The Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide has set aside Wednesday, September 29, for the 2021 edition of the Igbo Day celebration at Enugu with the broad theme of “Onye aghana nwanneya”; meaning, “Be your brother’s keeper” or “Do not abandon your brother, especially in times of need.”
The President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Ambassador Professor George A. Obiozor, who dropped this hint through a press statement issued by the National Publicity Secretary of Ohanaeze, Chiedozie Alex Ogbonnia, expressed optimism that this year’s Igbo Day celebration would be very unique in several ways.
In furtherance of that, Obiozor set up a Central Planning Committee to be headed by a retired federal bureaucrat and traditional ruler of Olo community, Ezeagu Local Government Area of Enugu State, His Royal Majesty, Ambassador Lawrence O C Agubuzu, Chairman, Enugu State Council of Traditional Rulers, with Chiedozie Alex Ogbonnia, the National Publicity Secretary of Ohanaeze Ndigbo as the secretary.
Tribune Online learnt that was part of the decisions reached at the inaugural meeting, which took place at the National Secretariat of Ohanaeze in Enugu on Tuesday, August 31, 2021, wherein the events to mark this year’s Igbo Day were rolled out.
The events, it was gathered, would be heralded by prayers in all Churches in Igbo Land, on Sunday, September 26, 2021, to be followed by a public lecture at the International Conference Centre, Institute of Management and Technology, IMT, Enugu on Tuesday, September 28, 2021, by Professor Osita Ogbu of the University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus; and a Nollywood/ Creativity outing by prominent Igbo Nollywood entrepreneurs.
The Grand Finale is slated for Michael Okpara Square, Independence Lay Out, Enugu, on Wednesday, September 29, 2021, and which would be chaired by Chief Allen Onyema, the Chairman/CEO of Air Peace, an indigenous Airline.
Programmes lined up for the Grand Finale included a match past by cultural troupes from states and communities in Igbo Land.
According to Ogbonnia, “More importantly, the event will offer a unique opportunity for individuals, captains of industry, groups, companies, universities and states to showcase and advertise their local produce and innovations.”
He disclosed that the Chairman of the Central Planning Committee, Ambassador Agubuzu had commended the concept of Igbo day and promised that the committee would do everything possible to deliver on its core mandate.
Similarly, in his own remarks, the Ohanaeze Spokesman, and Central Committee Secretary, Ogbonnia, hailed “the choice of Enugu as the Igbo capital and that it offers the necessary ambience, hospitality, peace and security.”
Ogbonnia added that the Igbo nation had decided that instead of mourning, “we have chosen to celebrate God’s love and kindness towards the Igbo.
“We celebrate the innate capacity and perseverance in the Igbo to break physical boundaries to achieve results where most fail. We celebrate that we passed through the valley of the shadow of death and bounced back; passed through the belly of the whale; traversed turmoil and hell and bounced back to glory and splendour.
“We celebrate the courage, tenacity and adaptability to live and thrive in all parts of the world. We celebrate the promise of God that he fights for the oppressed,” Ogbonnia declared.
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