Ohanaeze asks north-based Igbo to relocate businesses, families back home The leadership of the foremost Igbo socio-political body, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, on Sunday told Igbo in troubled areas of the North and other parts of the country, to relocate their families and investments back home. The President-General of Ohanaeze-Ndigbo, Chief Gary Enwo-Igariwey, said this at an Ime Obi (caucus) meeting of the body at its secretariat in Enugu. Ohanaeze-Ndigbo, at the meeting, also disclosed that it was yet to endorse any candidate for the 2015 presidential election, saying consultations on the matter were still on. The meeting, which discussed several national issues as they affected the Igbo, also proposed the establishment of a defence committee, comprising senior officers of Igbo extraction in the security agencies, to ensure the defence of the South-East region. Enwo-Igariwey said the leadership of Ohanaeze-Ndigbo had already met with representatives of Igbo living in parts of the North and other areas affected by the activities of the Boko Haram sect to discuss their safety and that northern-based Igbo businessmen were encouraged to make adjustments, in order to avoid human and material losses. He said, “We talked about changing style of investment and investing at home. “We spoke of the need for our people to register wherever they are and watch their investments in the North; wherever you are, get registered and think more of investing at home. “We also told them to try and move their families from those troubled areas.” The Ohanaeze-Ndigbo leader informed the meeting that he recently received an urgent call from some Igbo, who were stranded in Yola after the insurgents overran parts of Adamawa State. He said the distressed Igbo told him they were ready to move from Yola but that they had no vehicle to facilitate the relocation and that they begged him to get the government to provide vehicles. Enwo-Igariwey said the incident underscored the need for Igbo in the troubled areas of the north to move before the situation deteriorated. “That is why it is very important that if you live near those areas that are troubled it is very good to move on time,” he said, adding that South-East governments should begin to plan for the influx of Igbo fleeing the troubled areas. He further disclosed that the leadership of Ohanaeze-Ndigbo had established a strong relationship with Igbo associations in the North in order to ensure a prompt response whenever necessary. A plan for the establishment of a standing security committee, “to plan the defence of the South East,” was raised by a Peoples Democratic Party’s chieftain, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu. The meeting was informed that “Igbo are not prepared at all,” against the backdrop of prevailing concerns over escalating insurgency in parts of the North. Ohanaeze-Ndigbo equally declared that it had not endorsed any presidential aspirant for the 2015 elections. Enwo-Igariwey said Ohanaeze-Ndigbo was still consulting and would make a formal statement at the appropriate time. Via Punch News
Posted on: Mon, 10 Nov 2014 16:03:24 +0000
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