Fred Chukwuelobe
As another July 10 comes around, public attention naturally returns to the dramatic abduction of Governor Chris Ngige in 2003, an event that remains one of the darkest episodes in Nigeria’s democratic history. But beyond the crisis itself, the date also brings back deeply personal memories of how I unexpectedly left journalism for public service.
During the 2003 governorship campaign in Anambra State, I helped the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Dr. Chris Ngige, secure an interview with the Editorial Board of Champion Newspapers Limited, where I was the News Editor of Daily Champion.
Before the interview, two members of his campaign team approached me for advice. They were convinced that the PDP had little chance of defeating the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), whose candidate was Mr. Peter Obi. At the time, Governor Chinwoke Mbadinuju’s administration had been widely judged to have performed poorly, and many Anambra people had rallied behind APGA under the powerful influence of the late Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, the Ikemba Nnewi. Even within Ngige’s own campaign, confidence in victory was low.
One of the campaign officials confided in me that they had been given funds for campaign activities but feared spending the money on what they believed would be a losing cause.
“You journalists are usually good at predicting elections,” one of them said. “Help us decide what to do.”
My response was candid.
I told them that, in my assessment, it would be extremely difficult for the PDP to defeat APGA unless the Federal Government, under President Olusegun Obasanjo, influenced the outcome of the election. That was where our conversation ended.
I accompanied Dr. Ngige to the Editorial Board interview and subsequently wrote a series of news stories based on it. Although I never joined his campaign organisation, I continued to interview him regularly and report on his activities as part of my professional responsibilities.
When the election was eventually held, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Dr. Ngige the winner. Mr. Peter Obi rejected the result and filed a petition before the Election Petitions Tribunal, headed by the late Justice Garba Nabaruma, seeking to be declared the rightful winner.
Following his swearing-in, Governor Ngige asked whether I would be interested in serving in his administration. I replied that my decision would depend on the position being offered, and we agreed to remain in touch.
Meanwhile, I continued covering the early days of his administration, reporting on cabinet appointments and other developments. Ironically, what I thought would be a professional advantage soon became a source of tension within my newsroom. Some of my superiors became uncomfortable with my perceived closeness to the new governor.
One evening, our Editor-in-Chief summoned me and instructed me to “balance” my reports by interviewing Mr. Peter Obi. According to him, Obi had complained that I was giving “undue publicity to a man who never won the election.” Whether that complaint actually came from Obi, I cannot say. But as a journalist, I had a duty to hear both sides.
I called Mr. Obi, and we agreed to meet at his office on Aerodrome Road, Apapa, Lagos, the following day.
While I was in his office, my phone rang repeatedly. It was Governor Ngige calling. Out of respect for the man I was interviewing, I chose not to answer the calls. I even informed Mr. Obi that it was Governor Ngige trying to reach me. “Perhaps he wants me to work for him,” I remarked, half in jest.
In my political innocence at the time, I secretly hoped Obi would advise me against accepting such an offer. Had he done so, I might well have listened. He did not.
Instead, he spoke passionately about why he believed the election had been rigged and assured me that he was prepared to fight all the way to reclaim what he considered his stolen mandate.
After returning to the newsroom, I completed my stories and prepared them for publication.
Then events took an unexpected turn. Governor Ngige called again and asked me to come to Awka immediately.
I handed my stories to one of our Deputy Editors at Daily Champion, Mr. Azeez Olaleye. After reviewing them, he quietly put them aside and told me: “Go to Awka and see the governor. If he gives you an appointment, I’ll kill these stories. If he doesn’t, we’ll publish them. You can’t be publishing stories against a man who may be offering you a lifeline. If anyone asks about the stories, tell them you handed them over to me.”
I travelled to Awka that Saturday night in June 2003. The following day, Governor Chris Ngige appointed me Special Assistant on Media and Publicity.
That was how my career took an unexpected turn – from the newsroom to Government House.
Barely a month later, on July 10, 2003, Anambra State was thrown into political turmoil when Governor Ngige was abducted in an attempt to force him out of office. The constitutional crisis that followed tested Nigeria’s democracy and eventually became one of the defining political events of the Fourth Republic. Having only recently joined his administration, I witnessed those tense moments from within Government House, making the events of that day particularly unforgettable.
As we commemorate another anniversary of the July 10, 2003 crisis, these memories come flooding back. They remind me not only of one of the most turbulent periods in Anambra’s political history but also of an unexpected chapter in my own professional journey.
History is often remembered through dramatic public events. Sometimes, however, its quieter, personal moments tell equally compelling stories.
* Fred Chukwuelobe, fnipr, was Senior Special Assistant (Media & Publicity) to then Gov. Chris Ngige.