As the February 2015 general elections gather momentum, the Igbo apex ruling body, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, yesterday in Awka, the Anambra State Capital, endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan, the People Democratic Party (PDP) standard bearer for the presidential election.
Addressing newsmen, the President of Ohanaeze in Anambra State who is also the chairman of Ohanaeze Ndigbo State Presidents Forum, Chris Eluemunoh, said that the seven presidents—general of the seven states that make up the Igbo nation which include for Chris Elumunoh (Anambra), Dr. Eric Ebeh (Enugu), Dr. Ezechi Chukwu (Imo), Chief Emmanuel Oparanta (Abia), Pius Nwankwo (Ebonyi), Prince Igo Okparamma, Ifeanyichukwu Onwukamike (Delta) resolved to endorse him because of the need to implement the national conference recommendations as he was the initiator of the conference that they said, would unite the country .
In a communiqué signed by the seven presidents-general, they posited that since the All Progressive Congress (APC), opted out of the conference, it meant that the initiator, President Jonathan would be voted to implement it .
According to them, “considering the realities of the forthcoming 2015 general elections, Ohanaeze Ndigbo State Presidents forum, has objectively made a critical assessment of the scenario and our findings revealed that the implementation of the just concluded National Conference resolutions is both timely and necessary for the sake of equity, fairness and common good of all Nigerians as an entity”.
The group reasoned that since the conference was the brainchild of President Jonathan , it was then logical and impressive that he would be desirous to implement the said confab resolutions rather than any other candidate..
“In view of the forgoing, the Ohanaeze state presidents forum therefore endorses President Jonathan in the forthcoming presidential election and urges all Ndigbo in the 36 states of the federation and Abuja to vote massively for him.”
On the alleged crises rocking the apex Igbo body, they stated that Chief Enwo Igariweh and Dr. Joe Nworgu remained the President- General and Secretary General of the body adding “we disassociate ourselves and condemn herewith illicit and inordinate activities of Chief Mbazulike Amaechi and his cohorts in their bid to undermine the integrity of the duly elected National Executive Council (NEC) of Ohanaeze Ndigbo”.
They hinted that Chief Mbazulike and cohorts lacked the locus standi, statutory legitimacy and moral wherewithal to decimate or truncate the constitutional four year term of the Igariweh led executive .
“Mbazulike is neither the leader nor spokesperson of Ndigbo and should refrain from parading himself as same “
According to them,” Mbazulike and his cohorts are running the risk of extensive sanctions from Ohanaeze Ndigbo if they do not desist from their well-established antithetical utterances and inimical activities geared toward denigrating the present Ohanaeze Ndigbo NEC and the corporate integrity of Ohanaeze.“
The forum condemned the alleged bombing of its secretariat by an unscrupulous elements in the night of Jan. 24 2015 and implored security operatives to fish out the perpetrators of this heinous crime to face the wrath of the law.
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