[size=16pt]‘Ndigbo Will Not Support The North in 2011’[/size]

Saturday, 13 November 2010 00:00 BY SAMSON EZEA


HIS Royal Highness, Eze Ozobu, a retired Chief Judge, is the first President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo. He speaks to some journalists on the recent endorsement of President Goodluck Jonathan by Ohanaeze, the reactions that are trailing and other sundry issues ahead of next year election. SAMSON EZEA was there and reports.
Former President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Dr. Dozie Ikedife has faulted the method in which the tenure of the incumbent executive of Ohanaeze under the leadership of Ambassador Raph Uwechue was extended to four years, what is your reaction to this?
I am yet to read him on that issue, but he has no reason to back up his argument at all. He should give a reason for saying that amending Ohanaeze constitution can’t be with the Imeobi.
He argued that a constitutional review committee should have been set up to that effect, instead of the Imeobi proposing?
The Imeobi did not decide on the amendment of the constitution, it only made a suggestion that there should be elongation, that two years is not enough for any executive to do any meaningful thing for our people. That was what Imeobi suggested that there should be a review of Article 29 of the Ohanaeze constitution which deals on amendment of the constitution.
As a matter of fact, the constitution in Article 29 provided conditions under which the amendment could be done.
Article 29 of the Ohanaeze Constitution states; “(i) The General Assembly may, subject to the provisions of this article, amend any of the provisions of this constitution. (ii) Any member of Ohanaeze may propose an amendment to Imeobi. (iii) The proposed amendment, if adopted by Imeobi shall thereafter be tabled by the Secretary-General before the General Assembly and shall become effective and operative if it passed by not less than two-thirds majority of the total membership of the General Assembly.”
So, if this is in the constitution, there is no argument against the amendment that has been done. I don’t see any offence, may be Ikedife does not have a grasp of what Article 29 of the constitution states. So the amendment that has been done is in other and constitutional. Now, on the issue of tenure extension, I was the first person to come up with the idea that the executive of Ohanaeze should be four years instead of two. I raised the issue and It was agreed that we look into the tenure of executive of the organization, and I set up a constitution review committee which had Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu as the chairman. Again, Imeobi then, did and agreed that they were going to change it, because it was a matter of agreement and since there was none, it could go that way. We decided at Imeobi that we should change two years to four years. When the matter came up at the General Assembly, it was carried and I was asked to set up a committee, and that was how I set up the Iwuanyanwu committee.
When Ikedife came on board, he saw what I did and said it was right, so for you to tell me that he is oppose to what has been done now is what I can’t understand. Ikedife also agreed that two years was not enough. There was nothing wrong done by the current President-General of Ohanaeze.
We thanked Uwechue for his courage to ensure that Ohanaeze executive tenure is elongated. There is one thing that goes for Uwechue, and that is the fact that he consults. He never said he was going to do it alone, but that he will bring it to Imeobi, and if the Imeobi agrees to the four years, the matter will be taken to the General Assembly for ratification. Indeed, the Imeobi approved it, and the General Assembly ratified it, and that is what Article 29 of the Ohanaeze constitution provides.
During your tenure, you set up a committee to review and amend the constitution from two to four years, Ikedife also did the same. Are you not bothered that Uwechue did not follow the same route in ensuring the amendment?   
It was not necessary to do because the Imeobi, a body that is capable of deciding on the matter were present and agreed to it, I mean, that is even better than setting up a committee. It means that the people accepted to four years at Imeobi and the General Assembly also ratified it and that is what the constitution said.
Are you now saying that the amendment stands?
Absolutely the amendment on the tenure of Ohanaeze from two to four years stands, and it is binding and nobody can change it because the people at General Assembly have ratified and accepted the elongation and that is what the constitution said.
Now Uwechue’s executive who had been there for two years, will not continue for another two years, completing the four years term that is operational in Ohanaeze. When the tenure of the current executive led by Uwechue ends in 2012, the executive that will take over will be there for four years before handing over to another executive.
The reason we support this move is to give enough time for any Ohanaeze executive to achieve something for our people. Like I said, two years was not enough, and now it is four years, which is better. As a matter of fact, the reason for the two years was to allow the office of the President-General go round the states that made up Ohanaeze. Some people then felt that if the tenure had been four years from inception, that it would have been long before the office moves to another state.
Considering the way Ohanaeze is presently structured, do you think is capable of doing the job of a socio-cultural and political organization that can struggle for the interest of Ndigbo?
Yes I think so. The current President-General is not the type that believes he alone can do it, he takes time to consult the necessary people that should be consulted before a crucial decision about Ndigbo is taken.
For example, before the decision to support President Goodluck Jonathan was taken, Uwechue made wide consultation to everybody that should be consulted on the matter, and he kept telling me that this is the direction the people are going and he could have come out after consulting with the people, and said something different from what the people want.
What is your take on the position of some Igbo politicians who are aligning with the North to continue in 2011 and support Ndigbo to produce President in 2015?
These our brothers called me, I will not give out their names and said that they have signed an agreement with the Northerners. On the phone, I asked them, did the Northerners come to you, requesting you to help them present a candidate for the office of the President. They said No. And I asked them again, how could they go there? If the North needed us, they should come to us. I warned them reminding them that they don’t have the authority of Ndigbo to do what they did. I told them, if the Northerners have respect for us, they should come to us. I told them that if they do it, I would call a meeting of Ndigbo and declare that they are not our people. That was what I told them on the phone. They said they were coming to see me and I told them don’t come to see me. I told them that if the Northerners are asking them to help them put up a candidate for that office, we will ask many questions. The North has ruled this country for so many years, what did Ndigbo as a people have to show for that? What is the presence of federal government in Igboland as it is in the North?       
I have run Ohanaeze at a time the Northern governors agreed with me that we meet once every year. Nineteen of them then agreed that an Igbo man must be President of this country. I don’t trust them and I have reasons not to trust them. They promised Alex Ekwueme that he was going to be President of this country, when the time came for them to fulfill that, Ekwueme was pushed out and they brought in Shehu Shagari. They did it second time with the Late M.K.O Abiola. In politics, the Northerners are like mechanics, they will break your car, put it up for you to manage after a while you will be forced to return to them to fix the car again. I told our Abuja people not to bother going to the North because they have failed to keep promises they made in the past and you can continue meeting with them.General Ibrahim Babangida sent some people to meet me. I told them that we would not try the North again. Two weeks later, Atiku Abubakar came here himself and talked to me about how we can help them, I told him that I don’t know how we can help them. I told him that I cannot guarantee our help. I gave him a proverb of the Igbo that a neighbour is better than a brother in the farm (agbata obi ka nwa nne di n’ugbo)
After that our brother in Abuja came and said that after the war Igbo property in the Port Harcourt and Bayelsa were declared abandoned properties. And I asked them would you compare the declaration of Igbo properties as abandoned properties with pogrom? They said No. And I said, if you are alive, you can get your property back from the man who is illegally occupying it, but if you are killed you can’t do it.  Reports about the killing of Igbos by the North has it that about 2 million Igbo people were killed by the North.
I asked them, you talk about people taking our properties, was Jonathan an adult during the war? Was his father one of those who took our properties? If we come together as one, we can negotiate for properties now, but we can never negotiate the killing of our people. Some of these people were not there when our people were killed in the North. I was a Minister then, we go to receive bodies of massacred Igbos in the North at the airport and railway station. These Northerners were so heartless and wicked that after killing a pregnant woman, they will use their knife open her belly, remove the baby there and killed the baby too. After doing all these, they will send the corpses of the Igbos they killed back to us in Igboland for burial. And some of the people who ordered this pogrom are still alive today, coming to us to help them become president now. Have we ourselves been President like them? Don’t we want to be President? One thing the North has always done is when an issue comes up among the Igbos, the North will sponsor one of us who will come to create trouble here. Why must we allow ourselves to be used against our own interest by those who hate us?
[b]When Jonathan was picked as running mate of the Late Musa Yar’Adua, he wrote a letter to Ndigbo. The title of that letter is; “Let us build a new era of partnership”. In that letter, Jonathan made good promises to Ndigbo, he didn’t even know whether PDP was going to win the presidential election, let alone him becoming President of Nigeria because as at the time he wrote the letter, he was still governor of Bayelsa. In that letter, he said to the Igbos, I will read it to you. “Upon my selection as a presidential running mate, I have thought deeply and consulted widely on the concerns Ndigbo have regarding the position of south-easterners in the Federation of Nigeria, your security from targeted attacks, state of federal infrastructure in south-east, positions in key federal institutions, extra issues in consultation with some of you and in the best traditions of inclusiveness and good governance.
“I am from the South-south region of Nigeria and I know that relationship between those of us who were in the former Eastern region needs to be strengthened if we are going to achieve our utmost in Nigeria. It is my desire to find a collaborative way to bring the best in Igboland into productive harmony with the best in the Niger Delta for greater interest and benefit of both regions.[/b]

This was what Jonathan told the Igbos in 2007, when he was only a presidential running mate, he does not know that he would end up as president. Jonathan as at 2007 when he was just a presidential running mate to Yar’Adua, did not feel pleased about the plight of Ndigbo in Nigeria, and he promised to fight. That fact that Jonathan put his desire to fight Igbo course is enough to earn him the support of Ndigbo. He was bold and courageous enough to say he will ensure that Ndigbo get their right place in Nigeria. That alone was capable of making the North hate and probably worked against him, but Jonathan was not bothered.

Apart from the fact that Jonathan is from one of the marginalized regions of Nigeria, how can any right-thinking person jettison someone who came himself and with a promise of what he will do for you, to someone who does not have respect for you, and also could not see any reason to come to you for help, instead you run to him and come here to tell Ndigbo that you have signed an agreement?
After reading Jonathan’s letter to Ndigbo, every righting Igboman would be forced to support Jonathan. He is one of us and we will support him.





What do you think will be the major challenge of the Ndigbo supporting Jonathan?                   
When I was the President-General of Ohanaeze, the late Christian Chukwuma Onoh was alive then, he (Onoh) called an ambassador, a white man who lives here in Enugu, the man came with his wife, I was there and the man said to me, I understand you are the President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, I said yes, he then now said to me, you are not going to achieve anything. I asked why? He said you have no instrument of sanction in Ohanaeze. He said to me, I will conclude my address with the battle song of the Herero; “Listen when the song of the frog resounds from the marshes. Listen to what they have to say, it is good to come together. It is good to reach agreement. It is good to make the voices of many the single voice of all.” That was what he said to me.
How do you think the sanction can be done on anybody person or group you think is working against the interest of Ndigbo?
The traditional rulers of the South-east can say we don’t want them to parade themselves as our representatives on any issue in Nigeria for a period that the Ezes can decide. Once such a decision is taken, the traditional rulers of the communities where they come from will be asked not to have anything to do with them. We can sanction them.
Is there any plan to do that?
But they are so few, very minute. They don’t present any threat to Ndigbo. And we have decided not to lose sleep about them. Whenever they return to the senses, I know they will join the entire Igbos.  They are confused now, some of the people they are banking on among them are already returning home and we have cautioned and accepted them. I don’t know what any Northerner will give to them that will make them go in such a ridiculous way. The North has never given us anything. Even the states that were created in Igboland were done grudgingly. Enugu State was cancelled four times; it was in the fifth time it was created. Looking at the local government here and what it is like in the North, and they use the council area to share the oil money from the South-south and South-east, yet they will never see or wish anything good for the Igbos.
They are so heartless that even the minority tribes among them are being treated like us and somebody is saying that we should allow them.

I have a gate man from Adamawa State; he name is John Joseph, he is very brilliant. The day he told me what they are going through in the hands of these their leaders who have been in government for decades, I felt for him, and imagine what some others are going through. This boy is very brilliant that I have to give him scholarship. He is in school now here in Enugu. The day Atiku came here to ask me to support the North, I call Joseph to come and meet his man. Atiku before asked him if I gave him scholarship and he said yes, and Atiku said he heard so much about Ozobu.
When Atiku left, Joseph told me that what we the Igbos do for our children that they don’t do it for them in the North. Joseph told me that they had wanted to come very close to the Igbos, but they are afraid if they will be accepted. He told me that he is from the community with Atiku.
So, when Simon Okeke and his cohorts in Abuja are talking about supporting the North, we just laughed at them because they don’t know the people they are dealing with. Okeke can’t speak for Ndigbo he knows. What has he done in Anambra State to earn him the position of deciding for Ndigbo where to go and what to do?
How many are they to decide for Ndigbo? They were boasting of Ekwueme, who is Ekwueme? He never brought anything good to us here when he was Vice President of the country. But he has now come back to join us here. He is now with us.
Apart from Ekwueme, who else from their group has joined?     
I have not taken time to note that. But they don’t mean anything to us, as I said before; their number is too small, nowhere to come with the generality of the Igbos. If Ekwueme can abandon them, it means that are nobody.


http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=29004:why-ndigbo-wtill-no-support-the-north-in-2011&catid=73:policy-a-politics&Itemid=607

For those my Igbo brothers who are still debating themselves about supporting Jonathan, please take the time to read this whole interview and advise your thoughts accordingly.
This is the GIST of it:

[b]When Jonathan was picked as running mate of the Late Musa Yar’Adua, he wrote a letter to Ndigbo. The title of that letter is; “Let us build a new era of partnership”. In that letter, Jonathan made good promises to Ndigbo, he didn’t even know whether PDP was going to win the presidential election, let alone him becoming President of Nigeria because as at the time he wrote the letter, he was still governor of Bayelsa. In that letter, he said to the Igbos, I will read it to you. “Upon my selection as a presidential running mate, I have thought deeply and consulted widely on the concerns Ndigbo have regarding the position of south-easterners in the Federation of Nigeria, your security from targeted attacks, state of federal infrastructure in south-east, positions in key federal institutions, extra issues in consultation with some of you and in the best traditions of inclusiveness and good governance.
“I am from the South-south region of Nigeria and I know that relationship between those of us who were in the former Eastern region needs to be strengthened if we are going to achieve our utmost in Nigeria. It is my desire to find a collaborative way to bring the best in Igboland into productive harmony with the best in the Niger Delta for greater interest and benefit of both regions.[/b]

Even if Jonathan never wrote any letter, I think it is still better for Ndigbo to rally behind him, I have never trusted the Northerners especially IBB. It is better to have him there than any Northerner, but he(Jonathan) has to know that come 2015 an Igbo president MUST emerge. Too bad there is no provision for Nigerians in diaspora to vote in 2011.

I am truly shocked (positively) that Jonathan was already thinking about today 3 years ago!

Jonathan is not getting enough credit at all. He may actually be an "Obama" character after all!

I would trust him and his honest intentions than any other candidate in this race.  

Good article. Both regions need to cooperate, I will always pursue that agenda, because our political goals are identical, just as our deprivation is identical.
I will not stop at both regions cooperating though, they also need to reach out to the Middle Belt, SW and core North. Naturally, we are closer to the Middle Belt and SW than we are to the core North and that worldview should dictate our politics. We can interface with the core North through the Middle Belt.

I was never too sure about him before because I didnt know if he had any plans for Ndigbo, I think I have debated severally with "Beaf" about Jonathan's candidacy, but today the man has my full support. He has similar characteristics with Obama.

Onlytruth:

I am truly shocked (positively) that Jonathan was already thinking about today 3 years ago!

Jonathan is not getting enough credit at all. He may actually be an "Obama" character after all!

I would trust him and his honest intentions than any other candidate in this race.  

Jonathan is an introvert, thats why the average Nigerian see's him as weak etc. But he is a very sharp individual who has always outmaneuvered his opponents. Never underestimate a quiet man.

Onlytruth:

[size=16pt]‘Ndigbo Will Not Support The North in 2011’[/size]

[b]When Jonathan was picked as running mate of the Late Musa Yar’Adua, he wrote a letter to Ndigbo. The title of that letter is; “Let us build a new era of partnership”. In that letter, Jonathan made good promises to Ndigbo, he didn’t even know whether PDP was going to win the presidential election, let alone him becoming President of Nigeria because as at the time he wrote the letter, he was still governor of Bayelsa. In that letter, he said to the Igbos, I will read it to you. “Upon my selection as a presidential running mate, I have thought deeply and consulted widely on the concerns Ndigbo have regarding the position of south-easterners in the Federation of Nigeria, your security from targeted attacks, state of federal infrastructure in south-east, positions in key federal institutions, extra issues in consultation with some of you and in the best traditions of inclusiveness and good governance.
“I am from the South-south region of Nigeria and I know that relationship between those of us who were in the former Eastern region needs to be strengthened if we are going to achieve our utmost in Nigeria. It is my desire to find a collaborative way to bring the best in Igboland into productive harmony with the best in the Niger Delta for greater interest and benefit of both regions.[/b]

This was what Jonathan told the Igbos in 2007, when he was only a presidential running mate, he does not know that he would end up as president. Jonathan as at 2007 when he was just a presidential running mate to Yar’Adua, did not feel pleased about the plight of Ndigbo in Nigeria, and he promised to fight.

Very good news. I have always said that Igbos would always feel safer with somebody with a name like GEJ, than IBB or Atiku.
Also, it's very heart warming to know his view about Nigeria and of eastern Nigerian in particular.

WHY MUST IGBO BE PRESIDENT 2015 OR 2019

I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHY

pls do not tell me it is because there has never been an igbo president because that is just selfish

alj harem:

WHY MUST IGBO BE PRESIDENT 2015 OR 2019

I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHY

pls do not tell me it is because there has never been an igbo president because that is just selfish

Small boy there is no talk about igbo being president right now so go and do ur salah.

I AM HAPPY FOR NDIGBO. but my people, lets not portray him as a regional leader (southern). instead,let portray him as a national leader. GOODLUCK TO THE NEW BOND!

chyz:

Small boy there is no talk about igbo being president right now so go and do your salah.

I was also wondering where that came from?

jason12345:

I AM HAPPY FOR NDIGBO. but my people, lets not portray him as a regional leader (southern). instead,let portray him as a national leader. GOODLUCK TO THE NEW BOND!

gbam

if he is portrayed as a national leader, there would be no need for igbo,hausa or yorubas zoning 2015 we will only vote for a crediable candidate

High_Chief:

Even if Jonathan never wrote any letter, I think it is still better for Ndigbo to rally behind him, I have never trusted the Northerners especially IBB. It is better to have him there than any Northerner, but he(Jonathan) has to know that come 2015 an Igbo president MUST emerge. Too bad there is no provision for Nigerians in diaspora to vote in 2011.

that is where it came from

alj harem:

that is where it came from

My friend move over

I actually think he is a NATIONAL leader. He understands Nigeria and her problems.

chyz:

Small boy there is no talk about igbo being president right now so go and do your salah.

stop calling me small boy, do u want to make me angry this MORNING

High_Chief:

My friend move over

u dey craze

who is ur friend

Onlytruth:

I actually think he is a NATIONAL leader. He understands Nigeria and her problems.

yes. but thats how we southerners see him. what about the northerners? would they feel secluded after this new bond? those are the question we should be asking. but all in all, i am happy for you guys.

by the way, he needs to win some northern states before he can be president.

jason12345:

yes. but thats how we southerners see him. what about the northerners? would they feel secluded after this new bond? those are the question we should be asking. but all in all, i am happy for you guys.

by the way, he needs to win some northern states before he can be president.

Some of his strongest supporters are in the north.

Onlytruth:

Some of his strongest supporters are in the north.

then goodluck to jonathan! . what is the west position

jason12345:

yes. but thats how we southerners see him. what about the northerners? would they feel secluded after this new bond? those are the question we should be asking. but all in all, i am happy for you guys.

by the way, he needs to win some northern states before he can be president.

They can form their own bond, indeed all MiddleBelt PDP chieftains have pledged support, same goes for some core Northern states like Sokoto and Katsina. Creating consensus and being diplomatic does not mean GEJ should roll over for any fckers though; naturally there are the Ciroma's left who should be shown the possibility of the four walls of a jailhouse and if they persist, that threat should be made real.

jason12345:

then goodluck to jonathan! . what is the west position

A picture is worth a thousand words.

I will forever kick against all these Ohaneze,Afenifere and other ethno-cultural groups involving themselves in politics and more so claiming to represent the view of an entire ethnic group.That is quite laughable and disgusting as well.Even the move by Southeast governors to unanimously adopt GEJ is also not commendable.In democracy,each individual has a choice and since all individuals defer,so will our votes and political philosophy differ.To all these so-called groups,any incumbent is God sent just because he has power of incumbency and ability to share the cake.Let everyone vote wisely for a man who will take the bull by the horn or we may end up wasting another 4years.

Onlytruth:

I am truly shocked (positively) that Jonathan was already thinking about today 3 years ago!

Jonathan is not getting enough credit at all. He may actually be an "Obama" character after all!

I would trust him and his honest intentions than any other candidate in this race.  

U double talking piece of shiyyt! U want me to take u to ur previous posts when u were against a Jonathan Presidency, and u supported Ojukwu's backing of the evil Gen.IBB?!

Now Jonathan seems to be on his way to a resounding victory, and in typical Ibo treacherous fashion, u want to now just on his bandwagon. Nigga hop off the bus, gently, or Ima kick u off of it violently! Go back to supporting IBB, u piece of shiyyt!

bk.babe97y:

U double talking piece of shiyyt! U want me to take u to your previous posts when u were against a Jonathan Presidency, and u supported Ojukwu's backing of the evil Gen.IBB?!

Now Jonathan seems to be on his way to a resounding victory, and in typical Ibo treacherous fashion, u want to now just on his bandwagon. Nigga hop off the bus, gently, or Ima kick u off of it violently! Go back to supporting IBB, u piece of shiyyt!

That is another point you made there.It is always good to wait till the time of election before taking your final decision.If you observe my posts,I am yet to stick with any candidate.I remain a critic of all the candidates until I am convinced on their ability to change Nigeria.I have issues with adopting of any candidate and will never support that.

I'm laughing at Abagworo's lame attempt to please morons on this site just to appear cosmopolitan.

Suddenly Abagworo is supporting bk.babe97y's sick insults! 

Whoever takes nairaland polls seriously needs to recheck their convictions.

There is really only one sociopath tribalist on nairaland - BK.BABE.

Onlytruth:

I'm laughing at Abagworo's lame attempt to please morons on this site just to appear cosmopolitan.

Suddenly Abagworo is supporting bk.babe97y's sick insults! 

Whoever takes nairaland polls seriously needs to recheck their convictions.

There is really only one sociopath tribalist on nairaland - BK.BABE.

As usual anyone that points out the truth is "sick" according to u!

Show where I/ Abagworo lied! He refuses to throw his support behind any candidate, for now! Thats unlike what u did once Ojukwu promised Ibo votes to IBB!

Did u or did u not staunchly support IBB over GEJ, mainly cus (according to you) Ijaws were backstabbers like the Yourbas?!

Onlytruth:

I'm laughing at Abagworo's lame attempt to please morons on this site just to appear cosmopolitan.

Suddenly Abagworo is supporting bk.babe97y's sick insults! 

Whoever takes nairaland polls seriously needs to recheck their convictions.

There is really only one sociopath tribalist on nairaland - BK.BABE.

It is quite unfair for you to write the above.I have always maintained my stand on individual choice in voting.I don't believe in adoption and will never do that. Go back to my old posts.

bk.babe97y:

As usual anyone that points out the truth is "sick" according to u!

Show where I/ Abagworo lied!

Did u or did u not staunchly support IBB over GEJ, mainly cus (according to you) Ijaws were backstabbers like the Yourbas?!

And how is that any of your business?  

You think that by shitting all over this site in animal fashion, you'll somehow attract attention of intelligent folks here?  

Frankly I'm now SO SURE YOU ARE NOT even an AFRICAN.  
So, why are you obsessing over AFRICAN issues?

You always jump into threads like a 5ex starved bat out of hell without understanding the context surrounding issues before shitting all over it like a typical animal you are.  




IGNORED HENCEFORTH AS USUAL (his worst punishment )

Onlytruth:

And how is that any of your business?  

You think that by shitting all over this site in animal fashion, you'll somehow attract attention of intelligent folks here?  

Frankly I'm now SO SURE YOU ARE NOT even an AFRICAN.  
So, why are you obsessing over AFRICAN issues?

You always jump into threads like a 5ex starved bat out of hell without understanding the context surrounding issues before shitting all over it like a typical animal you are.  




IGNORED HENCEFORTH AS USUAL (his worst punishment )

You know this post makes u sound deranged, right?!