An Igbo group, Igbochukwu Foundation, has inaugurated its Interim National Executive Council, with a mandate to champion the rebirth of the Igbo spirit, which it said encompasses excellence, hard work and unity.
The convener of the group, Dr Chike Obidigbo, and elder statesman, who spoke during the inauguration ceremony at Obu Gad, Enugwu Aguleri in Anambra East Local Government Area of Anambra State at the weekend, said the group was formed to champion the unity and well-being of the Igbo people, especially in the face of what he called and existential threats.
Obidigbo said Igbo people face existential threats both from actions and policies of the Federal Government, which cause marginalization and those of Igbos too, which have led to mass exodus from the region to other regions and also out of the country.
He said: “Igbochukwu Foundation has come as new way to rekindle the Igbo spirit of excellence founded on sound moral principles and dependence on God as the great artificer.
“We have come to this inescapable conclusion that unless something drastic is done, the predicted extinction of Igbo identity would come to a reality. So, instead of sustaining the usual lamentation of marginalization and discrimination, we decided to set up this foundation as a gathering of patriotic sons and daughters to seek solutions through conversations about the fate of Igbo nation.”
Speaking about the marginalization of Igbos, Obidigbo said: “Discrimination against the Igbo, which began after Nigeria gained independence from Britain on October 1, 1960, took a different dimension after the civil war, when it transformed into a national policy.
“The discrimination faced by Igbo, combined with divergent post-independence interests among the major ethnic groups, culminated in the Nigerian Civil War, which pitched the rest of Nigeria against the Igbo ethnic group. But, instead of riding on the lessons of the civil war, Ndigbo decided to recoil from their cultural identity in the rush to embrace alien cultures and practices, which were aggravated by mass exodus from Igbo heartland.
“Therefore, Igbochukwu Foundation is coming at the right time to help in reversing the negative socio-cultural trends, while serving as the platform for value re-orientation and thought leadership on Igbo affairs.”
The highpoint of the gathering was the inauguration of the Interim National Executive Council, with His Grace, Most Rev. Dr. R. C. Opoko, JP as President General.
Opoko in his acceptance speech outlined the vision of the foundation, saying it is to peacefully and diligently pursue the cause of Ndigbo, whose way of life and culture are rooted in the principles and dictates of the Supreme God, also known as Chukwu Okike Abiama.