Okite: Professional writing differs from tenancy agreement, By Don Norman Obinna

I read with uttermost disappointment a disjointed and jejune rejoinder replete with tautologies and syntactic anomalies titled ‘Moments of lies of a serial liar and crimes suspect’ by I. Okite Esq.

In his hubristic attempt to put the kibosh on my article and rhapsodize Ginger Onwusibe, Barrister Okite made a public spectacle of himself with embarrassing elementary grammatical blunders ill-suited to a legal practitioner. No wonder he prides himself as a juju priest.

The Isiala Ngwa-born Juju priest wrote, “Our attention has been drawn to a malicious and unscrupulous publication…”

Ezemmuo, sir, the adjective ‘unscrupulous’ has to do with manner. It is not suitable to define a publication.

He concluded his disjointed 73-word first sentence thus: “…Hon. Okenze Sir Ginger Onwusibe as scripted by Obinna Don Norman on his Facebook and Realm News and shared by his cohorts which included inter alia Ariwa Zuby.”

This phrase, “…shared by his cohorts which included inter alia Ariwa Zuby,” is obscure and verbose. The appropriate clause is “Facebook and The Realm News and shared by his cohorts, Ariwa Zuby et al.”

Now, read the second paragraph written by a lawyer:

“Those who take Obinna Don Norman serious, do so at their own peril. Don Norman’s write-ups are always motivated and driven by his pockets and impecuniousity (impecuniosity). A man who is a serial squanderer of sort must surely have his pockets dry and will go ahead to spew out garbage against people once you oil and lubricate his palms. This is Don Norman.”

Barrister Okite, please, remove the coma after ‘serious’. ‘Own peril’ is a tautology. In the bracket is the correct spelling of ‘impecuniosity’. It is not ‘a serial squanderer of sort’ but some sort. ‘Motivated and driven’ are the same word. ‘Oil and lubricate’ mean the same thing.

Below is the corrected version of your disjointed paragraph.

Those who take Obinna Don Norman seriously do so at their peril. Don Norman’s write-ups are always motivated by impecuniosity. A man who is a serial squanderer of some sort must have his pockets dry and will go ahead to spew out garbage against people once you lubricate his palms. It is Don Norman for you.

Our juju priest wrote further in paragraph three thus:

“The above is laughable and shows how unclever Don Norman is. He forgets and/or does not know that every court case is public record and can be assessed and accessed by any member of the public.”

I find it unacceptable that Okite does not know that ‘unclever’ is not in the English lexicon. ‘Unintelligent’ would have been perfect.

Okite, please, read below the correct sentence.

“The above is laughable and shows how unintelligent Don Norman is. He forgets or does not know that every court case is a public record and can be assessed and accessed by anybody.”

In another paragraph, the juju priest made yet another elementary blunder thus:

“Don Norman is facing a criminal case in HU/97C/2020 at the High Court Umuahia for obtaining by false pretence (OBT) i.e. 419 and issuing dud cheque in the sum of N650,000. The case against him is that he had lodged in Upper Graceland Hotel… the owner of the hotel. I hereby attach to this our joinder.”

Oga juju priest, ‘lodged in a hotel’ is incorrect. Take note also that ‘i.e.’ is used to introduce a phrase that restates what was said previously. It should be in the bracket. So, below is the correct paragraph.

“Don Norman is facing a criminal case in HU/97C/2020 at the High Court Umuahia for obtaining by false pretence (OBT) (i.e. 419) and issuing a dud cheque in the sum of N650,000. The case against him is that he had lodged at Upper Graceland Hotel…the hotel owner. I duly attach to this our joinder.”

I can go on and on but will stop there for want of time.

However, let me gladly inform Okite that all his paragraphs were replete with unpardonable grammatical errors.

Although there is nothing worthy of response in his insipid rebuttal, I will, for posterity’s sake, say in clear terms that it is the right of everybody to institute a legal matter against another. The mischievous claimant is also at liberty to allege. But the onus lies on him to prove beyond every reasonable doubt his allegations, and then the court will decide.

On the civil matter, he got the judgment because we did not file a defence. We were oblivious of the case until the chief judge awarded it. My lawyer, Barrister Ladu Martins, had filed, demanding a proper hearing, and the chief judge obliged.

Though I disrelish pettiness, let me jog Okite’s memory. I was among the people who pleaded on his behalf in 2017 over a failed fraud transaction when the disenchanted boys were on his neck. Okite provided the foreign contact and account detail. The victim wired the money into his contact account, but they denied receipt afterwards. Let me restrain myself momentarily, but Okite knows that a person who aided or abetted a crime is liable.

Let me also remind Okite that I am supereminent in the Abia ADC. The ADC NWC, in their omnium gatherum of arbitrary letters, never accused me of peculation. Recalcitrant state officers we suspended forged the purported letter of my suspension and announced it on the radio with the help of their sponsor to create the imaginary schism in the Abia ADC. It is perjury they must answer. You can take it to the bank.

It is a shame that Ginger Onwusibe sees you as a slouch at legal matters and decided to reward your paean of compliment with the ordinary head of media and publicity. It poses a question about your aptitude as a lawyer. Anyways, it is deducible from your kindergarten rejoinder.

Charge and bail lawyer.

Serious-minded lawyers are in the court defending and winning cases for their clients; you are here writing an incoherent rejoinder for a House of Assembly member on social media. Does it portray sombre? There can only be a conflagration at the coming together of two combustible elements. Be guided before I deflate your little ego.

Finally, ‘young Isiala Ngwa youths’ is my new-fangled coinage. As a communication scholar, I am at liberty to use it to add thought to the specifics in a clime where a 50-year-old classifies himself as a youth.

Since you want to know Ginger’s involvement in the case, wait for part two of ‘The Moment of Truth’ on Monday.

Thanks for tying Ginger to the stake. I will not hesitate to fire him mercilessly.

Editor’s note: The views expressed in this piece belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Realm News on the subject matter.