But right now we do not know the said James Onanefe Ibori, the convict. And better not eye the Governor of Delta State! The man said he is not the one. The Supreme Court seems to agree with him. The Supreme Court ordered the case to be retried de novo (that means afresh!) by another High Court to identify who the convicted James Onanefe Ibori was or is! Following this landmark judgement, Governor James Onanefe Ibori and his supporters staged a praise and worship thanksgiving service in Asaba. Governor James Onanefe Ibori attributed his “victory”, that is the verdict, to his confidence in God! God is in control, he exclaimed. The Delta state government stated that the verdict that the case be referred back to the High Court has vindicated the Governor.

I can appreciate the joy of Governor James Onanefe Ibori and his supporters. Given the length of time it took the case to get to this landmark ruling, a retrial may run through the entire second term tenure of the Governor. The purpose for which Agbi and Alabi went to court, which is to stop James Onanefe Ibori from contesting the office of the Governor, by virtue of the identity crisis, would have become futile! It is probably in line with this that Governor James Onanefe Ibori has decided not to speak much on the allegation till the end of his tour of duty as Governor.

It will be presumptuous of me to question the wisdom of the legal luminaries that adorn the Supreme Court, or the rationality of the verdict. But you must also understand the dilemma of an ordinary mortal like me. The Supreme Court affirmed that a James Onanefe Ibori was convicted of a criminal offence. Now, you guys go and find out who the James Onanefe Ibori is! I know that the way our police operate would have allowed them to arrest James Onanefe Ibori or all James Onanefe Iboris, even if they are a thousand, clamped them into their cell, for any offence established against one James Onanefe Ibori. They would be legally right until all the James Onanefe Iboris prove that they are not the wanted James Onanefe Ibori. Are you confused? So  I am .

Why did the Supreme Court or the Court of Appeal have difficulty in establishing who was convicted as James Onanefe Ibori? In the process of arresting, prosecuting and convicting James Onanefe Ibori, were there no records or finger printing? Where are those records? I know that in our legal process, an accused is presumed innocent until proven guilty. In this case, there was an accused who was convicted as guilty, and there is an accused who is still pleading his innocence. On whom should the onus of proof now lie? This question is relevant as it relates to integrity in public office. Once this case reached this seamy stage where the identity of a governor is in grave doubt, James Onanefe Ibori, the one we know, should have honourably resigned, whether he is the Governor or the convict.

I know that his army of hangers on and those who live off him will rise up in arms arguing that resigning would have been an admission of guilt or dignifying mudslingers. I disagree. James Onanefe Ibori, the one who occupies the Delta State Government House (that is the moral way to refer to him for now) would have been a hero at a time that lacks heroes, if he had demonstrated that he recognised that the sanctity of the public office he now occupies is far more important than his person. Nothing says that Delta State cannot find another person who can govern without the albatross James Onanefe Ibori carries.

Moreover, it is difficult to see any victory in the verdict for James Onanefe Ibori. I could see none except one anchored on the amnesia of Nigerians. What cynics are already saying is that the case is as good as dead once Nigerians shift their attention elsewhere. Yet James Onanefe Ibori in Government House, Asaba will still need to prove that he is not an ex-convict if not for the purposes of being Governor, for other purposes also, including removing the blemish from his family once and for all. As it is today, James Onanefe Ibori cannot even sue anybody for libel on the strength of this verdict, for as long as there is one James Onanefe Ibori, an ex-convict out there on the loose, except the libellous material specifically identifies James Onanefe Ibori as the one in Government House Asaba! This leaves James Onanefe Ibori as a possible butt of beer parlour jokes. And that is not good for a public office as high as that of the governor!

On a sympathetic note, I think James Onanefe Ibori in the Government House, Asaba is probably one of the unluckiest men ever born. I know at least three people with the name Sam Egwu. Two of them you can separate from the third by the fact that they are both Dr. Sam Egwu. You can further separate the two Dr. Sam Egwus by adding their respective middle names, or by the time you identify one as from Kogi State while the other is from Ebonyi state. So, whenever I have had the honour to introduce my friend Dr. Sam Egwu at any Citizens Forum for Constitutional Reforms, CFCR, event, I had always begun by saying: he is not His Excellency, he is not the governor, he is not from Ebonyi, but believe me, he is Dr. Sam Egwu! But unfortunately for James Onanefe Ibori, neither his middle name nor his place of birth could extricate him from this identity muddle! That may be the price you pay if you are a champion of resource control! I hear you!