Osadebe Fest: Preserving The Legacy Of A Highlife Legend

L-R: Son of the Late Sir Stephen Osita Osadebe, Onyeka Osadebe, Convener, Osadebe Fest, Afam Dozie, HRH Igwe John C. Nwosu, Ezechimeleze the Eze Ndigbo of Mushin Lagos, Steve Onu, and Oranu Hillary Ikechukwu at the brand unveiling of the Osadebe Fest in Lagos recently

BY THIS DAY

A group of young men from the Igbo stock recently came together to bring back the life and times of a legendary icon, late Chief Stephen Osita Osadebe, one of Nigeria’s Highlife pioneers. MARY NNAH reports that they intend to go back to their roots to expound the culture and tradition which the late music icon propagated and stood for, believing this would help to project the Igbo culture and race globally

Chief Stephen Osita Osadebe, simply known as Osadebe, a Nigerian highlife musician from Atani, Anambra State is one of the best known Igbo highlife musicians in Nigeria and globally.

Born in March 1936, Osadebe’s career, according to the Wikipedia, spanned over 40 years. He was best known for his 1984 hit song, “Osondi Owendi”, literally meaning, “One man’ meat is another man’s poison”, which established him as a leader in the highlife genre and was one of Nigeria’s most popular records ever.

Yet, after his demise at the age of 73 on May 11, 2007 at Saint Mary’s Hospital, Waterbury, Connecticut, United States, nothing worthwhile has been done to preserve the legacy of a man described as the “doyen of highlife” in Nigeria.

Conversely, a group of young men, just recently, decided to come together and do something extraordinary by coming up with an innovative idea to bring to life Osadebe’s life and times, through an initiative tagged the “Osadebe Fest.”

The brand unveiling of, “Osadebe Fest tagged “Celebrating a Legend: In memory of Chief Stephen Osita Osadebe (The Highlife Music Icon)”, held in Lagos, which had in attendance the team behind the project, made up of the Convener, Afam Dozie, Oranu Hillary Ikechukwu; OAP and entertainer, Steve Onu popularly known as Yaw amongst others.

Dozie, an indigene of Otolo Nnewi in Anambra State, said Osadebe Fest is not just about celebration but to impact on the young people who didn’t meet Osadebe as a person or didn’t know what his songs stood for.

“We were fortunate enough to grow up with parents as typical Igbos who played Osadebe songs every morning as we listened. The kind of advice Osadebe gives in his songs are inspiring. That alone got me very involved with tradition. So, we decided to start this”, Dozie on how he got inspired to start the Osadebe Fest.

As the brain behind the project, he has got together young able-bodied men like himself, who believe in the same dream.

“I cannot do it alone; we cannot do it alone too. We need the Igbos; we need Igbos in diaspora, we need Nigerians, and we need everybody who believes Osadebe impacted on us in one or two ways through his genre of music, which is highlife. So we are projecting a bigger picture, this is just the official unveiling event”, he added.

The event which has the support of the Igbo elders as well as the family of the late legend, as was shown with the representation by one of his sons, Onyeka Osadebe, is funded at the moment by the founding team. However, Dozie said it is open to sponsorship by organisations and individuals with like minds.

“We are looking forward to get support from all nooks of life including the Anambra State government, media and brands that would associate with the progress of this event. We just want will-be sponsors to understand the vision behind this. This has nothing to do with personal interest but basically it is a collective effort of like minds coming together to take our culture to the next level.

“As an Igbo man, I strongly believe in my culture and I also believe that we need to take our culture to where it should be. So, through the entertainment filed, we have decided to use the Osadebe symbol to portray this idea and then push it out there. Like I said, the opportunities are endless”, he noted.

He revealed further that highpoints for the build up to the major event coming up sometime next year would include a novelty football match, symposiums, school debates on the music icon for secondary schools, festival of masquerades where all the masquerades from various quarters of the eastern zone would be brought together in one place to pay homage to late Osadebe and then the main concert which would crown up the whole event in Awka, Anambra State.

“The Osadebe Fest is not just for the Osadebe’s family but for every Igbo person. As team for this project, we are not selfish that is why we are putting it up for everyone, most especially for those that have done highlife music, to be part of the project.

“So, whilst we are preparing for the major event with the various activations that I have mentioned earlier, the musical competition will commence online, so that people who are in the same genre of music as Osadebe would showcase their talents and then winners would emerge who would play on stage during the main event. So, the Osadebe Fest is everyone’s business,. It is for the family, the country and the world at large”, Dozie added.

One of those working behind the scene for the success of the Osadebe Fest Concert, Steve Onu, popularly known as Yaw, said, “I have decided to be part of this project because this is something I have always wanted to do for the Easterners but you know it is not an easy thing, you hardly get support.

“Incidentally, when Afam approached me, and said this is exactly what he wanted to do, I just keyed into the idea. So we are just going ahead with this and believing that it would be a different case.”

Expressing optimism about the approaching event, Onu said, “I strongly believe that this would go a long way to project our culture internationally and otherwise. Before now I have been an advocate but it is a good thing that somebody is spearheading the cause because it requires a lot of work and team work as well. We need the support of everybody to make this a reality.”

Speaking further, Onu who perhaps has foreseen what the project portends, said, “This is no child’s play. African music cannot be talked about without Highlife and that is what the easterners represent. There are lots of brands coming with various styles of Highlife music because they know that African music is not complete without it. So, it means that we cannot run away from these things. I think this is what we need to do now to go back home a bit”.

Stressing on the area he is going to give his support, he said, “Apart from just being on radio, I run a TV channel online, I am a producer, content creator and all of that, so I can pull strings to ensure we come up with a wonderful event.”

On how significant the project is to him as a person, he said, “I am Igbo and a proud one at that and I would always be one. So, I would say that it would definitely be a huge one to help project the Igbo culture and race internationally.”

“You cannot run away from Highlife, it is our thing and that is what we are known for. And I think that every musician now, even though they say what they do is Afro-hip-hop, when you listen to it carefully you still feel some rhythm of Highlife embedded in their music. So we cannot run away from it”, Onu noted further.

According to Hillary Ikechukwu Oranu, another member of the team from Umuoji in Anambra State, the proposed event is intended to be held next year, tentatively in March, the birth month of late Osadebe.

“We are looking at next year because it is good for events like these to be significant with a figure. In the sense that you are either doing it on his birthday or you’re doing it in the period he died. We don’t intend to hold the even around the period he died. He died in May, he was given birth to in March so we are keeping our fingers crossed and hoping that around March we would be having the whole event”,Oranu said.

On how he got to be part of the project, he said, “Afam is the brain behind the whole thing. When he called me into the picture, I realised we shared the same idea. And so, we looked at the pros and cons of the project and we decided to come together to ensure that this comes to reality.”

Speaking further on the significance of the proposed Osadebe Fest, Oranu said, “Everybody would agree with me that traditionally, it is good to fall back home at some point, but we are not falling back home at this point because we are old but we are taking back our culture. We want to recognise what is rightfully ours; we want to put the Igbo culture and the Igbo tradition where it is meant to be.

“Basically, the whole idea about the Osadebe fest is not child’s play. It’s a project we intend to sustain for years. Osadebe is meant to be celebrated even in death because he is the biggest Highlife artist from the eastern part of Nigeria. So we felt this man shouldn’t just turn to dust, and vanish just like that. We need to sustain that name; he needs to be in the world map and bringing him into the map a whole lot of culture and tradition needs to be put in place.

“That’s exactly why we are doing this. We are not from his village, we are not his family members but we are just a group of Igbo guys who understand our culture and know where we want to place the Igbo tradition and culture. We understand the importance of Highlife and music in our tradition. That is the direction and vision of where we are going to.”

Stressing further that the planned event has the full support of the late Osadebe’s family as well as the traditional rulers in Igbo land, he said, “We are not just doing this on our own accord, we have the family involved in this, we have the traditional rulers of his village and also the council of traditional rulers and Igwes with the Ohaneze Ndigbo with us. So what we are doing is traditional, it is not just a comedy or musical concert. Permit me to mention “Felabration”, with time Osadebe Fest would get to that point.”

Unveiling the brand logo for Osadebe Fest, the Eze Ndigbo of Mushin Lagos, HRH Igwe John C. Nwosu, Ezechimeleze, said, “I feel highly honoured unveiling the logo for Osadebe Fest today. Osadebe is a great man in Igbo land, Nigeria, Africa and in the world because his music cuts across the globe. So, we are celebrating him today because he is a great man.”

While commending the group for coming up with such innovative idea and also giving his blessings for a successful outing, Eze Nwosu said, “How can a great man like Osadebe just vanish from the society? For these young men remembering him by planning an event like this, which they would be showcasing him and his music every year, is commendable. They have done very well and I pray that God would always be with them as they carry on with the project with steadiness.”

Stressing that lyrics of Osadebe’s music are loaded with lot of meaning and blessings, he frowned at the kind of songs being propagated by the youths of today.

He however encouraged young musicians to emulate the likes of Osadebe in creating music that would endure the test of time.

“Whenever we remember Osadebe, we remember the good work he did by promoting our culture, using his music to educate us on things concerning our culture. I don’t think that in years to come, we can get somebody to replace him. We miss a great man. We can only advice the younger generations to try as much as possible to emulate such legends who did wonders with their songs in the music industry in Nigeria.”

Hon. Jude Obiekwe, the Akpokwuo Dike, a businessman and politician, described the idea as novel, saying, “We are seeing this for the first time and It is a welcome idea to the generation of today. Osadebe is legend and when you see young minds coming together to honour him, we must give kudos to that. So I am very proud of this team.”

He promised to render the group every support needed to ensure the project sees the light of the day.

He called on the present generation of musicians to learn from music icons like Osadebe and their genre of music, adding, “Osadebe’s music is for everyone, not majorly for the Igbos, it cuts across the globe, so, it is things of joy that this is coming up at this point in time.

Igbo Women And The August Meeting Festival

BY CHRISTIANA NWAOGU

Across Igbo land, August Meeting, the annual mothers’ congresses held in the month of August, usually witnesses massive home-coming of ‘Igbo women’ to their marital rural hometowns, where they unite with their rural-based colleagues for community development purposes. Despite negative commentaries about hosting or attending these meetings, the buzz is still as loud today as it was many years ago, CHRISTIANA NWAOGU writes.

The ‘August Meeting’ has a critical mandate in Igbo political affairs and represents the socio-economic and cultural development initiative of women. Indeed, this feast truly has typified the rise of women as a social force and their conscious pursuit of development.

The annual event has been entrenched in the calendar of Igbo women and they always look forward to it. It has become customary for most women who are civil servants to fix their annual leave in August to enable them interact with their fellow women in the rural areas without having to worry about their offices during the period.

The yearly reunion , which began over 21 years ago, and is currently celebrated by women in all the Igbo states including Imo, Enugu, Anambra, Ebonyi and Abia, is a yearly ritual that invites Igbo women living at home and abroad to return home in what is considered a desperate move to complement the efforts of the men in providing essential amenities such as roads, health centres, electricity and churches among others, in their communities.

The ‘August Meeting’ is indeed, a powerful and purposeful sociopolitical symbol and strategy for the exercise of power and maintenance of identity among the Igbo, affecting all realms of life and ‘restoring’ the once strong political voice of the womenfolk in traditional communities.

In other words, through this annual home-coming congress, Igbo women hold some socio-political influence and have become active actors and agents in the Igbo public sphere.

In the pre-colonial era, however, Igbo women had direct involvement and considerable influence in the public sphere, which was defined through institutional provisions as the socio-political arena, the advent of colonialism, however, introduced some policies which put women and their activities down, and considerably diminished women’s status and agency in Igboland.

In the years that followed, the Women August Meeting evolved from an offhand annual gathering into a dynamic platform for the empowerment, reorientation and mobilisation of women for community building and political participation.

In some states for instance, the association has governors’ wives to thank for that. Since most of them took the decision to become host of the meeting, each edition of the yearly event has identified challenges facing women in their state and taken the pain to offer solution.

Take Imo state for instance, in 2011 when it started, the theme was ‘Women: the Home Builders,’ in 2012, it was ‘Women: The Vessels for Transformation,’ in 2013, it was ‘Managing Stress and Unity of Purpose,’ in 2014, the theme was ‘Imo Women: Making a Difference through Involvement and Commitment’ and in 2015, the theme was ‘Women: Dare to Dream,’ with an accompanying slogan, ‘it is possible.’

In 2016 there was a visible paradigm shift in the theme and focus of the August Meeting. The title was ‘Looking at the Next Generation of Mothers’ and the accompanying slogan was ‘we cannot afford to fail.’ This peculiar edition was a wakeup call for women to inculcate the right values in their children who are the next generation of mothers and fathers.

In 2017 the theme was ‘Women: Building Bridges of Friendship Across the Niger,’ it was a clarion call on women to deploy their inherent talent to promote unity, peace, friendship, justice, equity and love not only in the Igbo nation but in Nigeria at large.

Then the 2018 edition had the theme, ‘Sharing our Common Cultural Values’ which was intended to turn the country’s diverse culture into a tool of national integration and society development.

Apart from this, the 2019 edition of the August Meeting is profoundly special because among other things, it was the first edition for the wife of the current governor of Imo State and some first-time lawmakers.

The organisation, attendance, performances and emotions that are usually showcased at this time, proves beyond doubt, that the Imo and the south east August Meeting has bonded the women, irrespective of status, class, creed, politics and religion.

This annual reunion also gives opportunity for the wives of governors to present gifts to women for their love and support in the saddle and mostly for their husbands.

The crowd at various venues where August Meetings are held is usually beautiful to behold as these places are usually filled to capacity with women from across the local government areas of the state who sleep over at the stadium preparing for the D-Day.

As it is done, after a circular announcing the date has been sent out to women leaders at the various local government councils and a time table of various events has been rolled out.

At this point, the host, who is mostly the governor’s wife, in an uncommon display of charity, which has sustained in the last years through her pet project and non-governmental organisation, gives out three, sometimes between two- three bedroom fully furnished bungalows to three indigent widows and mini-buses, a fully stocked fabric shop, as well as thousands of expensive gift items including refrigerators, gas cookers, motorcycles, generators, household items, thousands of bags of rice and other food items, kitchen wares, clothing and cash to deserving winners of various competitions.

In most cases, all the women that attend the August Meeting go home with a gift item.

There is usually a colorful, rich and intriguing display of culture from across the country including dance, food, agriculture and other attributes that underscore the country’s cultural identity.

Dance troupes from various states including some from South-south states such as Delta, Cross River and Edo perform to the admiration of the surging crowd.

Other various side attractions include a parade by women from various local governments of the state celebrating, comic competitions like the ‘osu mmiri,’ dancing competition by senior citizens, beauty parade and raffle draws. All these add colour to the event.

For a regular participant of the event, Madam Evelyn Nwaogu, the meeting helps preserve the Igbo culture. “Our culture is our way of life and we should hold tenaciously to it and must not let it go into extinction.

“The achievements of the August Meeting in the past years has shown that when mobilised, women can be consistent in piloting and championing developmental projects in communities.

“I have personally realised that the potentials embedded in Imo, my state of origin through August Meeting, especially from the angle of women empowerment, family consolidation and unity, as well as the community development, has really revolutionised August Meeting into a historic event, effectively packaged to actualise its potentials.

“Our leaders, past and present, have introduced events like arts and culture, agricultural products and food exhibition, thereby enhancing the discovery of talents and potential in women in view of their roles as home builders and agents of positive change, strengthening their collaboration and participation in meaningful societal development.”

According to Madam Nwaogu, some women who are in the politics in Imo State were discovered during August Meetings as a result of how they participated and carried out their responsibilities.

Nwaogu, who went down memory lane also said that the issue of attire almost marred the essence of August Meeting after attendance began to drop in many communities. “In those days, some women would package three different attires for the three-day meeting and the topic shifted from discussing community matters discussing the trending wrappers in town.

She said, the issue also began to cause dispute in some families as wives began to mount undue pressure on their husbands to buy expensive wrappers for them, a development which she said separated different marriages.

Speaking on the family disputes caused by August Meeting, another participant of the annual meeting, Mrs Esther Nwachukwu Uhah said adopting a uniform attire for all the women was what saved the day. “There was a big relief when a decision was taken that women should appear in uniform during August Meetings to end the competition on quality of wrappers women wore to the meeting.

According to Nwachukwu, since the era of wearing uniform at the meeting, attendance has increased tremendously and the friction in many families over what is worn to the meeting has ended.’’

Usually, August Meeting is broken into three segments. The first is organised at the village level, then at the community level and finally, at the church level during which the women offer thanksgiving in their various churches to formally end the meeting.

Mr Okpo Uzorhuo who dislikes the forum said, August Meetings have broken many homes and ruined marriages and businesses.

A lawyer of Igbo descent, Barrister Ogorna, opined that most women engage in untoward acts during this period just to go with the bandwagon. ‘‘You know how vain some women are, every woman likes to meet up with others. Nobody wishes to be intimidated by other women. Both the poor and the rich wish to meet up with the fashion of the time. And for them, they must meet up.

“As we are aware, women care about their looks and if their husbands cannot provide for what they want, some will start to look elsewhere just to satisfy themselves, thereby causing problems in the house. Many of them would go to the extent of stealing, prostituting, and doing all sorts of evil, just to meet up with others. Many borrow money, clothes, some other things in the bid to meet up, and thereby disgrace their husbands.

“During August Meetings, women compete with each other to know who wears the best clothes, handbags, shoes, earrings, necklace and so on. Women don’t joke with this and that is very bad.

Another Respondent Mrs Confidence Ikechukwu stated that the August Meeting, an annual gathering of women, has evolved into massive platform for the empowerment and reorientation of the women.

She noted that through the August Meeting, most women in the region have abandoned unproductive lives and assumed the roles of home and society building.

“With determination and unity of purpose, dangerous routes like laziness, gossip, insubordination, antagonism and rancor, have been closed while, with wisdom we widened many parts that lead to development, bearing in mind that success of one Imo woman is the success of all Imo women.

“Indeed, we have rekindled the light of positivism and togetherness and by so doing, have removed the primordial barriers of zonal sentimentalism, creed, social status and others that do no one any good, she added.”

The truth remains that married women among the Igbos, through their annual ‘August Meeting’, are moving into the public sphere, which was hitherto largely considered the exclusive domain of men.

Though the dates and time of the meeting vary from community to community, the important thing is that it falls within the month of August. And it is customarily binding on women to attend the August Meeting because not attending attracts a surcharge by the leadership of the women organisation. Fundraising and execution of projects usually forms the crux of the meeting and that is why projects funded by women dot many communities.

SOURCE: LEADERSHIP

Understanding Ihedioha’s ‘Rebuild Imo’ Agenda

Emeka Ihedioha, Imo State Governor

BY CHARLES ODIBO

“Never forget these commandments that I am giving you today. Teach them to your children. Repeat them when you are at home and when you are away, when you are resting and when you are working. Tie them on your arms and wear them on your foreheads as a reminder. Write them on the door-posts of your houses and on your gates.” – (Deuteronomy 6:6-9) – Moses admonishing the people of Israel to strictly observe the Ten Commandments

A peoples’ mantra, battle-cry, or watch-word, is ideally their guiding principle that ultimately shapes their actions – what they do, how they do it, and why they do it.

Moses, a man chosen by God from birth to liberate the people of Israel from slavery in Egypt, gave the people the above strict instructions when they were about to cross the River Jordan and ultimately take possession of the land flowing with milk and honey, which the Lord had promised them. But the caveat was that they had to live by God’s commandments to reap the promises, and much more.

Good institutions that endure have long learnt this principle of creating foundational guiding principles, core values, and vision shared by all, to create amity, and achieve organisational goals.

When in 2018 then candidate Emeka Ihedioha set out to seek the mandate of Ndi Imo to lead them he knew he needed to be clear about what the journey was and will entail, and what he would be judged by. More importantly he desired that every Imo person will share in his vision for a renewed Imo, and so, after series of sessions with critical stakeholders, it was clear to him that Imo State, a once thriving state had been practically destroyed by bad governance and needed to be rebuilt.

As the Imo Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate he stated that, “among the comity of states in Nigeria, Imo state has become a laughing stock. The once thriving economy and pearl of the East currently lacks purposeful leadership and is in ruins. The last seven years of APGA/APC maladministration characterized by flagrant disregard for principles of rule of law and good governance has completely destroyed the foundations laid by our founding fathers.”

Why destroy Imo, its people and place by a government voted by a people in trust and governed under oath? We may never know except to interrogate human nature and behavior – maybe Senator Rochas Okorocha’s antecedents, background, and what circumstances influence his being – body, mind, and soul.

How do you destroy? By decapitating the structures, institutions, and controls for good governance – destroying established institutions like local government areas, starving them of funds and ensuring they are not functional; tele-guiding the state assembly; emasculating the judiciary and disobeying court orders; pocketing the traditional institution; denigrating and insulting the revered religious institution; refusing to contribute and partake in counterpart funds that will aid development and abnegating standards in construction.

Examples will do…When the out-gone government of Senator Rochas Okorocha refused to contribute N500m counterpart funding to a World Bank Agency for Urualla community in Ideato North’s N10b erosion project to tackle the massive erosion that is sweeping away homes and farmlands, it is destruction. Ironically, Senator Okorocha hails from Ideato. Thankfully, Governor Ihedioha has since promptly paid the N500 million counterpart fund and the World Bank has awarded the N10 billion project, which is currently well under way.

Senator Rochas Okorocha’s government shunned Treasury Single Account (TSA) but operated 250 bank accounts as revealed by the Financial Advisory Committee set-up by Governor Emeka Ihedioha. This is destruction because there will be no accountability and it gave ample room for leakages. Governor Ihedioha has since adopted the TSA model to ensure transparency in the management of public funds.

The former governor ignored series of advice from Council for the Registration of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) and Nigeria Society of Engineers (NSE) in construction of bridges and flyovers, all of which have now been closed to traffic because they failed integrity tests. This is destruction.

Arbitrariness – establishing six universities and polytechnics in April 2019, less than one month to handover, with no enabling laws; handing over public institutions such as hospitals to voluntary agencies and churches without enabling laws in the twilight of his administration; and also establishing arms of government that are not known to law such as Community Development Centres, disingenuously tagged the fourth arm of government in the past government’s “iberiberism” play book, were all parts of the deliberate dismemberment of Imo State.

There was a deliberate ploy to gradually destroy the state’s civil service, the engine room of government, by usurping their duties such as awarding contracts from government house and not through established ministerial procedures; starving them of funds such that the entire state’s secretariat with 11 buildings and housing all the ministries had no public water and power supply, while four giant generating sets bought by the Achike Udenwa administration were allowed to rot.

To rebuild therefore is to start all over again…which explains the foundation of the ‘Rebuild Imo’ mantra of Governor Ihedioha, anchored on: Good Governance; Job and wealth creation; Human capital development; and Integrated infrastructure development.

The above scenario explains why it is critically important to carry all Imo people along to create amity which inevitably will guarantee a ready to act attitude of the people

To rebuild or reconstruct Imo State is not a government task alone.

Beyond the mutilation of government structures, the peoples’ social capital were also violated and therefore need to be revitalized by the people, championed by the traditional and religious institutions, to promote community well being through the reinforcement of our cherished community values, beliefs and traditions.

What then will ‘Rebuild Imo’ project deliver to Ndi Imo; what promises are they holding Governor Ihedioha and his team accountable to; and how will mutual understanding be created between the people and the government?

A snippet of what a transformed Imo State should look like, based on the Governor’s four-year action plan include the introduction of due process, openness, transparency and accountability in the conduct of government business, as is already manifest in the actions of the government in suspending local government chairmen and councillors who emerged from a flawed election conducted by the former administration, and constituting an Interim Management Committee that is now independent, and thereby helping to deepen the government’s impact on the people living in rural communities; the consultative rapprochement being sought by the Ministry of Justice in resolving the over 150 garnishee orders against the state government amounting to over N32 billion of judgement debts as incurred by the past administration of Senator Rochas Okorocha; the various administrative and judicial committees set up by Governor Ihedioha to ascertain and advise on diverse issues as emergency setting up of new higher institutions in the twilight of the out-gone administration, the award of contracts, and acquisition and allocation of land; the state of Adapalm, rubber and cashew plantations; pensions scheme, amongst others.

Other actionable plans of the Rebuild Imo mantra include the planned establishment of Imo State Education Trust Fund to promote genuine, free and qualitative education; revitalize the health care system in the state, including the provision of free health care for pregnant women, children under five years and senior citizens; reform and increase investment in agriculture for sustainable wealth creation and food security; revamp tourism and entertainment as key contributors to the economy; guarantee the security of lives and properties of citizens and residents; review distortions in the Owerri master plan.

Other structural imperatives include to respect the autonomy of the local government system in the state; ensure strict observance of the principle of separation of powers as it affects the state house of assembly; respect the autonomy of the judiciary in order to promote the rule of law; and reinvigorate and reposition the state public service as a vehicle of service delivery to the people.

Visible actions are already being implemented by the government as evidenced by the Governor’s approval for the immediate reconstruction of over 100 primary and secondary schools with facilities such as toilets and water; the convening of a critical stakeholders’ summit on education to agree on a roadmap of action before schools resume on September 9; the launch of “Operation Iron Gate” by the Governor and donation of patrol vehicles to all the 27 local government areas of the state for joint patrol operations to effectively provide all-round security of lives and property across the state.

However, in the wake of the unsubstantiated, unwarranted and unguided vituperation of former Governor Okorocha last week, the government needs to quickly upscale the role of effective and comprehensive communication for increase in share of voice that supports the good governance that it is determined to entrench in Imo state. The cacophony that trailed Okorocha’s whimper actually played into the ex-governor’s plan – to cause distraction and create doubts in peoples’ minds.

There should be a planned and deliberate policy to use communication to drive the on-going reforms by influencing opinion, attitude, and behavior change among leaders and policy makers, public officers and civil servants, and the citizens

We all must know where we are coming from, to know how we got to this sorry pass; understand the level of rot; appreciate our roles in the Rebuild Imo project; and manage our expectations, which are expectedly, high

SOURCE: THIS DAY

Ohanaeze Preaches ‘Biafra Of The Mind’

BY NWAFOR

VANGUARD

Spokesman of Ohanaeze Ndigbo worldwide, Chuks Ibegbu, has called on the people of the South-East to embrace Biafra as a philosophy, which he called “Biafra of the mind,” rather than a physical/geographical space.

He also called on the South-East to put their acts together and not imperil the region politically.

Ibegbu urged IPOB and pro-Biafran groups to have a corridor of harmony with Igbo governors and Ohanaeze Ndigbo rather than its current posture, even as he called on political actors in Igboland to serve the people or quit the scene.

According to him, “I know some people use our nostalgia for Biafra to feather their nests and create disunity in Igboland, but what we need today is Biafra of the mind and not necessarily physical Biafra.”

Ibegbu noted that some commentaries and posturing in the South-West may give room for the South-East to be outsmarted in the next political dispensation.

 He insisted it was the turn of the South-East and Igbo to produce the next President of the country on the basis of equity, justice and fair play. 

He said: “Who said there is no morality in politics? I want to advise some extremely ambitious people, who want to torpedo justice and equity after the north at the presidency to desist from such in their own interest.”

 Ibegbu noted that Nigeria has to be restructured before the next political dispensation “or we continue to move in circles, even with an Igbo man as President,” calling for the implementation of some salient aspects of the 2014 confab report. 

In another development, the Coalition of Civil Society Organisations of Nigeria, COSCON, has asked Nigerians to insist on good governance from their political leaders and disgrace those that loot their commonwealth. 

Director of Programme of the group, Edomobi Promise, told Nigerians to “boo and pooh pooh” corrupt politicians rather than worshipping them and giving them titles, noting that “once this is done, they will stop their gra gra and looting.”

 While regretting the attack on Senator Ike Ekweremadu in Germany, Promise noted that the act will be a warning to Nigerian politicians that the game has changed and they must also change. 

He noted that the group would soon launch Operation Free Nigeria from Corruption and Operation Rescue Nigeria From Beastly Politicians and accused religious men and the elites of high level of unpatriotism, asking them to turn a new leaf in their own interest.

Anambra: PDP’s Position On Zoning And Other Matters

BY ACHILLEUS-CHUD UCHEGBU

ENUGU (DAILY SUN) -- Recently, the South East zone of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) met in Enugu in what might have been a routine conclave of party members and officials who were desirous of returning the party to its regional glory. One of the highlights, and indeed the most pronounced outcome of the meeting, was the decision of the party not to zone the 2021 governorship election in Anambra State to any particular zone.

Prior to the decision, the ruling party in the state, All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), had announced its decision to zone the office to Anambra South. The action, though not unexpected, has made a few politicians from the zone to also canvass that the PDP equally zone the ticket to Anambra South. Those behind this call had also gone ahead to recruit traditional rulers from the zone who also, recently, issued a statement calling on all political parties in the state to zone their governorship ticket to Anambra South.

Earlier, the South East zone of the PDP had, during a courtesy call on High Chief Obiora Okonkwo, a party chieftain from Anambra Central, at his home in Ogidi, last July, vowed to wrest power from APGA. Speaking on the occasion, South East zonal chairman of the party, Chief Austin Umahi, said that Government House, Awka, was PDP’s next target, having successfully won back Imo State. He said the target was to ensure that all five states of the region were controlled by the PDP. The outcome of the event may have sent cold shivers down the spine of APGA and its leadership, forcing it to re-emphasise its decision to zone the next governorship to Anambra South.

The call for the zoning of the next governorship to Anambra South is, at the moment, the dominant issue in Anambra politics, as stalwarts network for the next election. However, the voices of those who are opposed to zoning as a criterion of selecting leaders in Anambra State have been dominant over those who are in its favour. The majority of Anambra indigenes believe zoning has become anachronistic and as such ought not to come within focus as Anambra moves towards the next governorship election.

Those who argue against zoning insist that Anambra has grown past the idea. They insist that, since all politics is local, Anambra State is a single-tribe state and as such every part of the state is interconnected. For them, Anambra is homogenous and zoning would only seek to split the people along political lines, something that is anathema to the political evolution of the state as the leading light of the South East.

There is every reason to agree with those pushing against zoning. While the Igbo people, among them Anambra people, are pushing for the zone to produce a Nigerian President, it, however, does not logically follow that any part of Anambra State suffers the sort of political exclusion that the South East suffers as a region. Therefore, using the quest for zoning at the presidential level to make a case for same in Anambra suggests that Anambra South suffers political exclusion and marginalisation. But facts indicate that the zone has had a fair taste of the office of governor in Chinwoke Mbadinuju, Dame Virgy Etiaba and Andy Uba. In fact, every Anambra politician agrees that it was rather Anambra North that suffered such exclusion until Peter Obi and leaders of APGA, in their wisdom, worked the political pendulum to ensure a sense of equity was enjoyed by the zone through the incumbent.

Logically, the zoning issue in Anambra, though not known to have been agreed at any convention or meeting of all Anambra sons and daughters, has reached its climax. It can no longer yield to logic. Therefore, simple reason demands that the contest be made open to all who have the credibility, competence and capacity to aspire and seek the votes of Anambra people to lead. Nothing else would be more elevating of the eminent position of the state as leading light of the South East.

That is exactly what the PDP has done by throwing open the race and discountenancing zoning. By walking that road, PDP positions itself to win back Anambra. However, there are banana peels that the party must avoid. While zoning is not an issue with the PDP, imposition of candidate is. For the party to win back Anambra as easily as it plans, the first step must be to allow internal democracy to thrive. The delegates must be allowed to elect the candidate of their choice. Doing otherwise would return the party to its ignoble past and defer its hopes of returning to power in the state.

This position, as already expressed by many PDP faithful in Anambra State, is accentuated by the party’s performance at the 2019 presidential election. PDP had overwhelming support in Anambra State at the last election. Beyond Peter Obi, an erstwhile governor of the state, being the vice presidential candidate of the party, the conduct of the presidential primary election in Port Harcourt and the outcome did more to win back support for the party.

PDP came out of the Port Harcourt convention stronger and more united. All the presidential aspirants queued behind the winner, Atiku Abubakar. A repetition of the same feat in Anambra State would easily deliver Government House, Awka, to the party in 2021. And the signs are already there.

Anambra PDP had registered itself in the consciousness of Nigerians as the most acrimonious. However, it has, since the last governorship election in 2017, worked its way peacefully through all contending issues and coalesced under one umbrella. That umbrella, now being held by Chief Ndubisi Nwobu, is stronger, bigger and more purpose-driven. The unity, sense of purpose and internal democracy now driving Anambra PDP is a winning formula, which has given party members greater confidence that the next governorship election is fair game, one to be contested from a position of strength.

Blame Igbo Leaders, Not IPOB, For Economic Woes In Southeast - Ogah

Chinedu Ogah. Image: Orient Daily News

BY SUNDAY AGBO

ABAKALIKI (ORIENT DAILY NEWS) -- A chieftain of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Ebonyi state, Comrade Chinedu Ogah, yesterday, attributed the precarious economic situation in the southeast to the inability of leaders of the zone to come together to develop a feasible economic blueprint.

Ogah, who disclosed this in an interview with journalists in Abakaliki, challenged the southeast governors to develop the zone to a business hub in order to reduce the rate of crime and criminal activities in the zone.

According to him, the agitations by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) for creation of independent state of Biafra and the northerners were not in anyway the problem facing the zone, but their inability to harness the abundance natural resources endowment in the zone.

He argued that if the southeast governors could come together to harness the abundant natural resources of each state, it would boost entrepreneurship in the zone.

Ogah further maintained that ministerial positions for southeast are strategic, such that if the minister could come together, work as a team, it would benefit the zone.

He said, “Having Sharon Ikeazu as minister of state for environment will help to solve the ecological challenges facing southerners in the country”,he said.

“IPOB is not a problem; the problem with the southeast are Igbo leaders, who have refused to open up opportunities for younger people. The northerners and Fulanis are not the problem, but those at the helms of affairs”, he stated.

On the proposed renovation of Akanu Indian International Airport, he suggested that it should be a unity project among the southeast governors. He said it should be renovated by them after which they should reclaim their money from the federal government. He added that they should build a railway from Ebonyi, connecting all the five eastern states.

“If they can bring up a business plan develop, it from Agbor in Delta state down to Ogoja in Cross River, southeast will be a hub of business.

“It is not only federal government that can start up a project in the zone. We should come back and develop our zone; let the governors look at what each state is known for and harness them. Private entrepreneurs will come and develop it and such will reduce political thuggery, violence, and crime which are some major crises facing us as a people”, he stated.

The Igbo And Criminality At Home And Abroad

After reading what I am now writing, one will come to the conclusion that I am protecting criminals or even encouraging them or at least ignoring the Igbo contribution to criminal activities. Far be it from me.

I condemn criminal activity by any person and I ask anybody to search the internet or the police records in the town of Medfield where I have lived for almost 40 years. You will find nothing. I want to claim that I live by example.

Now to the point about the criminality of the Igbo.

Most people abroad are not criminals and studies by various immigrant organizations show that immigrants commit fewer crimes than natives.

The more a particular set of immigrants settle in particular parts of a country, their contributions both positive and criminal, to the places they settled increases.

A few examples will illustrate:

1. There are many Jews in New York and Chicago where loan sharking, financial frauds, and other negative society activities are reportedly committed by Jews. In reporting these negative actions the very important good done by the Jews are not as dominant as the crimes.

2. Another ethnic group in New York and Chicago is the Italian. One often hears of the Mafia purportedly an Italian Criminal Gang. Murders, thievery, and many anti-social pursuits are also reportedly carried out by Italians. Once more the good Italian contribution is published on page 20 of newspapers, not on the front pages.

3. In Saudi Arabia, many Nigerians are accused of crimes and the vast majority of these criminals are of Muslim faith and come from Western and Northern Nigeria.

4. In England where the Yoruba have lived for centuries and make up a higher percentage of Nigerians many of reported crimes carry Yoruba names.

5. In North America where the Igbo seem to be ubiquitous reported crimes by the Igbo is just as ubiquitous.

6. Enough

One thing these criminals: Jews, Italians, Igbo, Yoruba, etc. have in common is that the criminals are recent residents of their communities. Jewish criminal activities, Italian Mafia activities, seem to diminish with the passage of time as the criminals get absorbed into the society and their children find more respectable carriers.

So the hope is that Nigeria’s criminal activities will diminish with time.

Another thing that the immigrant criminals have in common is that they are usually those who feel persecuted in their home countries and left because of this persecution. They try desperately to find their footings in their new country. This might be one of the reasons for the Igbo criminality.

They feel they have been excluded from participating in the looting in their country so they go elsewhere to loot.

The above are excuses as the vast majority of immigrants are law abiding new citizens as I mentioned earlier.

Any solutions?

Yes. The law enforcement authorities should continue to infiltrate the gangs, arrest and prosecute the suspects and the courts will continue to lock them up to protect the society.

Compatriots need to send signals that get-rich-quick schemes invariably back fire. And look down on the perpetrators instead of looking up to them.

This example was set by the father of late Professor Sam Aluko who asked his son “how come you already have a car immediately after arriving home”. The father asked his son to be accountable. In this case the son bought the car from his car advance by the government. We all need to ask this kind of question.

That will be one of the solutions.

Benjamin Obiajulu Aduba
Boston, Massachusetts
August 26, 2019

Count Me Out Of N7.2bn Fraud Allegation – Orji Kalu

Orji Uzor Kalu

BY AKIN KUPONIYI

LAGOS, NIGERIA (PM NEWS) -- Former Governor of Abia State, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu, has denied allegations that he stole N7.2 billion while at the helm of affairs of the state between 1999 and 2007 as the state has no such funds then.

The former Governor made this known in the continuation of his testimony before a Federal High Court in Lagos, Southwest Nigeria to prove his innocence of the allegation of N7.2 billion level against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The former Governor, while responding to a question from his lawyer, Prof. Awa Kalu (SAN) over the allegation, disclosed that there was no way he could steal what was not in existence.

“Abia State doesn’t have such money; even the day I was leaving the office, the state borrowed money to pay salaries. Abia State doesn’t have even a billion naira in any account at the time I was governor”, he said.

To back up his denial of the allegations, the former governor, who is currently the Chief Whip of the Senate also spoke about the difficulties he encountered in running the State with allocations from Federal government.

“The monthly allocation of Abia State when I took over in June 1999 was N168 million. It was averaging between N168 million and N172 million monthly. The first month that I came in, there was even no money to buy diesel. I spent my own money to run the state for six months.

“In the year 2000, monthly allocation was between N170 million and N189 million. In 2001, it came to about N302 million to about N380 million. I can recollect in 2002, it was almost the same and in 2003 when the revenue allocation was changed, we were having about N400 million.

“The highest money I got as Governor came from 2004 when we have about N1 billion and from that time up till May 2007 before I left, what we had was N1.6 billion.

“Throughout my stay in office, I never owed workers and pensioners. When I took over as Governor and before I left, we moved it up to N500 million. It was from this that we were able to do a lot of things”.

Kalu had earlier in his evidence told the court that he had been a successful businessman before venturing into politics.

Speaking on his line of businesses before he began his political journey, he narrated: “I was running a group of companies under Slok Nigeria Ltd and I have a big furniture factory in Maiduguri. I was also trading in cows. The cows were coming from Chad to Umuahia. I also had a veritable oil factory in Aba supplying to people in Kano and Maiduguri.

“I was also into shipping activities with major oil companies. We also have a very big corn farm in the East and Bauchi.

“We were major shareholder before another shareholder bought off First Bank. In 1994, the then Hallmark Bank had a problem and I later bought majority stake in the bank. We also had major interests in Banks in DR Congo, Gambia, Sierra-Leone, Liberia and the then Sudan before crisis sets in.”

The former governor also disclosed that he dealt in buying and selling of property.

He further disclosed that he made all his statements to the EFCC under bad treatment from some police officers.

“When I learnt they were looking for me, I called Ibrahim Lamorde that I was in the United States and that I will show up upon my return to the country.

“However, when I returned to Nigeria, they were waiting for me at the airport and whisked me away to their office, after I was beating up thoroughly by police officers, I asked them what was my offence and they told me I have been insulting President Obasanjo. Mallam Nuhu Ribadu and Ibrahim Lamorde later came to apologize to me.”

The presiding Judge, Idris Mohammed has adjourned till tomorrow for continuation of hearing.

"I Don't Condone Evil," Iheadioha Speaks On Links To Suspected Fraudster Indicted By US

Chika Odionyenma (left), one of the suspects indicted for fraud by the U.S., was a member of the sub-committee on logistics for the inauguration of Emeka Ihedioha (right) as Imo State governor [Vanguard]

BY SAMSON TOEOMADE

OWERRI, IMO STATE (PULSE) --Imo State governor, Emeka Ihedioha, has distanced himself from Chika Augustine Odionyemma, one of almost 80 Nigerians recently indicted for massive fraud in the United States of America.

In a 252-count federal grand jury indictment unsealed on Thursday, August 22, 2019, the U.S. Department of Justice accused the defendants of participating in a massive conspiracy to steal millions of dollars through a variety of fraud schemes and launder the funds through a Los Angeles-based money laundering network ran by two Nigerians.

Odionyemma was one of the Nigerians whose names appeared in the document released to the public last week.

Many have pointed accusing fingers at Iheadioha since the list surfaced because he had appointed the accused as a member of his inauguration planning and handover committee ahead of his swearing in in May. There have also been reports that the accused financed the governor's campaign.

However, Iheadioha has said the indictment is personal to Odionyemma and shouldn't be linked to him or the Imo State government in any way.

In a statement signed by the governor's media aide, Izuchukwu Akwarandu, on Monday, August 26, 2019, he said he only associated with Odionyemma because he's an "Imo son".

He said the accused did not have any crimes hanging over his head when he was appointed by his administration and that he definitely did not finance his campaign.

He said, "It is important to note that, as of the time the governor appointed him into the inauguration committee, there was no fraud case hanging around his neck anywhere in the world.

"The time the governor attended the programmes he organised, there was no fraud case hanging around his neck anywhere in the world too.

"He is an Imo son and it was in that capacity that the governor attended his programmes. Nothing else.

"Those who say that he sponsored the governor's election are just being mischievous.

"Governorship election is a big project. It is not something you say somebody sponsored. Nobody sponsored the governor's election.

"The fraud case is personal. It has nothing to do with the governor. The governor is a man of integrity who does not condone evil.

"Those who are linking the governor to the fraud case because he attended some of the programmes Odionyemma organised or he appointed him into the inauguration committee are just being mischievous and playing petty politics."

The U.S. government has 17 suspects in custody and is on the trail of 57 other suspects spread across nine countries.

"We believe this is one of the largest cases of its kind in US history," United States Attorney for the Central District of California, Nick Hanna, said during a press conference on Thursday.
Criminal ring stole millions of dollars



The Assistant Director in Charge of the Los Angeles Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Paul Delacourt, said last week that the case involves 32 confirmed victims located in the U.S., Japan, the United Kingdom, Lebanon, Ukraine, China, Mexico, Germany, Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates, and Trinidad and Tobago with an approximated loss of $10 million.

Investigation into the criminal ring began in 2016 with a single bank account used to receive funds stolen from a compromised business email.

"The case then evolved into a complex, sophisticated, extensive conspiracy involving various types of cyberfraud through business emails compromise, traditional romance schemes, and the laundering of the proceeds of those frauds," Delacourt said.

31-year-old Valentine Iro and 38-year-old Chukwudi Christogunus Igbokwe, both Nigerians, were used by the network for bank and money-service accounts that could receive funds fraudulently obtained from victims.

Iro and Igbokwe allegedly collected bank accounts, fielded requests for bank account information, provided that information to co-conspirators around the world, and laundered the money obtained from victims.

They did this in exchange for a cut of the money stolen from victims of the various fraud schemes.

The suspects are on the hook for conspiracy to engage in money laundering; conspiracy to commit wire fraud, mail fraud, and bank fraud; wire and bank fraud; and money laundering.

Other charges include engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity; operating an unlicensed money transmitting business; destruction of property to prevent seizure; false statements; aggravated identity theft; aiding and abetting; and criminal forfeiture.

"If convicted," Hanna said, "all of the defendants face potential decades in federal prison."

ECHOES OF 1966: Some Igbos are lying over Awolowo’s civil war role – Adebanjo

SUNDAY VANGUARD INTERVIEW

Ayo Adebanjo image via Vanguard

BY DAPO AKINREFON

CHIEF Ayo Adebanjo is a staunch Awoist, loyal to the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo. In this interview, Adebanjo narrates the origin of the crisis in the Western Region, the rift between Awolowo and the late Samuel Ladoke Akintola and how Awolowo prevailed on former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon (ret.), to fight civil war. Excerpts:
You were among those tried alongside the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, for treasonable felony in 1963...
I did not face trial but I was one of the accused persons. I was one of those who escaped to Ghana and not available for trial until they (Awolowo and others) were convicted; but we were on the list, I, Enahoro and Ikokwu. It was after that they (military) got Enahoro in London to be tried but Kwame Nkrumah (then Ghanaian President) gave us asylum until after the (Ghana) coup when Lieutenant General Joseph Arthur Ankrah sent us back to Nigeria and Aguiyi Ironsi sent us to Kaduna prison. We were in Kaduna prison when the second coup took place.

But did Awolowo receive any preferential treatment while in prison? 

He (Awolowo) was in prison in Calabar. 

Why I asked that question is because one of the surviving nationalists, Mabazuluike Amaechi, alleged in a recent interview that then Eastern Government under Michael Okpara took care of Awolowo in prison.

 (Cuts in) That is true.

 He also said that Okpara paid Awolowo’s wife salaries.

 I don’t know about that. I know he (Awolowo) was given fair treatment there. I know that. You said he was paid salaries? 

Amaechi said Awolowo’s wife was paid salaries. 

I don’t know. I can’t vouch for that. We were in Ghana and we didn’t’ know about that. All I know is that he was given fair treatment while in prison. It was from that prison that Gowon, when he became Head of State after the July 29, 1966 coup, released him. 

For the sake of the present generations who have no sense of history, what was it that led to you, Awolowo and others being implicated in that saga? 

It was a betrayal by Ladoke Akintola who alleged that some of us, who were dynamic in the party (Action Group) and had a relationship with Nkrumah who had a dynamic political party in Ghana, were planning to topple Balewa government. Before then, Chief Awolowo had sent some of us down there, especially some of us who were organizing secretaries, to go and study the tactics of the Convention Peoples Party.

 In Ghana? 

Yes in Ghana, which was a force at that time; it was that one that brought crisis between Awolowo and Akintola. It was the crisis that Akintola used to malign Awolowo. Not only that, when you talk about the NIPC then, it was said that you can never catch the Action Group because we had money. We established a straight trade company. We got loan from the marketing board. 

From which company? 

Western Nigerian Marketing Board and this was done on commercial basis. If that loan from the Marketing Board was six percent interest, Awolowo would say they should give us at 12 percent (Action Group) because he did not want grumblings from outside. It was on that commercial basis that Akintola said that Awolowo took the marketing board money. Awolowo never believed in collecting contracts from anyone. The Action Group sourced money through that business which it got from one of the top leaders of AG, Shonibare. Shonibare took a loan from Barclays Bank to establish Shonibare Estate and he was making money. Having discovered that, Awolowo called Shonibare to know how he was able to do it and that he should do it for the party so that the party won’t rely on anybody. So, instead of going to Barclays Bank, we got our loan from our own marketing board and paid interest. 

That is what caused the quarrel in Western Region before the crisis.

 It is like anybody going to the bank, get a loan and, because there is a crisis, you now went to the bank and said ‘don’t give anybody any loan again’. It was a purely financial system. That was what led to Coker Enquiry. 

Was that what led to you, Awolowo and others being implicated? 

No, Coker Enquiry was a development of the crisis in the Western Region where they wanted to cripple the activities of Action Group. But the question of treasonable felony was through the misinformation of Akintola that we wanted to topple the Balewa government because the secretaries of the Action Group went to Ghana to learn the tactics of the Convention Peoples Party. 

1954 conference 

The unfortunate thing in the country is that when Awolowo, Enahoro and politicians of the First Republic were fighting on principle, we are presently using a unitary power under a federal system. We had already established federalism before independence but it was as a result of the agreement at the 1954 constitutional conference, which stemmed from the crisis in the Federal House after Enahoro’s motion. They summoned all the leaders at that time and they agreed on the 1954 Constitution whereby they made the Constitution of each region separate from the federal Constitution. It was under that Constitution that you had premiership being established. Before then, you had the McPherson Constitution that came into effect in 1952. So, when the crisis came, McPherson said ministers of the cabinet, who were normally chosen from each region that had the majority, will not take part in the self-government motion. McPherson also threatened to sack anyone who participated in it. The ministers of the Western Region said that was why they were elected by the people. We told him that we were ready to go but then-Ooni of Ife, Oba Adesoji Aderemi, told McPherson than rather than sack a Knight of the British Empire (KBE), he (Aderemi) would resign. So, the whole team from the Western Region resigned from the cabinet and that was the beginning of the crisis because there was no representation from the Western Region. 

It was there that then-Colonial Secretary, Santos, sent for the leaders of the various parties-Azikiwe, Sardauna, Awolowo and others. That was the origin of the Constitutional Conference. It was at that conference that things were broken down, and then they all agreed on those terms which created premiership and autonomy. The autonomy was such that the Western Region established a foreign office in London and Chief E.M.R. Okorodudu from Warri was the first Secretary-General.

 It was in that embassy, 15A Kessington Palace Garden in London, that I got married in 1960. When Awolowo exercised that pride, other regions were ridiculing him. Then they followed suit, the Eastern Region created its embassy. We were completely autonomous, it was that system we had until the military came in 1966 and gave us this rotten Constitution that is confusing. 

The question of derivation was settled, we (West) had more money through cocoa, the North had the groundnut pyramid and the East had palm oil. It was on the return of that conference that Zik said at the airport that federalism was imperative but before he left for the conference, he was unitarist. 

Many believed that you people were just victims of brinkmanship of that time. Did Papa Awolowo forgive those behind that incident before he passed on in 1987? 

He did. When Yakubu Gowon came into power, Chief Awolowo made a tour. Gowon wanted to tell the country that the whole country was united, so he told Chief Awolowo to tour the country for peace to show that there was no crisis in the country again.

 So, Chief Awolowo had to tour across country for peace, declaring that peace had returned and, after that, Gowon wanted us to tour the world to show that the whole country was okay. So, our passports that were seized, government gave them back to us and had to include us in the delegation of the opposition then to show that the country was united. 

There is this impression that Chief Awolowo was used by the military government during the civil war to conquer the Igbo. How true is this?

 No. Some Igbo spread that falsehood. 

What led to it? 

Before Ojukwu declared the war, Awolowo offered to go and speak to him. Gowon, who is alive, did not want to go to war. That was the time Chief Awolowo made the statement that if by an act of commission or omission, the East was allowed to secede, the West will go. That is what led Awolowo to prevail on Ojukwu not to secede but that they should fight for federalism. It was the insistence of Chief Awolowo to keep the Eastern Region in the federation that made Gowon fight the war because Gowon was not prepared to allow the East to go. That is what made Chief Awolowo to participate in the war. Remember that Chief Awolowo was Minister of Finance and all the allocations and allowances meant for the Eastern Region, Chief Awolowo kept them during the war and handed over to them after the war. He made Ikokwu the Minister of Economic Planning for the East after we were released from prison and he handed over all the money for the development of the East. It is on record. 

That is why some westerners said we should not do anything with the East because they are not reliable. The Igbo have not been fair to us at all. For instance, when Chief Awolowo met Ojukwu, he (Ojukwu) agreed that they were not going to wage a war. He (Awolowo) convinced him (Ojukwu) to go back to the round table and resolve the question of federalism. But no sooner than he (Ojukwu) returned to the East than he (Ojuwu) reneged on the agreement. So, the statement Awolowo made to compel Gowon to fight the war to retain Ojukwu was misconstrued by Easterners. And after the war, they retrieved the interview Awolowo had with Ojukwu because, when Awolowo came back from his visit to Ojukwu at his own risk, some detractors, including northerners, told Gowon that Awolowo had gone to make a pact with Ojukwu but Gowon did not believe them. But when the war was won and they played the tape (Gowon is still alive), they saw the discussions Chief Awolowo had there with Ojukwu. Unfortunately, there had been some misconceptions around this. The West has always played the role that the country should be united. That is why we (West) are insisting on restructuring, we don’t want the country to break. The current Constitution was indeed made without our consent but we have since realized that there are value and advantage in being a big country but on the terms that everybody will agree to live together, and not on the terms that a section will dominate the other. That is why I asked: what is the problem of Buhari in restructuring? Let us go back to where we were at independence.

 I often make a statement which he (Buhari) has not refuted yet that: Can Buhari claim to be northerner than the Sarduana (Sir Ahmadu Bello, first republic premier of Northern Region)? That is the Constitution that Sarduana, Azikiwe and Awolowo agreed to; let us go back to it. Should that be a problem if he (Buhari) has no hidden agenda? Which is what he (Buhari) is doing now; and I have been saying it that he (Buhari) will not restructure because once he restructures, the question of Islamisation will not be possible, the question of domination will not be possible, the question of excluding the East will not be possible because all these things are settled. 

What you call resource control now is what Awolowo fought for under derivation. Even after the discovery of oil in 1957, oil was still distributed based on derivation. 

Buhari’s refusal to restructure 

It is this Constitution that is causing conflict, we need to go back to federalism so that all areas will be sorted. The refusal of Buhari, in particular, to go back to federalism and restructure the country is evident in the fact that he has a hidden agenda. I have challenged him that if he does not have, let him restructure.

 So, it is left to him. My view is that all those calling for peace, including Abdulsalami Abubakar, are all living in denial. Everybody knows what is to be done to get peace, they are only afraid to do it. Restructure the country and see what will happen.

 How true is it that the coup plotters of January 15, 1966 executed the Prime Minister to release Awolowo from prison and hand over power to him?

 I was not among the coup plotters; we only saw the result of the coup. All we know is that some people were killed and at the time they were executing the coup, we were all in prison. We were in Ghana; Awolowo was in Calabar prison, so how can we be part of the coup. It is so illogical, it is cheap blackmail. 

Do you support the agitation by some people that power should shift to the South-West in 2023? 

You see, that is part of the deceit of some people in this country. Whoever is saying it is deceiving himself and the people. How do you want to keep the country and say a section of the country should not be President? The West has done, the South has done, the North has done several times, then you want it to go back to the West again, and you want the country to be together, and you don’t want IPOB to talk, why are we deceiving ourselves? There is no honesty in it; there is no principle in it. Anybody who is saying power should come back to the South-West (2023) is an enemy of Nigeria’s unity. If we are sincere about keeping the country together under a federal system, it is illegal and immoral for that Constitution to exclude an important unit of the federation. It is not a question of whether you like it or not. 

I will add that those who are saying power should come to the West are just deceiving themselves. The North does not want to give up power; they just want to push that to the South so that we can be quarrelling over it. The North is deceiving the South-West. 

When Chief Awolowo was alive, he became a rallying point for all Yoruba, but presently, there seems to be a division among the Yoruba… 

(Cuts in):

There is no division, there are only rebels. All those who are not in Afenifere today broke away from Afenifere; they were Afenifere before but are no longer there because of selfish interests. We know them. Who is opposing Afenifere? Is Chief Fasanmi not there? These are people who used Afenifere to make a name and I often repeat that, for Fasanmi, I won’t comment, I will only say the two of us will soon see Awolowo and face Awolowo. By the time Fasanmi and I see Awolowo, I don’t know whether he (Fasanmi) will be able to face Awolowo and say he continued the fight the way Awolowo left it. I won’t say more, he knows it. All others are products of Awolowo who are bashing Awolowo, I want them to challenge me.

Fulani Herdsmen Carrying Out Jihad Against Igbo, Gowon Created Our Problem – Evang Ugochukwu-Uko

Image: Daily Post

BY SEUN OPEJOBI

Evang Elliot Ugochukwu-Uko, the founder of Igbo Youth Movement, IYM, on Friday alleged that Fulani herdsmen are implementing a carefully “choreographed Jihad of intimidation and conquest” in the South East.

Ugochukwu-Uko made the allegation while warning that the South East has been pushed to the wall through the alleged killings in the region by Fulani herdsmen.

In a statement, he personally signed and forwarded to DAILY POST, the Secretary-General of the Eastern Consultative Assembly, ECA, wondered if there was a deliberate ploy to weaken the South East region.

According to Ugochukwu-Uko: “Every once in a while, the devil seems to take total control of events in a kingdom. The result usually is avoidable bloodshed, bedlam, mayhem and utter destruction which takes decades to rebuild. We are sadly, inexorably heading towards that path, the government is either overwhelmed or complicit. The horrific brigandage of the Fulani herdsmen has gotten way beyond what is condonable and tolerable.

“The brazen rape and murder of 67-year-old, Mrs Pat Ugwu in her farm at nchatancha Nike, Enugu state two days ago, is simply put, unpardonable and unacceptable.

“Traditional rulers, priests, and community leaders seem to preferred targets of choice, these expansionist demons of death are schooled by their sponsors and masters to hunt.

“It has finally become clear that these Fulani warriors and their protectors are simply implementing a carefully choreographed jihad of intimidation and conquest. General Danjuma screamed they are being protected by the military and security forces, the killing of policemen by soldiers in Taraba confirm soldiers could be compromised, confessions of arrested culprits that helicopters drop guns and ammunition for them, in the forest, simply completes the horror script. We have been under siege for 4 years now.

“The hapless communities now have no other choice than to defend themselves or perish. The days of endless endurance and era of trusting the security agencies to protect our people are over. The Fulani herdsmen brought war to our land as part of a larger agenda of vanquish and DOMINATE. The ferocious incursion into our farmlands and homestead with rape, beheadings, amputations, and general terror is the age-old well-known trademark of these expansionist warriors for centuries. Our people are clearly in trouble.

“The obvious inability or deliberate lack of interest or both, by the government of the day, to rein in these vermin has already resulted to lack of trust between our leaders and the masses who are incensed that politicians are not doing enough to protect them, as seen in the Nuremberg, Germany incident. No Fulani herdsmen have been arrested, prosecuted and punished for the orgy of bloodletting they have visited on the land within the past 4 years.

“Is there a deliberate ploy to weaken our region by cleverly turning the masses upon our political leaders? Our governors are glibly titled “chief security officer “whilst the entire security apparatchik is consciously placed under the stranglehold and control of a particular region and section of the country. The conspiracy theory that a scheme to weaken our region by turning the masses against politicians from our zone by deliberately castrating them through centralizing the entire security architecture under northern Muslims, while naming them Chief security officers, just to cast them as weaklings and traitors against the interests of their people,is fast gaining ground.
The cloud is gathering, the rain may fall any day now. Those whose worldview is all about conquering and dominating others are about to set West Africa ablaze once more. We know the world is watching.”

Ugochukwu-Uko also lambasted former Military Head of State, Yakubu Gowon, accusing him of living a fake life.

He accused Gowon of creating the “calamity eating up the country today.”

“This brings us to the quite annoying fake life of an 80 something-year-old past head of state who prefers to go about praying for peace, as he steadfastly refuses to lobby other leaders to embrace restructuring of Nigeria, the only true route to reinventing and saving the country.

“This same man brought upon this country the calamity eating up the country today, when he created 12 states in May 1967, and unified the revenue collection and distribution, thereby effectively burying the 1963 constitution. His prayers remain meaningless as long as he refuses to be truthful.

“Meanwhile, we congratulate the indefatigable Prof.Banji Akintoye on his election as the leader of the great Yoruba nation. A very knowledgeable leader of men. We have no doubt that he will move both Nigeria and Yoruba nation forward,” he added.

Imo Summit Resolves To Defend Igbo Cause

BY CHARLES OGUGBUAJA

OWERRI THE GUARDIAN) -- Prominent Igbo sons and daughters rose from the 2019 Igbo National Security Summit in Owerri, Imo State, yesterday and resolved to unite and defend Igbo cause.

They demanded anti-open grazing law in all the five South East states, to avoid conflicts between farmers and herders, and vehemently opposed the Rural Grazing Area (RUGA) initiative proposed by the Federal Government.

‘Peace, Security and Development of Alaigbo and her Neighbours’ was the theme of the summit, which was attended by the chairman, Enugu State Council of Traditional Rulers, Amb. Lawrence Agubuzor; entertainment impresario, Charles Oputa (Charly Boy); former Vice Chancellor, Imo State University (IMSU), Prof. Ukachukwu Awuzie; National President, Association of South East Town Unions (ASETU), Chief Emeka Diwe; as well as representatives of former Niger Delta agitator, Mujahid Dokubo-Asari; Movement for the Actualisation of Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), the academia, business community and women groups among others.

Agubuzor regretted the level of insecurity in the various parts of Igboland.He appealed to the various groups in the region to desist from disparaging one another.

“We should work in the interest of Ndigbo and respect the authority and governors. House divided against itself cannot stand. If there is anytime Ndigbo need peace, it is now. Ndigbo should work and respect one another; do anything agreed to be done.

“Everybody should go to his governor and say, ‘give us anti-open grazing bill’. It is a must. Every community can defend itself. Please, our security is in our own hands.”

Oputa, who came as the president of Association of Frustrated Persons of Nigeria (AFPN), castigated the political leadership of the country.

He promised to “donate” himself to pursue and protest what he called injustice meted to Igbo people, opining that the game change should take place to bring about socio-political and economic equation in the land.

“Why do people run to other places. We should stop that and defend ourselves. Is that an impossible task? I am back. I am ready to donate myself. If we decide that Igboland is going to be good, we are going to be proud of ourselves,” he said.

An analyst at the event, Emeka Umeagbalasi, regretted that from records and statistics, between August 2015 and September 2017, 480 Igbo were killed in different parts of the country, disclosing that 95 per cent of the federal security agencies in the South East were manned by Northerners, noting that only four commissioners of police were of Igbo extraction.Dokubo-Asari urged the Igbo to unite and fight their cause.

Really, Igbo Have A crime Culture Problem That Needs Fixing

BY FREDRICK NWABUFO

In the heat of the lynching of Igbo citizens in Asia in 2013 over alleged criminality, I wrote an essay entitled, ‘The Igbo fallacy’. In it, I appealed to the Igbo to de-emphasise the culture of profligacy, decadent opulence and vanity which fuels the pursuit of crime by their own. I also suggested the need for value re-orientation – a task that must be actuated by all groups – the age grades, unions and traditional institutions.

Really, it is enervating for me that my kinsmen are taking the inglorious front row in ‘’money crimes’’ – drug peddling and internet fraud – abroad.

In August 2016, an Igbo drug dealer was guillotined in Indonesia. But his funeral in Anambra was a rambunctious shin-dig. He was even described as a “hero” by his people.

I have skimmed through the list of alleged online fraudsters indicted by the FBI, in what is regarded as the biggest scam bust in history, and I could see familiar names. It is heartbreaking for me. The refrain that criticising your own people for shortcomings is an act of sanctimony is obtuse. Crime has no ethnic face, but does that imply condoning or rationalising a persistent ill?

I have said it before, we have a problem. The Igbo have a problem. Out of the 21 Nigerians on death-row for drug peddling in Indonesia, 20 are Igbo – from my state – Anambra. Personally, I feel violated by this.

A few months ago, some armed robbers of Igbo origin launched an attack on a bureau de change in Dubai, but they were arrested. It is painful, instead of exporting the durable products of Aba, we are exporting crime and violence. That Nigerians are a pariah in South Africa is partly due to the activities of some Igbo drug cartel.

But what happens when these drug gangs return to the south-east? A bazaar of bloodshed. A few years ago, there was a massacre at a church in Ozubulu, Anambra. The killings were linked to a drug war between rival gangs in South Africa. The gangs took their battle out of the turf to native soil. Really, we are baiting the hurricane.

And now, out of the 77 names listed for online fraud in the US, 74 are Igbo. We have a problem. We cannot solve this problem by living in denial.

I agree, there are millions of us doing great things in our fields, but we must condemn the activities of these criminals among us. They do not represent us, but their actions are capable of making an execrable impression of all us.


The argument that the Igbo are marginalised and that they are deprived because of the civil war, so very few among them are forced into crime is puerile. This is a terrible way to rationalise a problem that dents the entire group. There is no excuse for crime.

One drop of dirt is enough to make a basin of water impure. We must have serious conversations on this atypical criminality.

The argument that the Igbo are marginalised and that they are deprived because of the civil war, so very few among them are forced into crime is puerile. This is a terrible way to rationalise a problem that dents the entire group. There is no excuse for crime.

We have a culture that glorifies ‘’money’’ crime – ‘’ego mbute’’ – the culture of money grubbing and worship, as the-be-all and end-all of everything. It is a pervasive culture, not limited to the Igbo though.

We need value re-orientation, and this should be actuated by all groups – age grades and traditional institutions. We must stop celebrating people of unknown fortune. We must name and shame those with illicit wealth in our communities. We should upbraid them instead of giving them chieftaincy titles and front-row seats in church.

What exactly do we discuss at annual August meetings and town-union meetings? Enough should be enough. We cannot keep ignoring this filth.

We have a problem. A crime culture.

SOURCE: PM NEWS

Just In: Ohanaeze President Denies Receiving N6.2b For Ruga From Buhari

BY CHRIS OJI

ENUGU (THE NATION) -- Ohanaeze Ndigbo has denied the allegations making rounds in the social media that its president general, Chief Nnia Nwodo alongside former Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu received N6.2billion from President Buhari for the establishment of RUGA in the Southeast.

In a statement issued on Friday, the apex Igbo sociocultural organization said neither Nwodo nor Ekweremadu have authority over lands in the Enugu or anywhere in the Southeast.

In a statement by the group, it says:

“Our attention has been drawn to an insidious social media story making the rounds that the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Chief John Nnia Nwodo, and a Distinguished Senator and former Deputy Senate President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Professor Ike Ekweremadu, collected a whopping N6.2 billion from President Buhari out of N22.2 billion budgeted to plant RUGA in the country. The story which was purported to have emanated from a faceless traditional ruler from Umuchigbo Abakpa in Enugu State sounded preposterous and deserves to be consigned to the dust bin where it rightly belongs knowing that the purveyors of the story may have underestimated the intelligence of some audience of the social media but who certainly may not be as gullible as they think and will do with some clarifications. Why did the writer not mention the name of the traditional ruler and whether he was there when money exchanged hands? One would have expected their detractors to have established the veracity of their claim by giving an insight into how the money exchanged hands or through which bank accounts they were remitted to Chief Nwodo and Senator Ekweremadu. It will also would have been good if the accusers had clarified if Chief Nwodo and Senator Ekweremadu collected the money as individuals or on behalf of Ohanaeze Ndigbo. For the sake of clarity, Ohanaeze Ndigbo has no control over land in Enugu State or in the South East neither does Chief Nwodo and Senator Ekweremadu. Again, Chief Nwodo and Senator Ekweremadu are not traditional rulers and therefore don’t have custody over land in the South East. They should also have authenticated their allegation by stating where the said RUGA settlements are in Enugu State or in the South East. It is sad that upon all Ohanaeze Ndigbo has been doing to improve the image of Ndigbo in the comity of Nigerian Nations and efforts to restore Ndigbo to their rightful place in the country, either some Igbo sons and daughters still allow themselves to be used to deride their own or some external forces are determined to undermine the unity of Ndigbo, afraid of what strength Ndigbo can derive from such unity. It is pertinent to put the public on notice that more of these senseless, vitriolic and demented attacks are expected to come from the stable of these traducers. It is also worthy of note that many Igbo organizations abound which are out to enrich their pockets and have opened bank accounts where they deceive Ndigbo to pay money into, money that is usually unaccounted for. These organizations only lay claim to their existence by attacking Ohanaeze Ndigbo and its leadership. The consolation is that social media users are knowledgeable and discerning to disregard such mercenary organizations.”

Reasons Igbo Should Produce Next President –Ogbonna

Solomon Ogbonna, President, Oganaeze Nd'Igbo, Lagos. Image via Sun News

BY GILBERT EZE

Chief Solomon Ogbonna, President, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Lagos, has adduced reasons the Igbo nation should produce the next president in 2023. Aguene who is also chairman, Board of Trustees (BoT), Agauene Art Foundation, in this interview spoke on this and other national issues.
What are the unique selling points of Igbo aspirants for presidency?

It is perhaps only in Igbo land that you see people live above tribalism, ethnic sentiments and nepotism. That is the reason you see Ndigbo all over Nigeria and they develop their host communities to the highest level. Ndigbo talk and even celebrate the good deeds of their enemies and ultra-competitors. Ndigbo protect their dignity, pride and great values, and therefore like fulfilling their promises because they do not want embarrassment.

Ndigbo offer assistance to people of other tribes more than their own people. They try to let other tribes know that they are not only friendly but, kind and generous. They see others as brothers and sisters in progress. This is the reason for the statement that “Igbo is the only tribe that wants more for Nigeria.” This is one of the reasons Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe, the Owelle of Onitsha, was said to have pursued a Nigeria that will transcend tribal affiliations. This explains why Ndigbo in their itinerant characteristics mix up easily and fully in any place they go. This is one secret Ndigbo have been using to succeed in several other lands where they travel to and where others find it difficult even to survive. The Igbo are people whose words are their bonds.

Are you advising Nigerians to give Igbo chance for the presidency?

It is not an advice, but information based on my observations. In this millennium, serious people know that the flow of vital information is the palm oil with which development is achieved and eaten and can come from anybody. In the Western world, everybody is a security operative when viewed from information gathering and reporting to the appropriate authority. And people in those places accept information, no matter the source, provided it is in the interest of the nation. But in Nigeria, some people value information when it comes from the privileged sources like an oil magnate, high profile government officials, or wealthy people. We deny ourselves very important information by this selective idea of information acquisition and we have been paying dearly for it, as far as the world is concerned.

Do you think the Yoruba will support Igbo for Presidency?

Why not! Yoruba are no enemies of Igbo, and will support every good course of Ndigbo including the Presidency of Nigeria. They are not our enemies, but our ultra-competitors.

The competition between the two great tribes is equally highlighted in the lives and vocations of their prominent personalities in the likes of Chief Obafemi Awolowo vs Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe (political leaders), Art Legend Ben Enweonwu vs Theatre Icon Hubert Ogunde, Literary giants Prof. Wole Soyinka (Nobel laureate) vs Chinua Achebe (Prof. Emeritus), music icons Chief Osita Osadebe vs irreplaceable Ebenezer Obey.

You can see, it is not enmity, but who could outwit the other— and many other examples. In no distance time, the Almighty God will liberate the two tribes from the divide and rule tactics of those who want to exploit our differences for their selfish interests. One important area that Ndigbo is not competing strongly with the Yoruba is media and we are paying dearly for it.

We will come together as good friends as we used to be from time immemorial. For example, we have not forgotten the killing of Adekunle Fajuyi with Aguiyi Ironsi in 1966 before the civil war, which explains the adage that says “A good friend is better than a bad brother.” Today, the increase in marriage between the two tribes has been significantly more than any other tribe in Nigeria.

Don’t you think the infighting among Ndigbo will deepen if given the opportunity to produce the next president?
Are the Igbo not managing their families, businesses even with foreigners, and many other great achievements? We are talking of infighting at Ohanaeze, not Ndigbo in general. Let Igbo produce the President and I assure Nigerians will be happier for it.

What distinguishes Ndigbo from other tribes in Nigeria?

The Igbo is a national citizen. She has no boundaries and her ubiquitous attitude and her latitude are the stock in trade of ‘her’ being like the mother of Nigeria — ‘breast-feeding’ the entire nation of development. You can see the nourishment of that breast-feeding in the level of development after the magic wands of Ndigbo have touched their host communities. They develop bushes, forests and even clear grasslands of other people wherever they go and foster the development of such a place without minding whether it is their own place or not. They turn swamps into shopping malls. They erect mansions in the thick impregnable forests.

Just 40 years after the civil war, Ndigbo whose houses and properties were seized in some parts of Nigeria, and left with nothing, individually and collectively, have rebuilt Igbo land to be more developed than some of the places where their properties were seized. It is only in Igbo land that we give our houses to visitors to take care of, completely and totally free of charge. We mean, without asking for a farthing or a cent or a kobo.

We heard the division in your branch because of the endorsement of Sanwo-Olu; what is the situation now?.
Some members of my executive are angry that I endorsed Sanwo-Olu for governorship, so they are bent on thwarting and derailing even the most laudable of my programmes and projects. These people allege that I the secretary and treasurer of Ohanaeze, collected hundreds of millions of naira for endorsing Sanwo-Olu, and vow to destroy the structures of Ohanaeze, so that my administration will not achieve our set goals.

As the President of Ohanaeze Ndigbo and leader of all Igbo in Lagos, I use this opportunity to appeal to Lagos state administration not to deny Ndigbo their share of dividends of democracy, because of the activities of these few individuals. We all know that wherever there are twelve, there is always a Judas.

SOURCE: DAILY SUN