It was apparent that key stakeholders of Ohanaeze Ndigbo were in attendance. The body comprised a wide range of traditional rulers from all parts of Igboland led by local governments’ chairmen of and states’ council of Ndi-eze, Eze Ndigbo from parts of Nigeria outside Igboland, key stakeholders of many associations in affiliation with Ohanaeze from most parts of Igboland and from Diaspora, Political leaders from Abuja and other parts of Nigeria represented by Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu and former governor Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, Women leaders from the South-East led by President of Women’s Wing of Ohanaeze, notables in industry, commerce and media. It was not clear at the beginning of the meeting what was on the agenda. The attendance at the meeting established that what was on the cards was pan-Igbo in quality.
The dispute by a dissident group, who had posited that term of incumbency had been shortened to two years, engaged active minds. But it turned out that it did not form any significant part of the agenda. I had suggested that the suspension of bickering on financial improprieties of the incumbent should take the back-burner until we sorted Ndigbo position with the Nigerian project in view of impending elections. I had attended a meeting of the dissident group led by Mbazulike Amaechi and robustly offered the view and received an applause.
It turned out that some members of the group, who had ordered an enquiry, had been invited to a meeting convoked by Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State for purpose of selling Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to Ndigbo, excluding some whom they thought were either ambivalent or unenthusiastic with their distractive mission. Opening remarks from President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Gary Igariwey, perfunctorily dealt with the dissidence, with a promise that they were ready to take on the dissidents when they make any move.
The reason for the mega concourse was to receive acclamation to results of consultations that had been widely conducted on whom to support for presidency in Nigeria. Igariwey was forthcoming with the fact that it was Igbo national consensus that Dr. Goodluck Jonathan was to be voted in for a second term. Tremendous applause followed the endorsement of Jonathan when the question was put to the assembly whether there was support for Jonathan’s candidacy as had been established.
Former Governor of Anambra State, Chukwuemeka Ezeife, spent time explaining the dangers ahead of Nigeria if people with unclear agenda got the reins of power. There was abundant evidence that slavery was an option for Ndigbo if we were to enthrone jihadists in Nigeria leadership, especially as there have been threats in the recent past. Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu spoke with glee and gratitude to Ohanaeze for finding for his party and looked forward to better yields from the party in the years ahead, if Ndigbo supported the party’s candidate. Former Governor of Ebonyi State, Sam Egwu, was happy with the event as it would checkmate sinister motives of an opposing party to relegate Ndigbo.
No mention was, however, made of the importance of ensuring that fruits of last year’s national conference would best be grounded by the initiator of the conference and lead our country to desired confederation where zones and states would be free to develop at their own pace, without inhibitions put in their way by revanchist forces that have since the middle ages concentrated on spread of Islam.
We already had enough of degradation from the hurt of quota that laid waste public resources on account of poor husbandry borne of absence of technocrats in key areas of power and infrastructure management. People who had little national interest manned critical resource centres into wasteful consumption, lack of maintenance, paucity of social responsibility and lack of vision for majority.
Ndigbo had once again spoken. It is now apposite for the message to penetrate every nook and cranny of Nigeria and the Diaspora where Ndigbo have since chosen to make their abode despite unending strife on account of Boko Haram threats, to take back the message from the Oracle of Ndigbo at 7, Rangers Avenue, Enugu, to all their Igbo nationals. The Oracle was recently bombed by unidentified miscreants with minimum damage, perhaps to stultify the General Assembly Meeting. Ohanaeze executive had to lay out a huge canopy in the extensive grounds of the Oracle for the meeting which turned out a success. Success was occasionally impaired by poor public address equipment that had been brought into use without assuring its efficiency.
The event is likely to show the strength of Ndigbo in Nigeria which a string of events could be read to have been underestimated. It has become necessary to state that Ndigbo with over 45 million people could determine the swing of leadership contests in Nigeria into the far future, were they to come together and cast their lots for the same candidate.
The minorities who are (I aver with responsibility) real owners of Nigeria should have the exclusive preserve of national leadership. Most majority tribes are conquerors of indigenous minorities who have so far dominated them through Nigeria’s history. It is my view that after Jonathan, the Middle Belt should take an opportunity to serve at apex leadership. After that, it should be the minorities of the North who have suffered from spread of Islam for so long. That should be the recipe for national stability. Ndigbo should concentrate on putting people in power in this sequence and provide industrial, technical and commercial inputs to the making of a new Nigeria that should have more zonal freedoms to resources in their territories than are allowed at the moment by a lopsided constitution worsened by population indices that are warped in favour of the North.
Ezeife summarised our mission at the Oracle appropriately: “Our resolution was reached for our own protection in the future. I endorse that completely.” Ndigbo should endorse it wholly. All ethnic minorities too should endorse it.