Owan and the Politics of Deception: Greed, Weak Leadership, and the Betrayal of Rotation

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Owan and the Politics of Deception: Greed, Weak Leadership, and the Betrayal of Rotation


 

Owan land is today confronted with a dangerous tale of lies—one carefully woven to mask greed and justify political desperation. The current member of the House of Representatives is allegedly telling sections of the community that “the presidency wants some people back,” all in a bid to secure a third tenure in the House. This claim is not only misleading; it is insulting to the intelligence of the Owan people.

How can the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria selectively “want people back” without any regard for the long-established rotational dynamics of Owan land? The presidency neither manages nor determines local rotation arrangements. Such stories are clearly fabricated to deceive the electorate and create a false sense of inevitability around personal ambition. This is not leadership; it is naked greed.

This pattern is sadly familiar in African politics, where politicians seek to elongate their stay in office by hook or crook—often at the expense of justice, fairness, and communal agreements. Instead of respecting rotation, which is designed to promote balance, inclusion, and peace, some individuals choose to weaponize lies to hold on to power.

The situation is worsened by the weak leadership in Owan West. The local government lacks credible, courageous leaders who are willing to speak truth to power and genuinely work for progress. Many have reduced themselves to mere pawns of state and federal interests, prioritizing personal survival over the collective good of their people. This failure of leadership has created space for manipulation and political bullying.

However, there is a new and encouraging development. A conscious awakening is taking place within the local government. A new crop of voices is rising—men and women who are explaining these issues clearly to the electorate, educating the people on their rights and on the importance of rotation. Because of this awakening, the people are no longer easily cowed or deceived by empty propaganda.

Most troubling is the fact that those now fighting desperately for a third term in the House of Representatives should, by logic and fairness, be positioning themselves for the Senate seat. By every standard of the rotational arrangement in Edo North, the Senate seat is clearly due to Owan West. Yet, out of fear, lack of capacity, or political compromise, they have chickened out and instead chosen to struggle for a House of Representatives seat that rightly belongs to Owan East in this cycle.

This is a double injustice: denying Owan East its rightful turn while also weakening Owan West’s legitimate claim to the Senate. It exposes a poverty of vision and a politics driven purely by self-interest.

Owan deserves better. The future of the land cannot be built on lies, greed, and weak leadership. Rotation must be respected, truth must be told, and ambition must be aligned with justice. The people are watching, learning, and increasingly determined to defend fairness. Those who choose deception today may win temporary advantages, but history will record them as obstancles to Owan’s progress.

Hon Daniel Asekhame. Fcai

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