Review of a book “The Forbidden Truth & Clouds of Witness” by Okoro Benedict
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- Book review
- The Forbidden Truth & Clouds of Witness
- How Rev. Fr. Emma Obuna Ruled & Crippled Abakaliki Diocese
- Book Reviewer – Okoro Chinedum Benedict – October 23, 2021 at Peoples’ Club Hall, Abakaliki, Ebonyi State.
John Odey’s 46th book may as well pass as the most piercing, daring, unwavering and audacious of all his literary works. The book is modestly crafted; with Odey exhibiting his scribbling prowess, painstaking record keeping skills and descriptive deftness to expose the rot while Bishop Michael Nnachi Okoro held sway as Catholic Bishop of Abakaliki Diocese, Ebonyi State.
The book is divided into ten chapters and compiled in 479 pages;
- The Unforgivable Sin.
- Something must be wrong somewhere
- When Silence is not Golden
- Living in Bondage – How Fr. Obuna Ruled Abakaliki, Diocese.
- The Impudence of a Spoilt Child
- The Last Straw
- Your Brook Will Run Dry
- My Unheeded Distress Call
- A Prophet Honored at Home
- The Canonical Sledge Hammer
Employing simple, emblematic and lucid language Odey takes us along the inexplicable events on how Bishop Michael Nnachi Okoro, Fr. Dr. Emmanuel Obuna and a small clique, openly brandishing their influence and contacts in high places ruled Abakaliki Diocese like a private fiefdom.
In the novel ‘The Last Don’ by Mario Puzo, one of the most mind boggling episodes may be the manner with which Don Clericuzio passed death sentence on Junior Balazo as though he would to a dog. Such arrogant and defiant pronouncement is the heritage of the Mafia. Hear him, ‘Junior Balazo had broken the ‘vow of silence’, and the price is death. No sentiments’.
This is symptomatic of the Mafian tradition. And when the Don speaks the case is closed. This is the savagery that the Mafian world is adorned with. Instructively, Balazo’s crime was providing detectives with a lead to a high profile murder; which is erroneously being linked to him.
It is pertinent to note that in the Mafian tradition, the vows of silence and obedience are sacrosanct. Under the ‘vow of silence’ Juniro Balazo is expected to maintain a ‘cultic silence’ to preserve the image and sanctity of the Family, even at the expense of his life.
The question is who makes such orders, the answer is the Don. Balazo opted for the path less traveled by many. It is at that realm of courage and forthrightness that men like John Odey and Balazo telepath to set truth free without counting the cost.
Given the configuration of the human person, perhaps, the administrators of Abakaliki Diocese threw caution to wind and forgot that whether under a democracy, theocracy or fascist government, people still retain their right to dignity. Being under the leadership of the Church does not rob the priests of their Divine rights, providential will and inclination to react to anything that runs contrary to sanity.
While Odey had focused on the societal ills in almost all his books, looking inwards, right inside the Church has made all the difference.
John Odey will go down memory lane as the first priest in the Diocese to have steered this uncommon debate and aroused our consciousness to the reality that every institution must undergo interrogation and introspection. If not, such institution runs a risk of being hijacked by men with conceited ideas and inordinate ambition.
The Forbidden Truth and Clouds of Witness underscore how we have made truth a victim; in organizations, government, diplomatic circles and the Church. Glaringly, there is a historical antecedence to this. In Luke 4: 18 by recounting Isaiah 61, ‘the spirit of the Lord is upon me……’ Jesus signed His death warrant. But, what he said was the truth.
Similarly, in John 18:37 -38, when Jesus met with Pilate at his palace, Pilate asked Jesus, ‘So you are a king’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth.’ Going forward, Pilate asked him, what is truth? And, then, he left. Amazed, Jesus was silent; probably He lacked what to say.
Pilate’s adroit and rhetorical question to Jesus, ‘what is truth’ and his action afterwards explains how leaders’ view truth. To them, truth is whatever they utter. It is whatever does not diminish their ego, power, might, control and dominance. To them, truth is relative.
As far as they are concerned ‘truth’ is subject to their constructions and orchestrations. It is one of their servants, deliberately designed to serve and save the moments. Truth is not above their throne, enclave or domain.
To buttress this, George Carlin’s words come to mind, ‘Governments do not want an intelligent population who can think critically cannot be ruled. They want a public just smart enough to pay taxes and dumb enough to keep voting and electing corrupt politicians.’
What put Odey at crossroads with the Diocese was calling Fr. Obuna’s attention when he felt he was overreaching his bounds at the priests’ monthly recollection. To retain his presumed infallibility, Obuna bared his pangs on Odey and conjured all forces within his reach to ensure Odey was hit with the canonical sledge hammer. Eventually, the Bishop withdraw Odey’s faculty.
The condition that was put forward for Odey’s suspension to be lifted was for him to sign an apology letter written by Fr. Emmanuel Obuna. This would be the first time in human history that someone would write an apology letter for another to append his signature.
The apology letter was written to suit the persecution and condemnation of John Odey. But for peace to reign and to retain his priesthood Odey was compelled by prevailing circumstances to sign an apology letter written by Obuna.
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The Bishop and Obuna wrote an apology that contains damning indictment on a just man to retain their ego and nail the truth on the cross. The tragedy of truth in today’s society is not about the leaders that continually hang it on the cross; it is the unconscionable and collaborative silence of men who look on while truth is trampled on. Truly, the course to give truth its rightful place is an expensive enterprise.
The Forbidden Truth and Clouds of Witness chronicles how Fr. Obuna through some unexplainable and discreet means secured Okoro’s approval to ride roughshod on his brother priests, manhandled and manipulated the entire Diocese for three solid decades and inflicted a horrendous psychological and mental torture that is nothing compared to what Alfred Dreyfus went through at the Devil’s Island.
Obuna in his determination to establish a quasi-dynasty within the Diocese became so ruthless and brutal; to drive home his self-importance and advertise the fact that all his speech has the imprimatur of the Bishop, he became full blown institution.
THE OBUNA PERSONA IN ABAKALIKI DIOCESE
The Obuna persona in Abakaliki Diocese is one phenomenon that will linger for ages in the minds of people. Obuna exudes an omniscient aura and carries himself like the paragon and cynosure of the Catholic priesthood. Ostensibly and exceptionally endowed, Obuna’s choice of words and its blend with Igbo language is superlative. His mastery of speech and sentence structure is edifying. His sonorous voice has the propensity to pierce and tear down the sepulcher without any physical contact. His baritone voice gave his sermons and cants of the Eucharistic Prayer some sort of Midas touch. It is difficult to attend mass elsewhere after attending his mass.
In terms of height, Obuna is a living artwork carefully sculptured by the Grand Architect of the universe; while standing he is a living statue typical of the prophets of old. He seldom smiles, but, when he does, he smiles as though he mocks himself; or better still like the Cheshire cat. Every of God’s gift to men, He gave to Obuna in superfluity. Honestly, it is difficult not to envy him. Despite these abounding and unassuming attributes, he failed to realize na onwelu nke Chukwu na enyero nya. Ekele olu eke. Oburo ife enyelu Okeke ka enyelu Okafor. Ikwu amaro ibe ezi nya. Perhaps, what Obuna failed to understand is that the people around him were actually created by God to complement and lift him higher than where he settled for.
But, how did a man that is so gifted become a nightmare to his brothers? Was this the purpose for which God created him? Why is that people that are immensely gifted take dangerous path and become a torn in the flesh of humanity?
Despite Obuna’s profound intellect, he never lectured anywhere. He hid himself and his talent at Mile 50 and, became a living terror and plotted the downfall of his fellow priests. He preferred fame and wealth than submitting himself to the rudiments of priestly service as true servant deserving of his calling as a priest.
In Matthew 25:14-30, the Parable of the Talents, Jesus admonished us that we shall give account of the gifts He had given to us. The master made it clear that we are under instruction to multiply our talents. Unfortunately, Emmanuel Obuna opted to live in the cozy, comfort and luxury of Mile 50, where he carefully avoided the salvific discomfort, priestly sacrifice and abounding grace that comes with being transferred from one parish to the other. The resultant effect was that he had all the time to himself, because he never bothered himself with parish administrations, hearing confessions from the parishioners and other challenges. Clearly, Obuna is a strange perspective in priesthood. It was under this self-imposed freedom and idleness that his mind became a fertile ground for the extraneous forces to plant pride, vindictiveness and ungodliness. Obuna hid himself at Mile 50, mocked God and plotted the downfall of his brother priests that gave their all to the Mother Church.
Obuna was trained by the Church for free. The same Obuna rather than help in lifting the Catholic Diocese of Abakaliki instead he created fear, suppression and raised intimidation to the status of a religion. We are not here to give a catalogue of dreams, gifts and aspirations that Obuna dashed. Apparently, Fr. Emmanuel Obuna must take responsibility for this analysis. In ‘Things Fall Apart’, a reviewer argued that it was Okonkwo’s personal tragedy that he would be buried like a dog.
The Forbidden Truth and Clouds of Witness looks at the theory of oppression. Oppression Model describes a staircase built on a foundation of objectifying, proceeding by steps of stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination up to the final step of institutionalized oppression.
On the other hand political oppression is the exercise of power by dominating agents to create political, social, and economic barriers that are maintained by force and fear and that advance the interests of the oppressors at the expense of the oppressed.
Concern for the impact of oppression on human well-being occupies a central place in critical psychology. Reflecting its roots in Marxism, critical theory, and postmodernism, critical psychology shares with these schools of thought a commitment to engaging in social critique in order to identify ideologies that enslave human beings.
A core theme of critical psychology is a concern for the impact of structural factors on human well-being and the understanding that individual suffering is based on a person’s position within the societal status quo. To achieve liberation, circumstances giving rise to oppression must be identified and eliminated.
This essence of every work of literature is to pass information, educate the readers and frame our minds along the pattern of thought or mode of reasoning of the author and possibly leave a legacy of knowledge.
By so doing, it becomes a reference material or document. Rather than advance sordid argument Odey’s work is look at how an exceptionally gifted Obuna whose potentials has the propensity advance the cause of human and societal development settled for lesser roles.
Having retired as the Bishop’s Secretary after three decades Obuna has no other influence or privilege above his brothers. Odey has set the ball rolling. Let the argument continue. Obuna should be bold enough and brace up to his new roles outside ecclesiastical toga and paraphernalia and show the stuff he is made off.
