It was Abraham Lincoln in his famous quotation that says” A man is not fit to leave if he does not know the reason for which he is living”. That is the case of a thirty seven years old man from the interior village of Emewe, Biraidu District, Dekina Local Government of Kogi state, who embarked on a dangerous journey, even when it was obvious that his life would be on the line, but choosed to be the one to pay the huge price for the Libration and emancipation of his immediate constituency in particular, and the country in general. In his notable view, Martin Luther King Junior stated and I quote that ” Freedom is indeed an expensive thing, history is a free testimony to the fact that Freedom is rarely gained without personal sacrifice and self- denial”. Austin Usman Okai denied himself so that his people would be free from the extremely damaged and mal-administered state, which has kept his people perpetually in abject poverty.
Like it is common in the Democratic world, where constructive criticism is welcomed and guaranteed to allow for equitable development at all levels of government; Usman Okai Austin sought for correction in some functions of Government, but became a victim of man’s conspiracy, and consequently, his in and out of detention experience, which was orchestrated by Men of bad faith, who were determined to alter divine mission.
The numerous questions that has overtime beg for the right and cogent answers are; when has given voice to the Voiceless become a crime in a democratic setting?
When has it become a crime to speak truth to power?
Seeking equality in an unjust society turned to instigating the led against leaders? These and many other questions were the values Okai represented and created a platform to activate and reawaken the consciousness of his people to knowing the fundamentals of good governance, and the need for it to be entrenched in Kogi state. Although, this did not come without some prices, which the young (Okai) painfully paid and ended him a victim of the court, and in some cases locked up in a dignified manner by anti- human forces. However, Okai is not the only youth from the Igala speaking axis, he is not the only youth from Kogi, neither the only victim of maladministration.
After all, Okai does not have his parents alive to feel the negative nor positive impact of government, but throng on even at the expense of his life and that of his family.
Anyway, the beauty of the whole drama that enveloped him at the time metamorphosed into some level of positive changes by government.
I am of the opinion that with these uncommon sacrifices put forward, Usman Austin Okai who is not just capable, but fit and resolute in humanity cause should be reciprocated with massive vote from Dekina/Bassa Local Government come 2023 elections.