• Charlatans nearly hijacked Ohanaeze Ndigbo leadership, says elder statesman
The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), yesterday, berated the elder statesman, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, saying that he was part of the reasons Igboland had remained under-developed.
IPOB alleged Iwuanyanwu’s “treachery and greed” contributed hugely in retarding development of Igboland. Iwuanyanwu had accused IPOB of “endangering the Igbo and their investment in Nigeria” through its activities.
But reacting to the accusation, the IPOB reminded the elder statesman that several federal contracts were awarded to him for execution in South-East, especially road projects, many of which he did not faithfully execute.
The group, in a statement by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, said: “In case he doesn’t know, the current crop of Igbo youths are wise enough to identify true Igbo elders, and Iwuanyanwu is not anywhere close on the list. His chameleonic tricks can no longer work under the current dispensation.
“We are not surprised at such loose and careless remark coming from a supposed elder like Iwuanyanwu who has always taken political advantage of every matter. He is only after protecting his questionable wealth and investment, and certainly not speaking for Igbo interest.
MEANWHILE, Iwuanyanwu has said that charlatans nearly took over the leadership of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the apex body of all Igbo leaders and prominent personalities.
He said this while fielding questions from newsmen in Owerri, yesterday, on why he took over Prof. George Obiozor’s campaign ahead of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo election held recently.
According to him, some charlatans were about securing the endorsement of Governor Hope Uzodinma for the position of President-General until he intervened with his support for Obiozor.
He said: “I have sacrificed my life fighting for Ndigbo. I revived Ohanaeze Ndigbo in 1988. The reason for that was because of my desire for Ndigbo to speak with one voice.
“I wrote the constitution of Ohanaeze, which makes the position of the president-general rotational and states that every state should produce a consensus candidate for the position.”
“I know that if left alone, a charlatan would have gone to convince the governor to endorse him. That was why I convened a meeting for us to select someone that has intimidating credentials and Prof. Obiozor was on top.”
