it is only Hon. Sarah Enoch Adi they are fighting is selective amnesia on the consequences of their acts. They know the consequences of their actions, but are overwhelmed by personal inimical and self-serving targets.
The second calamity oscillates from the people celebrating what is now seen as Dr Sarah Enoch ICAN’s examination scandal. How can an enlightened society like ours, a society that abhor injustice, promotes social Justice and rule of law, continue to encourage and celebrate social media propelled trial and conviction. Did the society care for the Commissioner’s side of the story? No.
Today it is Dr Sarah Enoch Adi that is being dragged into the mud, maligned, jeered and booed at, based on the social media propelled judgement. But what goes around, comes around. In such a system that is being encouraged, even by some educated and elites, everybody is a victim. Call it man’s inhumanity against man, you may not be wrong. This is not a fair human disposition.
Williams Ayooso is a Jalingo based media practitioner