King's Court : A Jesters Turf

A court jester is historically an entertainer who was a member of the household of a monarch, employed to entertain him and his guests. In those days, they wore bright colored clothes and eccentric hats and entertained with a variety of skills…..among were story-telling, music and songs.

They were mere fools, licensed in most courts to make the king happy. Shakespeare rightfully said, “the jester is wise enough to play the fool”.

Jesters often suffer in the hands of the kings as they are often thrown out when jests seem over-reaching and insulting……asides from being the fool, it was only him among the learned court friends that can give bad news to the king. It was only fools that dared deliver such news when no one else would.

In Literature, the jester is symbolic for common sense and honesty, speaking freely to dispense frank observations, highlighting the folly of his king. This position in itself presents a clashing irony as a greater man can dispense the same advice and find himself being detained in the dungeons or even executed…a jester, being the lowest in the cadre is hence the monarch’s most useful adviser.

I would today enter my king’s court. I would today become my king’s jester, dispensing observations that none of his close allies dared say.

“Asokata Eze anya,ekpuru ekete n’isi gwa ya okwu”

The king of kings in my state happens to be a cousin of mine. I know this as we share the same maternal ancestry. By extrapolation, I am truly of the king’s court by virtue of this bloodline.

My king is a good man. I also know this because I had scored him from an except on leadership that I had taken from my other cousin's Davison Nwosu’s wall. My king had scored the Five out of the required six C’s and an F.

He had the capacity, greatly shown by the mental edge to lead. He was born with this form of intelligence and acquired only a few. He is capable, going by the sheer strength and constant visibility among our people. He is credible. I know this, as his words were his bond. He had a conscience because his actions I suppose have been guided at all times by choosing right over wrong. He was somewhat consistent. Aristotle once said “We are what we repeatedly do. excellence, then, is not an act but a habit”.

I had failed my king in the indices for courage which is the quality of fearlessness and the ability to take difficult decisions in the interest of his people. As the Greek philosopher had said, “ I have nothing but contempt for the kind of governor who is afraid, for whatever reason, to follow the course that he knows is best for the state”.

However, I acknowledge that my king has the fear of God in him, subjecting himself to answers to a higher being now and in the afterlife.

Orodo had fielded their “ first eleven” in my king. He was and till the date of this publication, the closest an Orodo indigent had come closest to the corridors of active power. This had been the first time in Orodo that one of its sons were now seated at the right hand of the Governor. This was the first time that an Orodo man commanded a retinue of aides that were a dial away from the powers that be.

This king of kings had all the trappings of a modern king. His king’s court was adorned in gold and golden ornaments. He had a bevy of aides and advisers at his beck and call. The Governor of the state had elevated his status beyond a mere king. He had acquired “meta” powers to undo and undo. He was above the customary arm of the government, he was a synchro-executive member of the inner kitchen cabinet of the powers that be.

If these descriptions matched the expectations required of him from his wards, then I would not be stuttering when applauded by my colleagues and friends on learning that the king of kings came from my locale. I would not be giving too many excuses to acquaintances that learn a bit or two from me on the apathy of meaningful developmental indices in my town touted to house the king of kings. I would not hide when people are reeling out verifiable indices in their various communities. I would not have as my only claim to my king…….having the same maternal ancestry.

I hold him in contempt because he hardly followed a course that was best for our locality while he had the chance

This was definitely one of our best players. A striker…..We expected goals. “To whom much is given, much is expected” Rather we wallowed in drought, while our king swam in milk and honey. We had tin plates and cups while the best of China and silverware lined our king’s lair. We drank water when we found one but hear that fountains ran constantly where our king threaded. We had gotten used to darkness from incessant epileptic power, all auxiliary facets that needed power were closed, our need for electricity had been relegated to mere usage for “charging of phones and lamp bulbs', when our king basked in unlimited rays from different sources. Our roads were not a concern, we only saw potholes and earth roads, it had become a no concern as my king was blessed with off-road assisted vehicles. Our schools were all dilapidated, they were all rotten from decay, a terrible decline in the total number of graduating pupils, an increase in truancy, total production of low baked students were now on the increase while the king moved with the darling governor to build new schools in other kingdoms. We had forgotten what a good healthcare system looked like, we did not have any existing facility that served us, maternal deaths were on the increase, child death on the increase, increase in prevalence on poverty and lifestyle-driven disease yet, my king had gone with the governor to commission and build purported world-class hospitals in other kingdoms.

What went wrong, my king?… Chinua Achebe’s “Trouble with Nigeria” used a football analogy to reflect on why Nigeria never seems to, as he calls it “present it’s first 11”. He cites that there is basically nothing wrong with Nigeria and that the trouble with Nigeria is simply and squarely a failure of leadership. It goes on to say that the Nigerian problem is the unwillingness or inability of its leaders to rise to the responsibility.

Some school of thoughts and other band-wagons would come in defense saying” is it the work of the king to do all these that I have made jest of? is it the job of the king to execute jobs meant for the central government?.. my humble jest is yes. You were not just a king, you were a kitchen staff and ate from the same pot that dishes were served.

You would have dipped deep for us. Ho Ha and wholeheartedly

What went wrong my king?… you were our first eleven. Will thunder strike twice now that the baton is changed. As I watch you sit next to the new government in power, I am reminding you of the role I play in your court. The worst would be to throw me away but be rest assured that my advice is not with rancor, rather borne out of a regular sport of mine to observe the faces and body language of your higher ranked officers who, to my chagrin fail to point out the glaring truth, that your wards are headed towards relegation.

I will pray for the thunder to strike twice so that you will regain your spot in our line up. We might never get these chances again. You blew it the first time….The second will not be funny

Your court jester

Uchenna Iwualla MD

It Matters Period