By Celestine Okafor (Editor-in-Chief)@CeleOkaf11
A Chieftain of the governing All Progressive Congress (APC) and former Imo State Commissioner for Agriculture, Chief Longers Anyanwu, has, once again, congratulated the new President General of Ohaneze Ndigbo, Professor George Obiozor, describing him as a man of enviable credentials and well suited and experienced for the job of leading the Igbo nation in a her challenging time.
Longers, in his statement personally made available to NIGERIAN NEWSLEADER Newspapers, on Friday, feels highly elated at the choice of Professor Obiozor, saying that the leadership of Ohaneze has gone beyond mere political rhetorics and just a job for the patronage of any candidate who lacks vision and capacity to re-engineer the desired change process that Ndigbo needs to take their enviable place in Nigeria. The Ebubedike (Great man of Strength) of Obowo, Imo state, however stated that the "Igbos are ready to play politics beyond the Nigerian way, with the emergence of a new Ohaneze president in the person of Professor George Obiozor".
Anyanwu who is popularly known and addressed in the Nigerian political circle as Longers, further said that "with the groundswell support and acknowledgment of the well meaning Igbos and other leaders of ethnic nationalities in Nigeria, it shows that with proper leadership coupled with appropriate diplomacy, political concessions, and rapprochement, the Igbo nation is positioned to earn the trust of Nigerians in the quest for a greater nation".
The APC leader however agreed that though there are currently existing "gaps here and there, coupled with injustice at different scales, debilitating prejudices and mutual distrust within, but a leadership that adopts a persuasive jaw jaw as against unrealistic war drum beats, will definitely achieve a better result for Ndigbo and ensure overall progress for the entire country", Anyanwu argues, adding that "Professor Obizor is a renowned Igbo nationalist who is robust in the Nigeria project and its survival jigsaw".
He however warned the erudite Professor of Stategic Studies, too, as a matter of deliberate policy, "shun the attraction of playing to the gallery in order to receive an unenduring popularity that may not achieve a tangible result for the Igbo people", as according to him, "politics of engagement works. Collaboration will reduce mutual suspicion.
Longers who was the founding national chairman of the Accord Party and presently one of the political leading lights in the Imo state APC observed that "one good news out of the recent ohaneze renaissance, was the commitment of both those in political leadership, particularly the governors of all the Igbo-speaking states, well galvanized by the Imo governor, Senator Hope Uzodinma, who properly mobilized the authentic Igbo leaders in the election process unlike the recent past when governors played pretentious politics with the ohaneze leadership.
"What it therefore means, is that this time when Ohaneze speaks, it speaks for the Igbo people and for the government", adding that "How much respect Igbos will earn, moving forward with the Nigerian project, will be derived from the type of patriotic leadership professor Obiozor will provide. It is not yet Uhuru though, but l firmly believe that the new president has an enviable cv. In fact he has excelled in all his callings in the past but one thing remains incontestable and that is that he has never been an Ohaneze president before. Therefore, he must stoop to conquer!", Longers stated. NNL.
