Ohabeze Ndigbo Peace Moves Crumbles

The fragile peace in the umbrella union of
all Igbo cultural organisations, the Ohanaeze
Ndigbo, following the reconciliation brokered
between the two factions of the association
by Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State,
has collapsed.
Some stakeholders in Ohanaeze, who made
this known, accused the National Chairman
of Ohanaeze, Chief Gary Enwo Igaiwey, of
frustrating efforts to
ensure unity in the
association and asked the governors of
South-East states to appoint members that
would support the Chief Ralph Obioha- led
Ohanaeze Caretaker Committee to resolve
the raging dispute.
In a statement by members of Ohanaeze,
including Senator Offia Nwali, Chief Ralph
Obioha, Chief Kate Onwe, Chief Oyibo
Chukwu, Chief Ralph Okafor and Chief Leon
Mezue, they said that “the Igariwey group
had consistently, in various fora convened
for the purpose, obstructed and impeded the
work of the 17- member constitution review/
electoral committee established and headed
by Chief Ralph Obioha to review and
harmonise Ohanaeze Ndigbo constitution, by
insisting on no-go areas which included
issue of tenure of office of executive
committees and the mandate to the
committee to conduct elections into the
Ohanaeze executive committees.”
The statement went on: “At the meeting of
the Ohanaeze Caretaker Committee, held on
Friday, May 6, 2016 at Enugu, this body of
eminent Igbo leaders considered the peace
efforts to resolve the intractable leadership
problems in Ohanaeze, engendered by the
tenure extension imbroglio and the question
of leadership succession within Ohanaeze
Ndigbo, and the way forward; the meeting
also ex-rayed the negotiated settlement
reached by the Ohanaeze Caretaker
Committee, led by Chief Ralph Obioha, and
the Ohanaeze group, led by Chief Gary Enwo
Igariwey, by the initiative of His Excellency,
Owelle Rochas Okorocha, governor of Imo
State…
“The meeting thereafter resolved as follows:
That the lgariwey group should, in the
interest of genuine peace in Ohanaeze and
Igbo strategic and main stream interests,
return to all the agreed terms of the peace
settlement and commit itself to their full
implementations.
“The governors of the South-East should, as
a matter of urgency, contribute their own
members to the constitution review/
electoral committee which is under the
headship of Chief Ralph Obioha and
inaugurate it to discharge its mandate.
“The meeting finally urges a principled
implementation of all the terms of the
peace agreement.
“That in view of the urgent necessity and
compelling need for Chief Ralph Obioha, the
leader of the Ohanaeze Caretaker
Committee to travel overseas, the meeting
appointed Senator (Dr) Offia Nwali to act in
his stead and deputize for him pending his
return to the country.”