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However, the burial for the Deputy President General of the apex Igbo organization, High Chief Joel Kroham, remains February 4 at Ahoda, Rivers state.
Rising from a second emergency meeting of the National Executive Council (NEC) of Ohanaeze Ndigbo in Enugu, on Friday, Secretary General of the group, Amb. Okey Emuchay disclosed the activities prior to the burial of the late President General.
“We are going to have a valedictory at the National secretariat in the building which was renovated during his tenure as PG, at the building where we held our Ime-Obi with him, on Thursday 5th of May 2022.
“There will be activities in Lagos Ohanaeze state chapter and other groups are planning to honour him at the Nigeria Institute of International Affairs Victoria Island Lagos. Other groups in Abuja are also planning to honour him and we as NEC of Ohanaeze will have a valedictory session for him in our national secretariat Enugu,” Emuchay disclosed.
He further revealed that the burial committee would be chaired by a former President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Garry Igariwey, while the secretary of the committee is the President of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Imo state, Barr. CB Ihenedu, with all members of Ohanaeze NEC as members of the committee together with other stakeholders and Ohanaeze members from the seven states of Ohanaeze.
“As you can notice, these two seats (pointing at two unoccupied seats) are vacant. That used to be the seat of the deputy President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo and the other, that of the President General of Ohanaeze. They are all in the mortuary.
“This is the first time in the history of Ohanaeze that Ohanaeze will have its President General and the deputy President General dead about the same time, but Ohanaeze NEC wants to assure that the ship of Ohanaeze is in safe hands. We shall pass through this difficult period and everything will be done to ensure that the PG of Ohanaeze, the deputy PG of Ohanaeze and that of Mbazulike Amaechi, the first republic minister of Aviation, who is also going to be buried on the 16th of February, Ohanaeze Ndigbo worldwide will ensure that these three patriots, these three sons of Igbo nation are accorded the dignity and honour that they deserve,” Emuchay said emotionally.
He appealed to all Ohanaeze members, chapters, all structures of Ohanaeze both in Nigeria and in diaspora to open condolence books, such as has been done in the national secretariat in Enugu, so that people could go and have opportunity to say bye-bye to the late President General.
“Formal letters will go to the Governors of the seven Ohanaeze states, to the leaders of our partners in Southern Nigeria and the Middle Belt Forum, together with the leadership of Northern Elders’ Forum. We’ve been in touch with them and they are shocked at what has happened. So we will write to them formally as we have done with the seven Ohanaeze governors and other stakeholders including the former President of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and others, to convey the new date of 10th of February 2023 for the burial of our departed PG,” Emuchay said.
