..as Foundation Holds Children’s Christmas Party

By Uzo Ugwunze

The former Common Wealth Secretary General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, Igwe Chidubem Iweka (Eze Iweka III of Obosi) and others have called on parents and Guardians to give adequate attention to their children’s reading, writing and speaking culture saying that the advent of handsets, social media and home movies have become a major distraction militating against sound education of young minds.

Chief Emeka Anyaoku who spoke through the Director, Emeka and Bunmi Anyaoku Foundation(EBAF), Mrs Oluchi Nguzoro Nnoli during a Free Christmas party for over 300 school children which held at the Foundation’s Library/Museum, Obosi, Idemili North LGA, Anambra State emphasized the importance of education as the basic foundation for a child who would become responsible and not a liability in the future.

“Chief Emeka Anyaoku is promoting reading and learning. He encourages children to read and speak correctly both our lingua franca and vernacular unlike what you see today, most Igbo children and adults can neither read or speak English language nor speak Igbo language without the combination of both.

“Parents should encourage their children to read books. They can read for their children to emulate them.Now, instead of leaving their phones for their children to watch cartoons and play games, there are apps in our phones which can read out stories for kids until they can come to the age to read on their own.

“By the help of our esteemed Sponsors like Eze Iweka III, Chief Hyman Udemba Akamposi Obosi, Hon. Chidoka, Anambra Commissioner for Works Engr Ifeanyi Okoma and many others, we celebrated Christmas with nothing lesser than 310 children for free. We are not just having fun,we are using this opportunity to teach, educate them in a friendly atmosphere. Spelling Bee, Reading aloud and Singing competition were part of today’s Christmas party program”.

EBAF Obosi is a library and Museum with over 20,000 books for both students and researchers. Emeka Anyaoku gave out this platform today because of his passion to touch lives especially youths and he wants to leave a lasting impression of beautiful memories on these young minds,” said Mrs Nnoli.

According to Igwe’Chidubem Iweka, I advise parents to limit the time their children spend with phones. The handset and social media have been a major distraction to reading. Families should return to the old culture of reading books which has been relegated.

“The words given to these children according to their class levels were not difficult to read or spell but some of them could not express themselves which shows that reading standard is falling,” said the monarch.

Eze Iweka further advised the children to be of good behavior, make friends with good peers and brilliant school mates if they want to amount to anything meaningful in life.” The early you make the right choices with determination, the more successful you become. No one is aqlllll science student or Arts student, whatever career you chose, focus, hardwork and discipline will make you gain mastery of any subject or course”.

Moreover, the President Obosi Urban, Chief Emeka Asimone Dikedioramma advised children to always listen to their parents and school teachers if they want to become great leaders of tomorrow urging them to avoid bad friends which leads to cultism, violence and other forms of crime.

Highlights of the maiden EBAF Christmas party was the arrival of Father Christmas (Santa Claus from Russia) and mickey mouse to gift and entertain the kids.

Okey Maduforo Awka

Son of late defunct Head Of State of Biafra Chief Emeka Odumegwu Ojukwu Jr has joined the clamor for the release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu insisting that it would go a long way to checkmate the avalanche of insecurity cases in the South East.

Ojukwu who spoke to reporters on Friday also dismissed allegations of conspiracy of silence against the South East Governor’s over the fate of Kanu contending that the governor’s are taking their time to ensure the release of the leader of Indigenous People Of Biafra IPOB.

“There has been daily violent attacks on innocent individuals by criminals, with attendant high mortality which has now attained near normalcy, considering the development from the big picture perspective, the release of Nnamdi Kanu may not put an immediate end to the insecurity, but it will assuage the rising tension among the populace, who will then join hands to put an end to the rising criminality”

Ojukwu further dismissed allegations of conspiracy of silence against the South East Governor noting that;

“I don’t think there is a conspiracy of silence. You know, first of all, security is a delicate subject matter and not what should be discussed for the sake of merely discussing it without regards to the implications and without a clear understanding of the differing but valid perspectives of the citizenry and the Government, especially those in charge of national security.

So, I think that many people are just being careful so that their intervention would have the needed impact”

Ojukwu who lamented the killings and kidnappings in the South East stated that;

“it is sad. that nobody can, but I condemn these atrocities in totality. It is shocking.

However, I would not want to go into assessing the Governors. I have my impressions and opinions, but I will keep them aside because it is easy to be a backseat driver until you find yourself in the driver’s seat.

Additionally, all actions taken by our Governors are not overt, some are covert.

Therefore, I am calling on all of us to join hands and put an immediate end to this embarrassment.

Yes, I must admit that the Governors have major roles to play, but in the end, my predominant occupation is to see that this situation is confined to the dustbin of history, as quickly as possible by increasing the participation of our Royal Fathers, our Town Unions our Churches, etc and have a “whole-of-society approach” to the issue. Most miscreants are known within the various communities.

“Well, like I was just saying, injustice real or imagined, brings contempt, protests, agitations and a general feeling of “let it all burn!”, but that only comes when you feel disconnected from what you wish to burn down”

“Of course, I do not condone such actions but there are indeed genuine concerns that have not been addressed, and over time, these concerns began to find expression in anger as a result of frustration.

To answer your question, it’s a complicated situation and that is why we must bring these conversations within a context. For instance, Nnamdi Kanu was not just detained. IPOB wasn’t formed today.

By today’s realities, the Government, Kanu, and IPOB are variables in the crisis we face in the Southeast today.

So, yes his detention and the subsequent protests for his release have given an opportunity for mischief makers, be they common criminals or actors from other segments of the society, to take advantage and pursue their own goals to the detriment of all. A clear understanding of this fact must guide us in finding a lasting solution.

“Let’s remember that the Judiciary has also said as much. However, I don’t think that Kanu’s release will automatically end the current insecurity. It will, however, open vistas of opportunities for honest conversations about how to restore order in our homeland. It is a necessary first step.

So, yes, I am again calling for Nnamdi Kanu’s release, as part of the initial steps to restore sanity in the Southeast. Once the specter of his continued incarceration has been lifted by his release, then we can look around at ourselves and see more clearly who the good and the bad actors are”.he said.
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Two sad incidents of car theft inside court premises in Owerri, the Imo State capital within 21 days, has raised serious concern in several quarters about the escalating insecurity of lives and property in the state.

The most recent incident occurred on Tuesday, December, 17, 2024, when a lawyer, C.I. Amadi, parked his Toyota Camry 1999 model at the premises of the Magistrate Court ( Old High Court) along Orlu Road and went into the court to obtain a Judgment Order in his determined suit.

When he came back a few minutes later to pick up an item, it dawned on him that his grey coloured car with registration number, RLU 931 AA had disappeared from where he parked it a few minutes earlier.

Commenting on the sad development, the lawyer who was visibly disturbed, expressed disappointment and grief over the incident, pointing out that his laptop which contains details of most of his works was also in the car.

This recent incident which occurred barely 21 days after a similar incident which occurred on November, 27, 2024, when another lawyer’s Toyota Camry car was also stolen inside the High Court premises, along Port Harcourt Road, Owerri.

The two incidents according to a cross section of Imo people have raised serious concern about the porous security of lives and property in Court premises in the state.

Some lawyers who commented on the development said, the two scenarios highlight the need for the state government to find urgent solutions to the undesirable judicial sede vacante, which Imo Judiciary has been plunged into since the NJC-induced retirement of the immediate past Chief Judge, Hon. Justice Theresa Chukwuemeka-Chikeka, last month.

A community leader and Vice Chairman of Obunagu Achalla village inEnugu Agidi community in Njikoka local government area of Anambra state, Ozo Ozoemena Obiora Okeke has narrated a frightening plot allegedly by some of his kinsmen to kill him.

He disclosed that at the center of the grouse of those after his life remains his dogged fight to prevent them from illegal and corrupt sales of large acres of land belonging to the four villages that make up Enugwu Agidi town.

Speaking with newsmen at his country home, Obunagu Achalla, revealed startling incidents that led to his kidnap twice between last year 2023 and 2024, saying that it was God who saved his life, apart from payment of ransom to suspected Fulani herders.

Ozo Okeke disclosed that it was the evil scheme of four of his kinsmen led by Mr. Emeka Ementa and others allegedly working in secret alliance with suspected Fulani herdsmen to eliminate him by all means for being a stumbling block to their grand design to continue to appropriate parts of the land and sell same to highest bidders while the community and its people continue to wallow in abject poverty.

According to him, “My first experience was on October 17, 2023. It was the initial period the road in front of my house was being graded which they claimed that I sold the land to Ozo Jeff Nweke. This people invited the Fulani people to kidnap me so that I would bring out the money suspected to be paid for the land.”.

“I think this set of Fulanis are poor because they collected all my food stuff including garri, palm oil, salt among others. They discovered that I had only #22.00 in my bank account through phone and no other bank accounts. They wondered where the money they claimed that I realized from the land should be. They concluded it was mere allegation and I was freed.”

“The second invasion was in August 2024, after the peace meeting with my people, the Fulani kidnappers invaded my house again around 4pm that day and took me into the bush to Urum in Awka North local district before proceeding towards one shrine in Ukwulu. I stayed three days before they released me.”

But in a quick reaction, chairman of Obunagu-Achalla in Enugwu Agidi Community, Mr. Emeka Ementa on Thursday denied any link with Fulani herders to kidnap Ozo Ozoemena at any given time nor have any knowledge about the incident.

He admitted that the community at a meeting under his leadership agreed to suspend and ostracize Ozo Ozoemena and others for their sabotage of the corporate existence of the community by allowing with Ezinano Awka community on the controversial peace deal with Obunagu-Achalla village in Enugwu Agidi Community over their land.

“Well, I don’t have any contact with any kidnapping syndicate, I don’t even intend to. I am only saying that he (Ozoemena) should change his way of life; he has been known for this over years. The community only took normal cautions of the community to suspend him from our meetings and other activities. It was at a general meeting, not personal to me. So, I wouldn’t think and I never thought about that. Why would I kidnap him, for what?

“I have never heard of this kidnap of a thing. It is him forging this kidnap thing. It’s like a drama to me; it’s a forgery and I have not heard of it anyway. But Ozoemena has been known for this kind of behavior.

On the question of ancestral relationship between Ezinano Awka and Enugwu Agidi people over the land in dispute, Mr. Ementa explained that, “The land is called Agu-Nawgu because Nawgu people were living there before and part of it. After Nawgu was removed by the six communities of Awka, Isu, Enugwu Agidi, Nawfia, Amawbia and I think Okpuno. It’s a land gotten after a conquest and shared into six, everybody has theirs. Awka has their own and so are other communities.”

So, major part of that land is where Awka people are now contesting with us in court. The whole of that land, part of which of which is our ancestral land, they are joining both the ancestral land and that of Nawgu to the place they are dragging with us in court.”

“The court in it’s unanimous decisions gave it to us in three court sessions, the Awka court, High Court and Appeal Court.

“We are now asking the state government to use its good offices to intervene, because Enugwu-Agidi have suffered so much.”