Ohanaeze: Use Your Good Offices To Secure Kanu’s Release, Group Tells Iwuanyanwu

The Eastern Union, a group seeking the political emancipation of the old Eastern Region, Monday, urged the new president general of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, to ‘vigorously’ pursue his promise to effect the release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB.

Kanu is being detained at the custody of the Department of the State Services over alleged running a proscribed group, jumping bail and treason.

Hon Charles Anike, national president of the union, stated this in an interview with our correspondent in Enugu.

The union said Chief Iwuanyanwu, a politician cum business mogul, deserved his new position, noting that his ‘commitments, sacrifices and dedication to the service of Ndigbo were exceptional’.

According to Anike, “Chief Iwuanyanwu, over the years, had shown courage and commitments to nation building and national unity. His emergence as the current president general will surely be a blessing to Ndigbo in particular and Nigeria at large because it is an added opportunity for him to deploy his wealth of knowledge to address the magnitude of challenges currently bedeviling the country.”

Hon Anike tasked the new Ohanaeze PG to match his words with action to realise the release of Kanu before the May 29th handover.

In his words, “We must bear in mind that leadership is an action and not a position, hence we look forward to seeing him providing a purposeful leadership to Ohanaeze, especially in our present political quagmire. This forceful and courageous leadership has been lacking since the expiration of the tenure of office of Chief Nnia Nwodo.”

Recall that Chief Iwuanyawu had in his inaugural speech assured that Ohanaeze under his watch would pressure the federal government of President Muhammadu Buhari to secure the release of the IPOB leader. He as well promised to lobby for the creation of an additional state in the South-East zone, being the only zone in the country with less than six states.

Anike said, “The inequity in the state creation is a discrepancy that is not going down well with Ndigbo for ages.”

Iwuanyanwu’s emergence as Ohanaeze’s leader followed the death of erstwhile PG Prof George Obiozor last year.