Eminent Igbo sons and daughters will gather today in Enugu under the auspices of Ime-Obi Ohanaeze (highest decision making organ) in what has been described as a last minute effort to save the soul of apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo.

The meeting is being convened, following the controversy that has arisen over the January 11, 2021 national elections of the association among others.

The last time the meeting of Ime-Obi was held was during the build up to the 2019 Presidential election. Ime-Obi had been convened to adopt Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as consensus candidates of Ndigbo in the exercise.

Today’s Imeobi-Ohanaeze meeting, which will be chaired by the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Nnia Nwodo is expected to adopt modalities for the national election, approve the electoral committee members and ratify the time table for the exercise.

This will be followed by the swearing-in of electoral committee members who shall screen aspirants for the various positions and conduct the elections.

Not less than three candidates shall be cleared to vie for offices of the association’s President and Secretary Generals from the states where the offices are zoned.

Those expected at the meeting are present and past governors from Igboland; past senate presidents, past Speakers and Deputy Speakers of House of Representatives from Igboland; not less than two representatives from current National Assembly from Igboland; Speakers of the state Houses of Assembly; Past President-Generals, Secretary Generals, Deputy Secretary generals of Ohanaeze Ndigbo; members of the Council of Elders Committee, Representatives of traditional rulers, religious leaders and other organisations registered with Ohanaeze Ndigbo.

Ohanaeze Ndigbo recently returned to the path of perfidy after some self-acclaimed stakeholders from Imo State, led by Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, endorsed one of the presidential aspirants, Prof George Obiozo, as their consensus candidate for the office. They had gone ahead and presented him to Governor Hope Uzodinma for approval.

Ndigbo had risen against the development as not only unconstitutional, but also an alleged ploy to dwarf their voice and cede control of the group to the governors of the zone. They insisted that Ohanaeze President General must emerge from an election keenly contested in line with the Constitution, accusing initiators of the move as attempting to create disunity in Igboland.

Following the gale of disaffection created by the move, Ohanaeze leaders had called today’s meeting with the hope that it would proffer solutions to the quagmire. (The Guardian)

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