On the 28th day of October 2024, Nigerians woke up to a disturbing video of assault by a member of the House of Representatives – Hon. Alexander Mascot Ikwechegh on a Bolt driver Stephen Abuwatseya.
The bolt driver had gone to deliver snails to the member representing Aba North & South Federal Constituency, when an altercation leading to physical assault occurred in the home of Hon. Ikwechegh.
The incident generated heated debates on social media, and by the time the matter got to court and Hon. Ikwechegh pleaded not guilty to the charges preferred against him, Nigerians had pitched tent on both sides of the divide.
While many argued, blamed, and castigated Hon. Ikwechegh for obviously using his position to oppress a fellow citizen who he called a monkey, others felt Stephen Abuwatseya was simply disrespectful for not delivering the snail to the Honourable.
This was the state of play until Nigerians woke up to another video this time from Stephen Abuwatseya, the bolt driver apologizing to Hon. Ikwechegh, following the incident in which he was assaulted. He called for forgiveness from Nigerians and urged them to move past the incident.
Once again, social media is agog with various commentaries on the subject, with both sides holding on firm to their opinions.
However, I believe that the fallout of this whole saga should teach us valuable life lessons. There are so many Hon. Ikwechegh out there because that’s how many of us are. We like to oppress the next person once we have the chance – what Fela Anikulapo-Kuti called ‘power show’.
The easiest and most fashionable thing to do today is to wake up, criticise, condemn, and blame other people for our problems. We like criticisms but can’t take the same when the table turns. Ask yourself, how polite are you to your neighbours and colleagues, especially subordinates? Do you see the security man, driver, cleaner in your office, or your domestic staff as worthy of being spoken to decently or talked down on.
Let us all examine ourselves and arrest the Hon. Ikwechegh in us to avoid regrets because eventually, apologies and regrets are always after the facts. When I read Hon. Ikwechegh’s apology with the nice and remorseful words he used. The question that came to my mind was, why didn’t he think like this before acting.
The deed has been done, and Stephen Abuwatseya has turned around to apologize to his supposed oppressor. He may have succeeded and gotten what he wanted and, in the process, threw his supporters under the bus. Hon. Ikwechegh, on the other hand, has succeeded in beating up a ‘monkey’, and nothing will happen to him as he boasted.
Now the question is to you out there who always take other people’s battles as yours. You must learn that the enemy of your enemy is not your friend. Not every battle is yours to fight, and I hope this has taught you a lesson. There are some fights you just have to lean back and observe.
Stephen Abuwatseya really let those who supported and fought for him down. How much premium he places on himself is difficult to know. His action is one reason some people sit back, not because they don’t want to help but because they are afraid of the cost of helping.
As for Hon. Ikwechegh, I hope he was truly remorseful based on the apology he earlier tendered. Will the fact that he was able to arm twist his victim to be the fall guy at the end make him humble or embolden him to carry out such an act in the future?
And to those of us who still have the Hon. Alexander Mascot Ikwechegh character in us, it is time to repent, turn a new leaf, and respect others. We must discard the oft-repeated cliché of ‘I can do what I like because I am an adult’. We must realise that adults don’t do what they like, on the contrary, adults do what is right because if you do what you like in most cases, you end up where you don’t like.
Gatekeepers News is not liable for opinions expressed in this article; they’re strictly the writer’s
