A major crisis has hit the apex Igbo socio-cultural organization one week after the body endorsed Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
DAILY POST reports that the National Executive Committee, NEC, meeting of Ohanaeze held at its secretariat in Enugu, ended with a resolution suspending the Secretary-General of the body, Uche Okwukwu.
The Scribe had earlier told DAILY POST that the NEC suspended the President-General, Chief John Nnia Nwodo and appointed Prince Richard Ozobu as chairman of a disciplinary committee to probe him.
He stated that on the contrary, “President general, Nnia Nwodo is the one suspended by NEC for breaching sections of the Ohanaeze constitution by personally drafting and signing a communiqué”, adding that a nine member committee headed by Chief Richard Ozobu had been constituted to investigate the President general.
But a communique later made available to our correspondent showed that Okwukwu was suspended for issuing a counter statement against the decision of Imeobi Ohanaeze on Atiku’s endorsement.
A statement issued at the end of the NEC meeting held at the Secretariat of Ohanaeze, signed by the National Publicity Secretary, Uche Achi-Akpaga, stated that the secretary general was being punished for allegedly engaging in false representations of decisions of meetings of NEC and Imeobi Ohanaeze.
It said he had arrogated to himself the power to the organs of Ohanaeze by uttering positions purportedly taken by organs of Ohanaeze Ndigbo.
“These deliberate actions were discussed today at the NEC and having taken place in the public domain and reported copiously in the mass media, the NEC, in an overwhelming majority decision after confronting Bar Okwukwu has resolved that he be suspended from office as Secretary general of Ohanaeze Ndigbo and membership of all organs of Ohanaeze Nidgbo from Thursday, January 31, 2018”, the statement said
The statement gave the suspended secretary seven days to publicly retract and publish same in the mass media, failure of which would be referred to the disciplinary committee for further inquiries and appropriate action.
Okwukwu, who was said to have attended yesterday’s NEC meeting with over 30 policemen, said there was “nothing wrong in attending a meeting with policemen”, adding that, “even Nwodo has several policemen attached to him”.
It could be recalled that Okwukwu had addressed the press in Awka, Anambra state at the weekend, where he claimed that no meeting of Imeobi endorsed Atiku/Obi. He had stated that Imeobi would soon be convened to deliberate on the issue of endorsement by Ohanaeze, adding that the President General lacked power to convene meeting of the body.
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