About two weeks after the visit of a former governor of
Anambra State, Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, to the All Progressives Congress
vice-presidential candidate, Kashim Shettima, the Igbo Elders Consultative
Forum which he chairs is seriously divided
Although the official statement had claimed that it was a
courtesy visit, sources said it had thrown the IECF into controversies as
members who had been champions of the Igbo presidency and supported the
presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, remained divided.
The division among the members of the organisation was
fuelled by the cancellation of two press conferences earlier scheduled for 1 pm
on Tuesday, June 14 and Friday, June 24 2022 at Ezeife’s residence in Asokoro
at the last minute, while no explanation was given.
Since that time, the IECF had maintained a deafening silence, thereby fuelling more speculation that politicians may have infiltrated its members.
A dazed member of IECF who does not want to be mentioned
confirmed the division but was not sure if it was allegedly sponsored by the
All Progressives Congress.
He said, “I’m not sure I know what is going on among Igbo
Elders. The only thing is that after those two aborted press conferences and
even meetings, we decided to concentrate elsewhere and watch. There are people
who came to hijack the place for the purpose of making money.
“We don’t know
whether they’re being sponsored by the APC. We think he (Ezeife) was told that
it wasn’t good. At that time, Igbo Elders were very vocal and they tried to
divide us. We didn’t allow that to bother us because we know where we were
going and doing underground work.
“But I think we have come back to our senses, we have come
back from our madness. Those people actually failed, they collapsed. The APC
wanted to neutralise us, but that one is now over.”
When contacted on the division among Igbo elders and whether
it was not a threat to Obi’s ambition, the Spokesperson of Peter Obi Support
Network, Onwuasoanya Jones, said Obi’s movement was a national agenda.
According to him, Ezeife is an elder statesman and can
decide to visit whoever he wishes to visit.
He said, “Obi’s presidential project is not an Igbo agenda.
His is a Nigerian project and we accede to the rights of every Nigerian to
decide whom to support and whom to vote for. We believe that if competence,
character and credibility are the deciding factors, Obi towers well above every
other candidate in this race
“Ezeife is an elder statesman and former governor. We cannot
decide for him whom to visit or not. It is absolutely within his right to visit
Shettima or any other person for that matter.”
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