Peter Edochie, Buhari, Ooni of Ife, IBB, Oyegun, others storm Anambra for Ukpo festival

The occasion was the Ofala festival of His Royal Majesty, Igwe Robert Eze, the traditional rul­er of Ukpo kingdom to mark his 25 years on the throne. Much more than the previous years, the massive Dunukofia Palace of Ukpo Kingdom was filled up by the excited attend­ees and literally running over.

Among eminent Nigerians who attended the august oc­casion was the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency, Muhammadu Buhari who was represented on the occasion by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Nwabueze Ngige; former military Head of State, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida; the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Eni­tan Ogunwusi (Ojaja II); the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun; the Anambra State Governor, Chief Willie Obiano and his wife, Chief (Mrs) Ebelechuk­wu Obiano; the Enugu State Governor, Rt. Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi; and the renowned philanthropist and oil magnet, Prince (Engr.) Arthur Eze.

Others are the Deputy Sen­ate President, Sen. Ike Ek­weremadu; former Special Adviser to President Good­luck Jonathan on Inter-Party Affairs, Sen. (Dr) Ben Ndi Obi; member of House of Representatives for Anam­bra East, Hon. Tony Nwoye; traditional ruler of Alor king­dom, Igwe MacAnthony Elibe Okonkwo, and over 200 other monarchs from and outside Anambra State.

As part of the activities to make the celebration worth­while, there were displays of various Igbo masquerades in­cluding Ijele, Iga and others. There were also various band groups and local drummers who entertained the audience with flutes. The team which ar­rived with the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, with their Yoruba rhythms gave it some touch of cultural mix. And as an icing on the royal cake, little children were seen performing various gym­nastics cultural to Igbo people, which undoubtedly kept the mammoth crowd thrilled.

Stepping out in grand style to the waiting multitude, the chief celebrant, Igwe Robert Eze, moved from one canopy to the other acknowledging cheers from the excited audi­ence. Soon after he took the mi­crophone, he thanked his sub­jects for the love and support they had shown him over the years. While raining his bless­ings on them, he assured his subjects that he would always play his role as the father of all.

In his speech, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, who was visibly elated, prayed for the contin­ued success and prosper­ity of Igbo nation. He said his love for Igbo people had prompted him to attend the Ofala festival. This was even as he preached for peaceful coexistence among Nigerians.

“I am very happy and de­lighted to be in Ukpo king­dom today. I give God all the glory, honour and adoration. Your Royal Majesty, Ukpo kingdom will continue to flourish. The entire Igbo na­tion will continue to flourish in the name of our ancestors. I am here today to express love; to extend hand of fellowship for all of us to come together as one big happy family.”

“We have very prominent people here. From the hon­ourable minister, Dr Chris Ngige; we have several sena­tors here both past and present and we have highly placed leaders here. And so also, the entire people of Ukpo king­dom because if you have lead­ers, you must have followers.”

“I greet you all because I am very happy to be in your mist today. I am very privileged to be in the mist of the leaders of Igbo nation. I have a brother in Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Nnae­meka Achebe (Agbogidi). I sa­lute you. And I am also a very privileged monarch by virtue of the love and peaceful coex­istence that I am preaching.”

“It’s a great honour that I am even the Chancellor of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. The tertiary institu­tion that is the pride of the entire Igbo land and the en­tire country; the only institu­tion dedicated to Nigeria.”

“I am here today to further preach peace on this land. We should all believe in our­selves and what we stand for. My special gratitude goes to Prince Arthur Eze for making my presence here to be very smooth. He is a very, very big and highly elevated prince.”

“Once again, it is very im­portant for all of us to know that we should focus on our area of strength irrespective of our diversity. We should focus on the area that will be useful to the generations yet unborn. What can bind us to­gether is very important to me. And that is the reason why, I said I must be here today.”

“I am here bringing love, peace, affection from Ife king­dom and the entire Yoruba land. Once again, thank you for this invitation and I can assure you that we will not let you down and we will con­tinue to preach peace for the generation yet unborn. I am very happy and proud; and will forever be proud to be associated with Ofala Day in Ukpo kingdom and the entire Igbo land. God bless you all” the Ooni concluded.

President Muhammadu Bu­hari, represented by the Min­ister of Labour and Employ­ment, Dr Chris Ngige, prayed for the continued reign of the monarch and his kingdom.

“I felicitate with you, Igwe Robert Eze of Ukpo king­dom. I wish you many more years of Ofala celebration. Like your forefathers and im­mediate father, your reign shall be very long. I also wish the people of Ukpo kingdom, Dunukofia and Ndi Anambra in general a merry Christmas and prosperous 2017” he said.

Buhari, also announced his Christmas gift to the people of South East to include an approval of N14 billion by the Federal Executive Coun­cil for the commencement of work on the 2nd Niger Bridge and N16 billion in the 2017 budget for work to continue on the same bridge unfettered.

“You will get more because in the 2017 budget, there is also another provision for N16 billion for work to continue on this bridge unfettered. So there will be no stoppage of work anymore” said Buhari, but added that “Work has commenced on the Onitsha-Enugu Expressway, Enugu-Okigwe-Aba Expressway and many people are using it for Christmas. And we will continue to do more for you.”

Also speaking, the National Chairman of the All Progres­sives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, said that he had come to identify with the royal family because of Arthur Eze’s contribution to national development.

“It is a wonderful oppor­tunity to come and visit, not just to attend the festival of celebrating 25 years on the throne but see a very fantastic man, Prince Arthur Eze, who has had a major impact on the history of this nation. It’s been good news all the way. He has continued to be active and engaged. And he is one of those we are depending on to change the course of this na­tion; to build a new Nigeria.”