By NICHOLAS OBISIKE

Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State, on Friday, received a Haitian delegation who traced their origin back to the state.

The 10-man Haitian delegation, led by Sen. Moise Jean-Charles, were on a home-coming mission to the state, the historic capital of Igboland, to perform conventional Igbo rituals.

The rituals include traditional naming and name adoption, after they traced their roots to Igboland.

Addressing the delegation, the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Prof. Simon Ortuanya, commended the delegates for their bold step.

Ortuantya, who received the delegates on behalf of Gov. Ugwuanyi at the government house, appreciated them for keeping a date with history, and for following their hearts and roots and tracing it.

He said the significance of the Haitians visit, marks a new beginning for all.

He added: “We open our doors to you and we are ready as we have demonstrated. We want you to know that changing your names is in agreement with the Igbo tradition that you have a new name for a new born.

“Today, you are born new in Enugu State and in the land of your fathers, Congratulations.”

In his address, leader of the delegation, Sen. Jean-Charles, described their visit to Enugu State as home-coming, rooting back to their origin in Igboland.

He thanked Gov. Ugwuanyi for the hospitality accorded to them in the state and recounted the affinity of the people and culture of Enugu State and Haiti.

Jean-Charles revealed that Enugu State has five letters as Haiti and that Enugu and Haiti mean cities on top of a hill.

“I have visited many countries, many places around the world but this is the first time I have visited a country that everybody looks like me”.

“We have not come here as foreign persons. We have come back home and on behalf of all Haitians, all the blocks in Haiti, thank you for receiving us after 218 years.

“We have decided that people in the whole continent of Africa and all of us who are there in Haiti is a wind following the bird from the African continent.

“It has brought to bear in America which means all of us are one”.

The climaxes of the event were the traditional naming and name adoption by the Haitian delegation which was performed by Igwe Lawrence Agubuzu. (NAN)

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