THE MYSTIC OF DPA AND ITS LEADERSHIP: AN EXPOSEE ON EMEKA UGWUONYE AND HIS ATTITUDE

Whether they admit it or not, DPA’s growth has a lot to do with the charisma of its Founder. He is uniquely equipped for the role he has played both in founding the organization and in steering it through all manner of turbulence. The charisma of DPA Founder is evident wherever he goes. The way he connects with the people and the energy he ignites are electrifying.

Emeka Ugwuonye has no doubt survived unscathed challenges that are capable of killing a normal man. For ten years now, there has been a frenzy of hostile, wicked and malicious tabloid and now social media attacks. Every aspect of his life – his marriage, his love relationships, his children, his family, his businesses and even his stars have been targeted for every imaginable smear campaign.

Those of us close to him initially wondered when he would break. But we finally realized that the man is unbreakable, or unstoppable, as he prefers to describe his destiny. Surprisingly, he is a man of steel. The fact that he would go to bed, sleeps and move on as if nothing is happening remained a mystery until we got to know that this is exactly the way the man has been fashioned by his maker.

From a philosophical dimension, it now appears that all these tribulations and challenges that the DPA Founder has faced in recent times were precisely divined as the testing process, the crucible that he needed to undergo in order to be prepared for the mission ahead of him and which he seeks to pursue through DPA. History shows that every man on an important mission faces a blistering trial period that almost breaks him. The Lord Jesus faced his trials too. That is the moment when every transformational leader must decide whether to pull back or to proceed into the path of danger.

It may be too early to score the Founder of DPA, but we cannot fail to acknowledge the clear things we have seen. He is a tireless worker. His intellect, wisdom and logic are without question. He can sacrifice every comfort for his mission. He is resolute. He does not fear danger. He also does not fear confrontations. Yet, despite his steely qualities, he has extreme tenderness that is totally unbelievable. His demeanor and dispositions remind one of the contradictions of the crocodile. The same jaw that the crocodiles uses to crush bones is the most tender part of its body and that is where it keeps its young for safety, security and protection. Depending on where you stand in the scheme of things, Emeka Ugwuonye could be the most fierce and most ruthless opponent you can have or the cushioning teddy bear that you need for comfort. It just depends.

As one of the DPA leaders put it;

“He is a great man, loved by all. The enemies are just wasting their time, I tell you”

Emeka Ugwuonye is not a government official. He is not a church leader and lays no claim to ecclesiastical or divine motivations. He is not a sports star. He is not a politician. He is not a musical or movie star. But certainly, as you can see, if you cared to watch, he possesses and displays that enigmatic charisma that belongs only to megastars. Yet, when you ask him, he seems not even aware of these things.

When asked how he sees the people, his answer is usually short and it depends of which group he focuses on at the time. If he thinks of the children, he would simply reply: “They are adorable”. If he thinks of those of us that work closely with him, he will say: “You guys are brave”. When he focuses on members in general, he would simply say: “They are smart” or “They are kind”. Hardly do you ever get him to give you his complete thought about the people. The most consistent thing he has says has been: “I really love ’em. They are my family”.

If asked how he deals with the challenges of hostile attacks by those who feel he should be stopped, he shocks you with his answers. There is no iota of bitterness in him toward the people you would expect him to hate. Very strangely, it is as if he believes that those people are helping him somehow. This is where Emeka becomes truly philosophical. He talks about the foil. One day, I asked him to explain what he means by “foil”. He said:

“The word comes from drama or fiction. A foil is a character who contrasts with another character (usually the hero) to highlight particular qualities of the hero. Satan is a foil character in the story of religion. You need to have Satan roaming the world and wrecking havoc in order to reveal the true character of God. For you to have a hero to put out the fire that is about to burn down the city, you first must have a devilish urchin or a villain who must have set the fire”.

He comes with this concept of necessary evil. He sees his opponents as necessary for his role. Ironically, he thinks that he should be grateful to them because without them setting the city on fire, he would not have had the opportunity to put out any fire. He thinks that any credit he gets for putting out the fire is owed partly to the evil person that set the fire on. That is the man.

DPA is a revolution in the making. Emeka Ugwuonye is an unfinished story. The world should watch out for him.

Ifeanyi Calistus Director of Information

DPA