The newly elected president general of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, John Azuta-Mbata, has said South East governors’ support for him enhanced his emergence in office.
Azuta-Mbata stated this when he and his deputy, Okey Nwadinobi, paid Abia State Governor Alex Otti a “thank you” visit at his Umuehim Nvosi country home in the Isiala Ngwa North local government area of the state.
He said the governor’s presence during the election last Friday in Enugu, the capital of Enugu State, underscored the importance the governors placed on the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation.
His words: “On a personal level, I thought that we should come and register our gratitude and tell you that we will consult, collaborate, and cooperate with you all the way.
“We are hoping that we will be able to tap into your wealth of experience as somebody well-grounded within the private and public spheres. Your approach and perspective to issues will be a lot more different.”
The River State-born No. 1 Igbo leader congratulated the governor for his giant strides in office, noting that he expected nothing less knowing Otti’s antecedents as an achiever.
“You’ve brought a magic wand, and everybody is amazed at how the government’s resources are being put to effective use to work for the people, and everybody is seeing the result, and people are happy.”
In response, the governor congratulated the erstwhile senator for River East from 1999 to 2007, assuring him of the total and unalloyed support of the people and government of the state.
“I can vouch for you. I was very pleased when you showed interest. My colleagues and I also looked at it, and we said if people like this are showing interest, they should be given an opportunity.
“I know your capacity and know what you stand for. I have no doubt that in this role, you will continue to do what you have been known for, which is consistency, truthfulness, fairness, equity, and transparency.”
“None of us has any personal interest. Our interest is the development and unity of our people. So, if any of us comes to you to say, do something wrong, that person is stepping out of the line.
“We all agreed that this time around, Ohanaeze should be focused on uniting the people, creating that leadership of our heritage, so that we can all do well as a people”, the governor asserted.
