Lawrence Nwimo, Awka
President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Dr. Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, has disclosed that the Igbo apex group is concluding plans to stage the maiden Igbo cultural carnival in the South-East.
Chief Iwuanyanwu disclosed this when he spoke at the August edition of the monthly Ikengaonline town-hall meeting on Thursday.
He said the idea was to revive the dying culture, tradition, and ethics in the South-East. He also said it is to promote and strengthen the ethics and morals of the Igbo people in the region.
Disclosing his plans at the virtual meeting, tagged: “A New Era For Ohanaeze: Navigating Challenges, Embracing Potentials,” Chief Iwuanyanwu said: “We will have our carnival in Igboland. New yam festival is one event that is celebrated across the Igbo states. We are coming up with a suitable week for our new yam festival which will now be our carnival week in the South-East and will accommodate wrestling, feature masquerades, among others.
The Ohanaeze President said “I have set up a committee that is going to pursue the issue of our culture and ethics in Igboland.
“No country or group can survive without culture and ethics. Our forefathers had their ethics they called omenala. We want to use the carnival to orient our younger ones to what Igbos did in the past to become respected and exalted in Nigeria.”
According to him, the committee will work under the chairmanship of the traditional ruler of Onitsha, Igwe Alfred Achebe, and has Chairmen of the Council of Traditional Rulers in each of the five states as members.
He also mentioned that departments of Igbo Study at Nnamdi Azikiwe University, the University of Nigeria Nsukka, and Imo State University, all have been drafted to champion the cause in the South-East.
The Ohanaeze PG also hinted that he created similar committees for other sectors including business, education, and agriculture to tackle some of the problems in the South-East.