Ohanaeze still in tatters

Ambassador Ralph Uwechie, the new president-general of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, is currently operating without a secretary-general. Why? You may ask. This is simply because the people of Enugu state are shamelessly fighting over the position.Ohanaeze’s positions are rotatory, that is, all its positions are rotated among its member states of Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, Imo and Anioma in Delta state.

Enugu state had the opportunity of producing the pioneer president-general in the person of Eze Ozobu, a retired Chief Judge, in 2001. Other senatorial zones of the state, especially, Nsukka, had equally indicated interest in the position, but a consensus, brokered by Chief C.C Onoh, former governor of old Anambra state, pacifed the people of Nsukka. KlinReports was informed that that an agreement was reached to the effect that another key position, zoned to the state by Ohanaeze, would be left for Nsukka people to fill.

This time around, Ohanaeze zoned the scribe post to Enugu. Chief Nduka Eya, commissioner for education in the old Anambra state, was readily tipped for the post by his Nsukka kinsmen. It is the belief of the people that the gentlemanly agreement of 2001 still stands.

But they were dead wrong! For Chief Richard Ozobu, an Engineer and, incidentally, younger brother to pioneer President Ozobu, threw his hat inside the ring to wrestle the position from the septuagenarian Eya. The Ozobus are from Udi (Enugu West senatorial zone).

But a twist crept into the story, with the alleged involvement of Enugu state governor, Barrister Sullivan Chime, in the Ohanaeze secretary-general imbroglio.

Chime is accused of being behind Ozobu’s emergence even when it seems the opinion of a larger section of Ohanaeze that Eya is more qualified to hold the position.

KlinReports was told that Chime’s camp reasoned that Ohanaeze secretary is such a crucial position that any governor it is zoned to his state should be interested in. it is crystal clear that Chime does not hold Eya in confidence, as he (Eya) testified against him before the appeal court sitting in Enugu in the case involving the state’s governorship election of 2007. Eya, one time Resident Electoral Commissioner in Ekiti state, testified in favor of the Labor Party against Chime. Although Chime eventually emerged victorious in the case, politics being what it is, his supporters seem not to have forgiven Eya for his infamous testimony. Perhaps, this Ohanaeze secretary combat has afforded the opportunity of taking their pound of flesh on Eya.

Chime has severally denied instigating Ozobu to struggle for the secretary slot against Eya of the Nsukka bloc. Specifically, Chime, following pleas for intervention by the top hierarchy of the body, convened a peace meeting on January 20. In the meeting, the governor reportedly denied having a preferred candidate, adding that she would embrace any candidate that would emerge.

But some people think he is being economical with the truth. This is simply because if Chime does not want the present ugly scenario playing out in his state to continue, he can put a stop to it. Or does Chime not know that, for now, his state holds Ohanaeze, nay, Ndigbo to ransom. Everyone knows that no organization functions properly, or functions at all, without a secretary. So, as long Enugu people continue to bicker over this position, Ohanaeze virtually stands still.

Although Ohanaeze top command seems to have a soft spot for Eya, the organization flung away two opposing lists of candidates for the seat on the occasion of the January inauguration of Uwechie executive, and directed the chapter to go home and harmonize the conflicting lists.

To ensure harmony, Ohanaeze delegated the outgoing president, Dr. Dozie Ikedife, to convene an Ime Obi (inner caucus meeting), with a view to coming out with a consensus secretary candidate for Enugu people. This January 16 meeting got disrupted by a mob allegedly hired by Ozobu. Not only that Ikedife was thoroughly harassed, subjected to insults, he was lucky to have escaped unhurt as the mob literally chased him out of the meeting venue. The irate group felt Ikedife had come with the mission of foisting the candidature of Eya on them.

It is unfortunate that Ohanaeze Ndigbo has, right from inception after the Nigeria civil war of 1967-70, remained crisis-ridden. Although the organization had always made pretensions to being apolitical, its leadership has often been caught up in the murky waters of Nigerian politics.

Incidentally, similar misunderstanding trailed the election of Justice Ozobu from his Enugu kinsmen in 2001 before it was resolved. The tenure of Professor Joe Irukwu, Ozobu’s successor was equally dogged by crisis, as it was marred by internal rivalries amongst key actors of Ohanaeze.
Ohanaeze, under Irukwu, remained split following leadership succession tussle which threatened its existence. At a point, two factions, one led by Irukwu, and the other by Rear Admiral Ndubisi Kanu (retired), and later, Ikedife emerged. Irukwu was accused of trying to elongate his stay in office (through a constitutional amendment) in order to assist former President Olusegun Obasanjo to realize his third term ambition, using the body’s platform.

Shamefully, this crisis, at a point, became a subject of litigation, with Ikedife camp asking an Enugu High Court to order Enechukwu and his members to vacate the organization’s Enugu headquarters for them. In the suit, numbered E/153/07, and taken out by Onoh, Nnaemeka Akonobi, a retired colonel, and Ben Obumselu, a professor, acting for themselves and on behalf of Ohanaeze, urged the court to, particularly, restrain Enechukwu and Achuzia from parading themselves as secretary-general and acting president-general respectively. The plaintiffs, also, urged the court to declare that, under the 2003 constitution of Ohanaeze, the president-general and the secretary-general shall hold office for a single term of two years. They, also, wanted the court to declare that the term of office of Irukwu and Achizia expired on January 30, 2006.

And the rancor continued till the recent election of Uwechie leadership, yet much more trouble currently looms.

KlinReports thinks Governor Chime, as chief security officer of Enugu state, has the solution to this problem, unless he (Chime) is not sincere with his denial. It is incontestable that Governor Chime is competent to resolve this feud by asking either Ozobu or Eya to step down for the other. We advise Chime to ask the two warring zones (Nsukka and Enugu West) to honor the earlier gentlemanly agreement that Nsukka should be given the chance to produce a candidate this time around. At least, Onoh testifies to this agreement.

Governor Chime should ignore sycophants and instigators (the greatest enemies of any government) and effectively resolve this controversy. And, now is the time!