President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Nze Ozichukwu Chukwu, has pledged to ensure a credible and peaceful election for the next leader of the organisation.
Gatekeepers News reports that Chukwu made the promise on Friday in Owerri, while inaugurating the screening and election committees for the election scheduled to take place in January 2025.
Chukwu, whose tenure as president-general of the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation will end on Jan. 10, 2025, was appointed to lead the body, following the death of erstwhile President-General, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu.
In line with the doctrine of necessity, the Imo Chapter of Ohanaeze, led by Mr. C. J Ihemedu, presented Chukwu to the Imeobi Ohanaeze to exhaust the remaining period of a four-year tenure allotted to Imo.
The Imo slot suffered huge setbacks, first with the death of Prof. George Obiozor in 2022, who was replaced by Iwuanyanwu.
Chukwu urged the committees’ members to eschew nepotism and insist on the rule of law and stressed the need to sustain the reputation of excellence for which the Igbo nation is known.
He said, “We’ll not take excuses as all your actions will be monitored.”
“The future is in your hands. You’ll live with your conscience and you’ll be judged by history as you carry out this assignment.”
Chairman of the committee, Chief Ejiofor Onyia, thanked Chukwu for finding him and other members worthy of the assignment and promised to do his best to achieve the organisation’s set goals.
He appealed to Igbo leaders, the Imeobi, General Assembly, and committee members to cooperate with the committees and be free to contest, play by the rules, and avoid cutting corners.
