– VP Ohaneze Ndigbo Worldwide, Okeke- Ogene
By Mmaduabuchi Onwumelu
The Vice President of Ohaneze Ndigbo, Chief Damian Okeke-Ogene, has saied the release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra from the DSS custody will put a stop to the killings, kidnapping, and violence bedeviling the Southeast Region of the country.
He lampooned the Federal Government for causing the deaths of thousands of Igbos and destruction of property occasioned by the detention of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
The Ohaneze Vice President made this known during the two-day Concord Initiative South East Zonal Technical Workshop for “Sustainable Peace, Inclusive Recovery & Durable Security”, organised by the Office for Strategic Preparedness and Resilience (OSPRE), the West African Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP), Wellspring Philanthropic Fund, and the Government of Anambra State, between 16 and 17 May 2024, at the International Convention Centre, Awka.
The event brought together key leadership actors from the five state governments of the South East Zone, select federal stakeholders, peace and security actors, as well as identified leaders of thought. Civic, community, faith and business leaders to deliberate on interventions designed to promote sustainable peace, inclusive recovery and durable security in the region to drive conversation toward lasting solutions to insecurity in the Southeast, through non-kinetic measures.
The Ohaneze Chief further maintained that if there were legitimate charges against Kanu, the government should proceed with a fair trial rather than engaging in continual delays and procedural hindrances.
‘I think that politically speaking, if they have any real charges against him, well, since he is in their hands, they should try him. All these technical postponements, delays and avoiding the basic issues, for me, is counter-productive,’ Ogene said.
For his part, a youth leader from Abia State, Mr Okeke Uchendu, noted that since 2021, insecurity in the Southeast had taken a new turn with sustained agitation for Biafra, the arrest of Nnamdi Kanu, and attacks on security formation by armed gangs. The development, in turn, weakened public safety, draining the confidence of the security agents and further creating apprehension and chaos that had energized a high rise of criminality across the Southeast.
Mr. Ogene lamented what he called the decadence of parental upbringing and illiteracy as one factor that had affected the youths. He noted that there was a high rate of drug abuse and young girls who were supposed to be schools roaming around the streets in the name of hook ups, without tangible destination.
Meanwhile, the workshop had seven thematic areas or syndicate sessions where participants representing the five states of the Southeast were grouped. These thematic areas that informed the syndicate sessions include; healing and reconciliation, cultural recovery, values and education, enterprise, industry and investment promotion, youth empowerment, transitional and restorative justice, disarmament, demobilization and reintegration, and finally, empowering women for peace building.
Each syndicate was assigned a facilitator who coordinated discussions and helped with the articulation of participants’ input.
Resolutions reached by the various syndicate sessions during the workshop are expected to be further developed into a policy framework for further action by relevant government ministries, departments and agencies, at various levels of government.
Some of the facilitators at the training were the Visiting Professor, National University Commission, Prof Chinedum Nwajiuba; Deputy Director General, Nigerian Law School, Enugu, Dr Polycarp Chibueze Okorie; Executive Director, Spaces for change, Victoria Ibezim-Ohaeri; youth leader, Ohaneze Ndigbo Worldwide, Mazi Chukwuma Okpalaezeukwu; among others.
