His Royal Highness, Igwe Patrick Eze, popularly known as Igwe Waziri, is a popular traditional ruler in Enugu and a Patron of Ohanaeze Ndigbo. In this interview with ONYEDIKA AGBEDO, the traditional ruler of Egali Amalla in Udenu Local Council of Enugu State speaks on his expectations from the newly-elected President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Senator Azuta Mbaka, the rejection of Igbo identity by some people in Rivers State and the current insecurity and economic hardship in Nigeria. He also assessed Governor Peter Mba’s performance in Enugu State, among other issues.
You are a patron of Ohanaeze Ndigbo in Enugu State. What is your take on the election of Senator Azuta Mbata from Rivers State as the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide? Also, what are your expectations from the new Ohanaeze leader?
Thank you very much. The election of Senator Mbata from Rivers State is a good choice for Ohanaeze Ndigbo considering his profile as a two-term senator of the Federal Republic among other credentials associated with him.
I believe that he is exposed and experienced enough to preside over the affairs of Ohanaeze Ndigbo at this point in time and give us the kind of leadership we need. I expect him to unite Ndigbo into a much stronger brotherhood because united we stand, divided we fall. To this end, I expect him to work closely with the governors and other relevant stakeholders, including the traditional rulers, the town unions, the political class, the business class, the Youth and of course Ndigbo all over Nigeria and in Diaspora. It is always important for Ndigbo to come together and work as brothers because united we stand and divided we fall.
Even though Mbata is from Rivers State, there are dissenting voices from some people in the state saying that they are not Igbo. One of them is Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, a former governor of the state and the current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). How do you view such dissenting voices on Igbo identity?
Well, in my opinion, those disputing their Igbo identity in Rivers States are behaving like people that are being deceived probably by outsiders. How can you say that you are not Igbo when the names of your fathers and your personal names, along with the names of your local communities and even local councils are Igbo? How can you say that people and places with Igbo names such as Odili, Chibuike, Nwike, Amaechi, Obioakpor, Obigbo and the rest of them are not Igbo? It is like people being funny and making a caricature of their identity. As I said, it may be that they are being deceived by outsiders who might be influencing them with money to believe in divide and rule to the detriment of the Igbo region at large. Again, it may be that they are being deceived by outsiders to be afraid of their Igbo identity because Ndigbo lost the civil war. None of the reasons is cogent enough for anybody to reject his Igbo identity in Rivers State.
Take the civil war for instance. All over the world from ages, people encounter communal war, civil war, religious war, tribal war, among others, after which they reconcile, reach a truce and make peace to forge ahead.
So, it is wrong for anybody in Rivers to dispute his Igbo identity owing to the fact that Igbo lost war at a time. Let them stop disputing their Igbo identity and instead accept their identity as true Igbo and support the new leadership of Ohanaeze Ndigbo under Senator Mbata and contribute their quota to the development and progress of the Igbo nation.
Let’s talk about the current situation of things in Nigeria with insecurity and economic hardship hitting hard on the people. What is your take on the situation?
There is time for everything. Life is characterised by different seasons and different occurrences. We have dry season, rainy season, summer, winter and the one known as harmattan. Yes, sometimes we have hot weather or cold weather. Sometimes there is surplus and sometimes there is famine. Sometimes we see floods, earthquakes, wildfires, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions, snow, thunder and things like that. The other time we had corona virus that shook the entire world. What I want to say in essence is that the insecurity and economic hardship we find ourselves in Nigeria is not strange to human beings. That is life for you.
What you are saying is that Nigeria is facing a bad season, which will expire one day?
Yes, but normally seasons or occurrences have different purposes and each has something to tell humanity because the way we follow the dry season is not the way we follow the rainy season.
The kind of clothes we put on during summer is not the same with the ones we put on during winter. So, the current season we find ourselves in Nigeria is saying something to us and I believe we have ears to hear and eyes to see.
What advice do you have for youths who are involved in perpetrating insecurity in the country?
The key to responsible life is to be honest and learn a hand work and then take courage to start small. Some of the millionaires and billionaires you see today started with small scale businesses and gradually they moved on to the zenith. Some started by working as apprentices or serving as personal assistant to somebody. More so, there are works in different platforms, including eating and drinking, transportation, building and construction, textile and garment and so on. People eat food every minute of the day; if you learn how to cook, you will certainly get a job.
Animals are killed every moment; so if you train to be a butcher, you will get work. People move around every day, even at night; so if you learn how to drive you will have a job. Vehicles are bound to break down and get fixed; if you train to be a mechanic you will have a job. People are changing clothes all the time; if you learn how to sew clothes with designs you will have a job. Building and construction are going on everywhere even in the villages and cities; if you learn brick laying, painting, carpentry and tiling, you will get a job and so on.
What is your assessment of Governor Peter Mba’s performance in Enugu State?
Governor Mba has brought spectacular performance to bear in Enugu State. His less than two years administration has taken Enugu to the level we never expected with projects and services in security, education, road construction, environmental sanitation and so many things that I cannot list off hand. He is a silent operator and not the noise making type of leader. The bus terminals in Enugu and Nsukka have modernised the outlook of the state. We did not expect such a gigantic project in Enugu State; and to the surprise of the people, he was able to do the magic in less than two years of his administration.
Currently, the governor is embarking on a mega hospital project in the state and smart school projects as well as massive agricultural projects in all the wards. Every ward is mandated to provide for food production. Such a thing has never happened. Very soon hunger will be eradicated in Enugu with the current programme in agriculture targeting development of farmlands in all the wards. Governor Mba is a wonderful leader and that is what we need at this point in time. Enugu will overtake other states in all facets of development before his tenure runs out.
But people are accusing the governor of increasing tax rates at a time of economic hardship?
But is the tax being properly utilised? That’s the question. And the answer is yes. Projects are going on in every sector like security, education, health, agriculture, transport, environment and so on. There is no point for argument over tax because the works that are being done speak volume for tax payers’ money.
