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Originally posted by MASSOB:
Irukwu came to power with help from Chief Iwuanyanwu.

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Also selected as Secretary General was Joe Achuzia of Biafra fame.

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This culminated in the general election of Sunday, November 30, 2003 in Owerri which produced the new national executive of Ohanaeze. Professor Joe Irukwu (Abia), a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and an Insurance guru became the president general; Biafra war hero, Chief Col. Joe Achuzia (Delta) became the secretary General.

Other officers that were also elected are Professor Ben Obumselu (Anambra) Deputy National President; Chief Austine Edeze (Ebonyi) Deputy Secretary General; Mr. Edward Nnaji (Enugu) National Treasurer; Chief Tony Emeruem (Imo) National Financial Secretary; Mr. S.C Oduko (Ebonyi) National Legal Adviser; Mr. Ndi Onuekwusi (Anambra) Asst. National Treasurer and Emma Ajoku (Rivers) Publicity Secretary.

States and local governments executives had already been elected before the Owerri general election.

With this backdrop there were great expectations from everybody before and on the day of the inauguration on the new National Executive on Saturday, January 31, 2004. Ndigbo from every nook and cranny within and from outside the shores of Nigeria gathered at the umuahia Township Stadium to bear witness to the event of the day.

Professor Chike Edozien, the Asagba of Asaba; Senate President Adolphus Wabara, immediate past Senate President Anyim Pius Anyim, Frontline politician and publisher of Champion Newspapers Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu; Chief Bob Ogbuagu; Chief Silas Ilo; Dr. Mrs. Uche Azikiwe, wife of Nnamdi Azikiwe; Mr. Festus Odimegwu; Kalu Diogu; Chris Eze; Deputy Speaker House of Representative after independence, Chief Emma Akwiwu and Uche Chukwumereije led the list of very important personalities.

Others were Senator Ike Nwachukwu; Chief Chukwuemeka Ezeife; Chief Evan Enwerem; Professor Nebo; Lady Joy Udensi; Prince B.B. Apugo; Governors Orji Uzor Kalu; Achike Udenwa; Chris Ngige; Obong Victor Atta of Akwa Ibom; Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau of Kano State; ex-Governor of Kano State Alhaji Gaya Deputy Governors of Enugu and Ebonyi State Chief Ezenwa Okechukwu Itanya and Dr. Chigozie Ogbu who represented their Governors and Finance Minister, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, not left out were chairman of NDDC, Chief Onyema Ugochukwu; Ozichukwu Chukwu; Prince Vincent Ogbulafor; Chief Ojo Maduekwe who also represented President Olusegun Obasanjo; Prince Oscar Igbokwe and Deputy Speaker, Anambra State House of Assembly Hon. Ozo Ughamadu.

Immediate past National President of Ohanaeze, Eze Ozobu and also the Secretary General, Professor Ben Nwabueze were in attendance.

Traditional rulers from the seven Igbo speaking states led by chairman Abia Council of Ndi Eze, Eze Isaac Ikonne; Eze Desmond Oguguo; Eze Emmanuel Njenanze and Eze *** of Umulolo Okigwe were also there. --- Champion January 7, 2004

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Can Irukwu carry Ohanaeze’s burden?

By Paul Odili
Friday, January 30, 2004


As Irukwu and his executive prepare for Inauguration tomorrow as new leaders of Ohanaeze, the apex socio-cultural body of Ndigbo in Umuahia, Abia state capital, Vanguard looks at the end-game politics of the penultimate week that might have derailed the event of tomorrow. This article says that even though some understanding might have been reached, the road to a stable and cohesive Ohanaeze is still not in sight.

A minor tremor ricocheted off Ohanaeze over the week. Out going Secretary General, Prof Ben Nwabueze applied to a Lagos High Court for a restraining order on the inauguration of Prof Joe Irukwu’s executive. The move by Nwabueze, Vanguard gathered, caused quite some panic and led to series of meetings and interventions before some middle ground was reached.

Details of terms of the agreement secured is not yet available as last minute Ime Obi meeting, the inner caucus, has been slated for Enugu, where it was learnt that some tidying up of the issues discussed is yet to meet as the paper went to press. The court action instituted by Nwabueze, Vanguard learnt, was as a result of series of violations of Ohanaeze constitution the outgoing general secretary alleged the Chairman Justice Eze Ozobu, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu and Prof Joe Irukwu had committed. In his suit before the Lagos High court Nwabueze named Ozobu, Irukwu and Iwuanyanwu, as first, second and third defendants respectively. Also in his statement of claims Nwabueze sought : “ A declaration that, in accordance with article 11 of Ohanaeze which provides that the President- General “ must not be a traditional ruler”, the 1st defendant ceased to be president-general upon his installation as the traditional ruler of his home town on 30th December, 2003.”

“A declaration that the first defendant’s tenure of office as president-general/chairman, Ohanaeze, from May 2000 when he was illegally and by sheer imposition installed as such by the 3rd defendant at a meeting of the general assembly in May 2000 without an election or popular acclamation is null and void as a gross violation of article 9 of the Constitution of Ohanaeze then in force which provided that “ the president general shall be a recognised traditional ruler who must be literate and must be a member of the council of traditional rulers of his state”;
accordingly, his continuance in that office without election from August 2002 when the new Ohanaeze Constitution was adopted and came into force until 30th December 2003 when his illegal tenure ceased upon his installation as a traditional ruler is also null and void ”;

“ A declaration that the inauguration committee under the 3rd defendant as chairman which he ( 1st defendant) in the capacity of president general, purportedly set up and inaugurated on the 9th January, 2004, after his installation as traditional ruler, is an illegally constituted body”; A declaration that the purported cancellation by the so-called inauguration committee of the meeting of Ime Obi and the general assembly duly convened for the 24th and 25th , 2004 by the secretary-general in exercise of his power that behalf under article 14 of the said Ohanaeze Constitution for the formal handing over from the outgoing to the newly elected national executive committee as decided by the two constitutional organs of Ohanaeze (Ime Obi and the General Assembly) at their respective meetings at Enugu on 1st and 2nd November, 2003 is null and void and of no effect whatsoever.” ; A declaration that, until a formal handing over to it at a meeting of Ime Obi and the general assembly duly convened by the secretary general under article 14 aforementioned, and as decided by Ime Obi and the general assembly at the respective meetings aforementioned, the new national executive elected at Owerri on 30th November, 2003 is not in office yet, and can exercise no powers or functions under the Ohanaeze Constitution.” ;

A declaration that the 1st defendant is liable and under a duty to account for the under listed monies and assets received by him for and behalf of Ohanaeze during his tenure of office, or in abuse of his office, as chairman/president- general- 750,000( seven hundred and fifty thousand naira only) donated to Ohanaeze by Imo state governor and received by him through his agent, Chief HBC Okpoko, whom he authorised to collect the money by cheque issued in Chief Okpoko’s personal name 2) N 200,000 ( two hundred thousand Naira only) received by him from Chief Ojo Maduekwe, former minister of transport, as donation in support of Ohanaeze petition to the Oputa panel”. 3) N500,000 ( Five hundred thousand Naira only) received by him in cash as donation from His Execellency Dr Sam Egwu for the running of Ohanaeze.” 4) N200,000 (two hundred thousand naira only) received by him from Chief Ojo Maduekwe, former Minister of Transport, as donation in support of Ohanaeze petition to the Oputa Panel.

(5) N500,000 (five hundred thousand naira only) received by him in cash as donation from his Excellency Dr. Sam Egwu for the running of Ohanaeze. (6) N1,900,000 (one million nine hundred thousand naira only) given by the Enugu State Government and collected in cash on his behalf by agents authorised by him.

(v) N2,500,000 (two million five hundred thousand naira only) received by him in cash from Chief Chris Uba as a bribe to make a statement in his (Uba’s) favour in the quarrel between him and Dr. Chris Ngige, Governor of Anambra State.
(vi) A brand new Peugeot 504 car donated to Ohanaeze by Dr. Sam Egwu but which he (Eze Ozobu) seized and has kept in his house for his personal use, refusing to allow the Ohanaeze Secretariat access to it.”; “A declaration that the 1st defendant is liable to pay to Ohanaeze, with interest, any sums found to be due from him to Ohanaeze and to return the Peugeot 504 car aforementioned.”

Having laid out his very weighty allegations in his application Prof Nwabueze, sought an order of perpetual injunction-
(i) Restraining the said 1st defendant from exercising or continuing to exercise the powers or functions of President-General of Ohanaeze, and from calling or representing himself as President-General or holding himself out as such in any way whatsoever.

(ii) Restraining the 3rd defendant and his so-called Inauguration Committee from carrying into effect their purported cancellation of the meetings of Ime Obi and the General Assembly duly convened by the Secretary-General for the formal handing-over from the out-going to the newly elected national executive committee or any other meetings the Secretary-General may call for the purpose, convening or holding any further meetings of the illegally constituted Inauguration Committee, and from interfering with or usurping the powers or functions of the Secretary-General in any other way whatsoever.

(iii) Restraining the 2nd defendant and his newly elected national executive from exercising or purporting to exercise any powers or functions under the Constitution of Ohanaeze and from interfering with or usurping the powers or functions of the Secretary-General until a formal handing-over from the out-going executive to them at meetings of Ime Obi and the General Assembly duly convened by the Secretary-General under article 14 and as decided by the two bodies at their respective meetings on 1st and 2nd November, 2003.
9. An order of interlocutory injunction in terms set out in paragraph 7 above, pending the determination of the claim for a perpetual injunction.
10. An order of mandatory injunction compelling 1st defendant to return to Ohanaeze Secretariat, the Peugeot 504 car mentioned in paragraphs 7(vi) and 8 above.

Because these issues were never fully canvassed before the court before its withdrawal by Nwabueze the truth of his account some claim appears plausible although it still needs to be argued before a court of competent jurisdiction as to its veracity. Yet again politics intervened to stall further judicial process. But one thing the whole world had known for sometime was that the relationship between Ozobu and Nwabueze had never been good. And there are various reasons according to some insiders, who say that the acrimony began right from the very beginning of the installation of Ozobu, as president, a position he never really sought for himself, but which it is believed he was encouraged to accept by some within the group who were looking for ways to weaken the towering image of Nwabueze and were therefore unhappy with him over the style of his leadership.

Ozobu knowing that Nwabueze never supported him, believes that he did everything within his power to subvert him and weaken his authority as chairman of the group. In one instance Ozobu associates say that Nwabueze made sure that he never had access to the secretariat nor make use of the facilities in the running of the office of the chairman. The poor chemistry between the two meant that as elections were approaching they had different perspectives on how things should be organised. Nwabueze for example favoured Abakiliki, while Ozobu wanted Owerri; and this division nearly proved fatal to the survival of the group last year before the intervention of the governors of the southeast. With a divided house that Ohanaeze became, it made it possible for forces who had other agenda to gain, to further hold in some of the structures of the body.

Part of the grouse, though not mentioned by Nwabueze in his petition, is that increasingly Ohanaeze has come under increased influence of the dominant PDP. Meaning that in the days ahead, Ohanaeze, which says that it is non-partisan might well become a different organisation owing to a likely PDP pressure and control of its organs. At the moment doubt exists that even though the election into the body was successful, many of those who have gained dominant control of apparatus of power within it are from PDP. For instance there are strong indications that many of those who emerged as leaders at the local government, state and even at the national level are in most cases card carry members of PDP. In the world of real politik this should be no surprise because the party in control of power in the zone is PDP, and they essentially funded the operations of the group even as it was putting together the machinery to conduct the stakeholders meeting which culminated in the election.

With Ozobu feuding with Nwabueze it was no surprise that partisan elements with the PDP found a way to win him over. On the other hand, Nwabueze had the support of elements who had different agenda that is not conterminous with Ozobu’s. Incidentally as the election day was approaching Nwabueze took ill and was not available to continue his struggle with Ozobu. At this time Ozobu’s associates were in full battle cry. In his younger brother Richard Ozobu, a member of the now disbanded Ohanaeze Transition Committee, Justice Ozobu had an ally.

In the end the Owerri election was in large measure the triumph of Ozobu, who made sure that attempts to introduce ideas that he did not favour and which did not conform with his interpretation of the Constitution of the group did not stand. He for instance ruled against attempts to bring nomination from the floor of the election, which might have made Irukwu’s victory harder. As Ozobu worked to stamp his authority at the proceedings of the day he had the full support of Chief Iwuanyanwu. Although nothing untoward happened, not all at the election hall were happy with the outcome. It is not surprising that flushed with success of his having outflanked his arch rival, Ozobu moved into gear and took decisions without consulting Nwabueze.

A particular example is the appointment of the inauguration committee headed by Chief Iwuanyanwu, which was done according to sources close to Nwabueze without consultation. Indeed, when the list of the members were published by a national newspaper, eyebrows were raised over the name of Senator Arthur Nzeribe. He was said to have hardly attended Ohanaeze meetings, which it is said he holds in contempt, but being appointed into the inauguration committee might well have burnished his image in Igbo land and would definitely send mixed messages across the nation.

Another area of quarrel between Ozobu and Nwabueze is over the actual date of handover. From documents available to Vanguard, the Ime Obi meeting of November 2003, shows that 25th of January 2004 was slated for the handover to the new executive, but Ozobu in his letter to Nwabueze on January 7 states inter alia: “ Kindly take note that the incoming executives, at a meeting in Enugu had decided on an elaborate inauguration ceremony scheduled for January 31st, 2004 in Umuahia.” The interpretation of this exchange is that Ozobu has by his action stepped down the decision of Ime Obi, in favour of the one he prefers. Perhaps if Ozobu comes with his own side of the story the reading public would be in position to judge the basis of his action.

On the whole the Nwabueze and Ozobu feud might be coming to an end with the exit of the two from the commanding heights of the group, but the tendencies they represent are still there and only time will tell how Irukwu and his group will manage

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Originally posted by Icheoku:

Good enough, there is INA (Igbo National Assembly)that I understand is being led by tested and selfless Igbo people, like Ikemba Nnewi, General Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Okpuzu Abiriba, Chief Onwuka Kalu and Chief Chekwas Okorie.

An Irukwu-Iwuayanwu gang up changes nothing in Ohaneze. I pity "Air Raid", Col. Achuzie, who seemly is being used to mask pointmen of that pathological Igbo hater currently in Aso Rock.

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I disagree with you. Irukwu & co are self seeking Igbo men. They have no single interest in the well being of Ndi-Igbo.

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Irukwu, others get deadline to quit Ohanaeze leadership From Lawrence Njoku, Enugu

THE leadership crisis in the apex Igbo Socio-political organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo assumed a fresh dimension at the weekend when prominent leaders in the South East Zone asked the Prof Joe Irukwu led executive to quit office by January 29, 2006.

The leaders, who met under the aegis of Igbo Leaders of Thought in Enugu, insisted that the tenure of the current executive, according to the constitution guiding the organisation, is two years and must be respected to the letter.

Speaking in an interview with The Guardian shortly after the meeting, former Governor of Old Anambra State and one of the conveners, Chief Christian Onoh said that the constitution of Ohanaeze now in operation specified a two year term of office for any elected executive.

He insisted that the Irukwu-led executive was sworn in under this the constitution.

At the meeting, chaired by Rear Admiral Ndubuisi Kalu (rtd), were Prof. Ben. Nwabueze, Senator Uche Chukwumerije; Deputy President General of Ohanaeze, Prof. Ben Obumselu; Anglican Archbishop of Onitsha Province, Maxwell Anikwenwa; Enugu Anglican Bishop, Emmanuel Chukwuma, Gen J.O.J Okoloagu (rtd), Chief Ralph Obioha and Lady Claire Asogwa, among others.

Onoh said: "At no time did Ohanaeze Ndigbo approve a four-year term for the executive led by Irukwu. We have not had any constitutional amendment either. So anybody calling or canvassing for an extension should know the right thing to do. And the right thing is for a committee set up to present that aspect before the Imeobi and in turn the general council. We never had such, therefore, there is no basis for extension of time for the current executive".

The former governor, who described the performance of the current leadership of the organisation as "zero", alleged that the executive had merely representing its personal interests and not that of the masses.

According to him, the inability of the Ohanaeze executive to accept the truth was to drawing the zone behind.

His words: "We are ready to take the matter to any height should they fail to step down by January 29, 2006. We have considered a legal option but that will portray us as warring people. We will employ dialogue to the point of sending delegations to the South East governors forum as well as traditional rulers council in the South East to persuade them to obey the constitution."

Kanu said that it was a massive wonder that the current leadership could bring itself so low to the extent of inciting the federal and state governments against eminent Igbo leaders for saying the truth over practices obtained in the organisation.

He stated that the position of president general is rotated among the concerned Igbo states who are members of the Ohanaeze, adding that it was the turn of Anambra to produce the next president of the organization.

Addressing the gathering earlier, Bishop Chukwuma called on the Irukwu-led executive to obey the constitution and leave office by January 29, 2006. He said that the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) may be forced to take a stand which might not be favourable to the leadership should they continue to occupy office illegally.

He urged Ndigbo to eschew violence and embrace each other in the interest of peace.

Former secretary general of Ohanaeze, Nwabueze said the intrigues being introduced by the current executive to elongate their stay was a "slap" on Ndigbo. He pomised that Ndigbo would resist such noting that only in Igbo land could such happen. He wondered why the executive would want to stay on if there was no motive.

The meeting had earlier unanimously agreed that with effect from January 29, 2006 the position of the president of Ohanaeze shifts to Anambra State for a two-year tenure.

The leaders also called on the Federal Government to include ethnicity and religion in the forth coming census data to enable Ndigbo participate in the exercise.

The Ohanaeze leadership had last week alleged a plot by the Igbo leaders of thought to cause disaffection in the zone by forming an alternative group that would attack the federal and state governments

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