Uwechue and Murderous Efforts to Kill Ohanaeze Ndigbo [Documents included]

1. Ohanaeze Ndigbo is the apex socio-cultural organisation of Ndigbo world-wide.
2. Ohanaeze Ndigbo by a deliberate decision of its Imeobi is an un-registered non-governmental organisation like other major ethnic NGOs namely Afenifere and Arewa. Its main objects are the promotion and protection of Igbo rights and heritage.
3. In Sept. 2008 Dr. Dozie Ikedife, President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo appointed an eleven-man Election Committee to conduct Ohanaeze national elections since the two-year single tenure of his executive was to expire on 4^th Nov. 2008.
4.   Sir Onyeso Nwachukwu, 85 year- old, former Chief Whip of the former Eastern House of Assembly (1960-1966) and who lives in Aba, was appointed Chairman and Prince Chukwuemeka I. Onyesoh was appointed Secretary.
5.   The 2002 Ohanaeze Constitution zoned the four top positions of President-General & the Deputy, the Secretary-General and Deputy, in a prescribed order in Ohanaeze Constitution, to  the the five States of the South-East and the Igbo-speaking areas of Delta and Rivers States. The  Constitution had further stipulated the order in which those four positions must be rotated.
6.  According to that order, it was the turn of Anioma (Delta State) to produce candidates for the position of President-General for a two-year tenure commencing in Jan.2009.
7.  It was difficult to find a candidate from Delta State duly qualified by active participation in Ohanaeze affairs and attendance in meetings & by November 12, 2008 when the situation seemed desperate since failure to get a suitable candidate for the position of President-General from the constitutionally designated are,a would have plunged Ohabaeze into a constitutional crisis, Prof. Pat. Utomi – a political activist from Anioma, was approached by me & he offered to assist in finding a suitable candidate.
8. Prof. Utomi later phoned several days later to inform the Election Committee through the Secretry (me) that Anioma leaders had decided to propose Chief Raph. Uwechue as President- General and that the election committee was being invited to Anioma to supervise Ohanaeze election meeting in the palace of Asagba of Asaba on 22^nd Nov. 2008.
9.  The committee was aware that the proposed nominee, Chief Uwechue had never attended any Imeobi or General Assembly meeting of Ohanaeze since 2002 and thereforeknew next to nothing about Ohanaeze affairs and was unlikely to be a suitable material for the position he was being nominated for but had no choice since there seemed no alternative. In strict law, the tenure of Dr. Ikedife had expired by 4^th Nov. 2008. A lot of hope was therefore put on Chief Uwechue’s age, experience & exposure.
10.  On 22^nd Nov, the Election Committee represented by the chairman, the secretary and Chief A.I. Nwankwo – the representative of Anioma in the Election Committee, attended Anioma election meeting in the palace of Asagba of Asaba and  in the meeting, following were nominated as candidates for the position of President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo – Chief Raph Uwechie, Chief Dan Okenyi and Dr. Joshua Enueme.  Anioma leaders however made it very clear that their preferred candidate was Chief Uwechue but the other nominees were made to fulfil constitutional requirement of a minimum of three nominees.
11.  On 29^th Nov. 2008, in a national General Assembly Election Meeting in Women Development Centre in Awka, Chief Uwechue was returned as duly elected President General, the other two contestants having given notice of their withdrawal from the contest a day before the election.  All other officers of the national executive committee were elected except for the posts of Secretary General, National Vice-President Enugu State and Assistant National Legal Advisers – three slots zoned to Enugu State over which there were serious disagreement among Enugu delegates. I was the Returning Officer for the election.
12.  On Friday 30^th Jan 2009, the Election meeting reconvened at the same venue in Awka, and the three outstanding slots belonging to Enugu State, was filled up. Chief Uwechue and all the elected officers were sworn in by Hon. Justice GU Ononiba (retired Chief Judge of Anambra State) assisted by me, as the Returning Officer, for a 2-year tenure.
13.  On31^st Nov. 2009, the faction of Enugu Sate Ohanaeze locked up the national secretariat of Ohanaeze, thereby locking out the newly elected executive. From that day on, it became difficult for Chief Uwechie to take off as President General of Ohanaeze.
14. It was after the election swearing-in that the Committee found that Chief Uwechue was still an active member of a political party in violation of Article 11(ii) e of Ohanaeze 2002 Constitution. The odious signs of today’s problems with Chief Uwechue became glaring but it was too late to start another fight so soon after the one against Prof. Irukwu’s tenure elongation imbroglio.
15.   In furtherance of the commitment of the Election Committee to stabilise the troubled waters of Ohanaeze polity, the committee again consulted with the immediate past President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo – Dr. Ikedife and it was agreed the committee should do a letter forwarding the Report of and Notes on the 2008 National Elections to the Chairman of the South-East Governor’s Forum, all South-East Governors and the current President General of Ohanaeze and that the letter should be signed by the immediate-past President-General.
16.  On 26^th Feb. 2009 at the Anambra Elders’ Advisory Council meeting in the banquet hall of Governor’s lodge at Amawbia, Dr. Ikedife signed all the letters listed in 15 above and there and then HE Mr. Peter Obi – the Governor of Anambra State was handed over his own letter and the one for the Chairman of South-East Governors’ Forum, since he is the current chairman. The Administration Secretary of Anambra State Ohanaeze,  some days later, delivered the official copies of the said letters to HE’s office and got acknowledgement.
17. On 27^th Feb. 2009, a copy of the letter in 16 above, was dispatched to Chief Uwechue through the national Admin. Secretary of Ohanaeze Ndigbo – late Nnanyelugo Annie Odunze. The same day letters to the rest of South-East Governors were dispatched.
18.  The Report & Notes were circulated in all available Igbo social media on the internet including igboevents@yahoo.com, igboworldforum@yahoo.com, nigerianworldforum@yahoo.com, anambraworldforum@yahoo.com, and asausa@yahoo.com. Furthermore, the Secretary sent a copy of the Report & Notes to Ohanaeze National Publicity Secretary who posted them on Ohanaeze website and further released them to the Nigerian press. Some Nigerian newspapers reported on the the Report & Notes.
19.  As soon as the Report & Notes were released, the occupation of Ohanaeze headquarters in Enugu by Enugu State dissidents became an item of daily comments in the social media world-wide and that all commentators apparently blamed Enugu State Governor for not calling the Enugu dissidents to order.
20.  The committee was informed by Chief Nduka Eya – the duly elected Secretary General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo – otherwise rejected by the dissidents, that on 20^th March 2009, the Governor of Enugu State invited him and the leader of the dissidents who locked Ohanaeze out of its headquarters and ordered the dissident leader to hand over the keys of the national secretariat to him as the Secretary General.
21.  On Wednesday 25^th March 2009, the I was invited and I joined the Secretary General and others, in entering the Ohanaeze national head-quarters for the first time since the lock-out that commenced on 31^st Nov. 2008.
22. The Election Committee has course to believe that the release of and publicity given to the Report of & Notes on the 2008 National Elections  contributed, immensely to the resolution of the Ohanaeze lock-out crises.
23.  Till today, not a word of acknowledgement for the above task came from Chief Uwechue to the Committee.
24. The spirit of the 2002 Ohanaeze Constitution envisages collegiate leadership involving wide-ranging consultations and meetings of Igbo elders, traditional rulers, top former public office holders, youths and women groups from across the seven States of Nigeria in duly constituted statutory meetings before anymajor decision is made on any affair that affects Ndigbo world-wide.
25.  In furtherance of  that collegiate leadership as articulated in paragraph24 above,  article 10 (v) and (vi) vest in Imeobi and the National General Assembly of Ohanaeze, the supreme powers of Ohanaeze.
26.   From 1999 till Chief Uwechie became President General of Ohanaeze, Imeobi and National General Assembly of Ohanaeze routinely met monthly – Imeobi first to exhaustively discuss and draft policies/resolutions on issues which are normally subsequently sent up for consideration and ratification by the National General Assembly meetings usually held the day after such Imeobi meetings. To emphasise the brotherhood among Ndigbo, these monthly meetings used to be rotated from one State capital to the other within the five South-East States, Delta and Rivers States of Nigeria.
27.   As ssoonas Chief Uwechie assumed office he stopped summoning the monthly meetings of Imeobi and National General Assembly of Ohanaeze and ran Ohanaeze as his personal estate.
28.  For the first 20 months of his 24 month’s tenure, he summoned only two Imeobi meetings and no national General Assembly meeting.
29.   By not summoning the National General Assembly for 21 of his 24 months tenure, he violated Ohanaeze Constitution in whatever major action he took in the name of Ohanaeze since Article 10(c) of the Constitution, under Powers and Functions of the NationalGeneral assembly vests in the National General Assembly the power “To make and review policies, rules, regulations and programmes” of Ohanaeze being “…the supreme organ of Ohanaeze Ndigbo”.
30.  Inspite of his grave mismanagement of Ohanaeze, sometime in Sept 2010 Chief Uwechue started canvassing for extension of his tenure, arguing that since it is the wish of the powers that be in Abuja to work with him, he would be in a better position to get equitable share of Igbo patronages for Ndigbo after the 2011 presidential elections in April.  He  was admonished by right-thinking & patriotic Ndigbo including me, not to insult the psyche of Igbo elite by mischieviously dragging Abuja into his disastrous failure of leadership of Ohanaeze but leave office by Jan 29, 2011 when his tenure was due to expire.
31.  Most otherwise out-spoken Igbo elite, for reasons best known to them, seemed to have  swallowed Chief Uwechue’s asinine propaganda since most were unwilling to oppose that morbid bid to extend his tenure beyond constitutional limits.
32.  Chief Uwechue only summoned two more Imeobi meetings before the 29^th Jan. 2011- the expiry date of his tenure but only for the sole purpose of extending his tenure.
33.  In the Imeobi meeting of 30^th October 2010 in which members opposed to his agenda were present but fraudulently denied speaking and or listing in attendance (including me), nothing in that meeting happened as to have changed the express provisions of article 11(i) “There shall be a President General of Ohanaeze elected by the General Assembly for a period of two years“. The communiqué issued by Chief Uwechue’s NEC as advertised in the Sun newspaper of Friday Nov. 5, 2008 testifies to this.  Prior to this meeting, his agents definitely lobbied Igbo elite in the normal Nigerian fashion. Furthermore, during that meeting, all members who were likely o oppose Chief Uwechue’s sit-tight agenda were denied right to speak despite repeated raising of their hands for recognition.
34.  Chief Uwechue summoned only one National General Assembly meeting on 6^th Nov. 2010 when his tenure remained barely 3 months for the sole purpose of extending his tenure and brought no proposal to legitimise all his infractions of his 21 months’ in office.
35.  Chief Uwechue flooded the 7 Park Avenue, GRA, Enugu Head-wuarters of Ohanaeze & the venue for the said General Assembly Meeting of  6th Nov 2010 with over 90 combat -ready Mobile Police men in over 15 vehicles. Members of the National General Assembly who wished to oppose Chief Uwechue’s illegalities, reign of impunity and arbitrariness, were intimidated into silence or withdrawal from the meeting.
36.  Some, like me, stayed put in the National General Assembly meeting of 6^th Nov. 2010 only to observe first hand, Chief Uwechue’s high-handedness.
37.  No resolution of that National General Assembly meeting of 6^th Nov. 2010 could be construed by any stretch of imagination to have met the unambiguous provisions of article 11(i) referred to in 33 above stipulating that the tenure of the President General shall be….for a term of two years. The Communiqué issued by the Chief Uwechue’s NEC on the 6^th Nov. 2010 National Assembly, is an unassailable testimony to this assertion.
38.  Up to date, 15^th August 2012, Chief Uwechue has called no other Imeobi or National General Assembly meeting of Ohanaeze Ndigbo apart from the four Imeobi meetings and one National General assembly meeting referred to above. He has continued to run Ohanaeze arbitrarily as if the organisation is his personal estate. Recently he went to submit a proposal to the Senate Committee on Review of the 1999 Constitution without the knowledge of Imeobi or National General Assembly.
39. As stated in 2 above, Ohanaeze has until Chief Uwechue took over its leadership, wittingly remained an unregistered non-governmental organisation whose main objective is promotion of Igbo interest.
40.  Sometime in 2009 Chief Raph Uwechue, conniving with some people in the corridors of power in Abuja, conspired and registered OHANAEZE FOUNDATION without any authorisation, whatsoever from Ohanaeze National General Assembly since the Foundation was registered sometime in 2009 and the only National General Assembly meeting summoned by Chief Uwechue met on 6^th Nov. 2010 with the sole purpose of extending his expiring tenure and nothing about the said Foundation was presented to the Assembly for ratification.
41.  Chief Uwechue unilaterally made himself chairman of the board of trustees of the said Foundation, with his other unilateral collaborator as Secretary and only other member of the board of trustees of the said foundation without any reference to Imeobi or National General Assembly of Ohanaeze.
42.  Not even Imeobi Ohanaeze authorised the registration of this Foundation since the matter was never presented to any Imeobi meeting held within his legitimate tenure.
43. By registering Ohanaeze Foundation as his private trust, Chief Uwechue has appropriated and cornered Igbo commonwealth – the name Ohanaeze – to himself since according to Corporate Affairs Commission rules, as long as the name Ohanaeze Foundation remains in their register, the name Ohanaeze cannot be registered again,  should Ohanaeze Ndigbo decide anytime in the future, to register.
44.  Chief Uwechue has raised huge sums of money running into over a billion naira, in the name of the said Ohanaeze Foundation & has disbursed same as it pleases him without reference to any Ohanaeze organ. Not even his Nationl Executive Committee!
45.  From the fore-going sequence of events, it is obvious that even if Chief Uwechie amended the Ohanaeze Constitution in his lone National General Assembly meeting of 6th Nov. 2010, which he did not, he cannot legally benefit by such amendment, having taken his oath of office for a 2-year tenure on 29th Jan. 2009, since Nigeria’s laws forbid retroactive legislation.
46.  In summary, Chief Uwechue has committed heinous crimes against the Igbo Nation and owes Ndigbo, where-ever they may be, unreserved apologies.

OkpalaEze Nri Chukwuemeka I. Onyesoh

Ohanaeze Transition Committee,

Secretary, 2002 to 2008.

Enugu.

3rd. Sept. 2012.