ABAKALIKI – Commemoration of Igbo Day has been scheduled to hold on September 29th, 2024 says Secretary General Ohaneze Ndigbo socio-cultural organization, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro.
The commemoration, he said would shed light on the multifaceted challenges afflicting the Igbos, and the security situation in the South East.
“The 2024 Igbo Day will unfold as a veneration of our history, deeply rooted in traditional rites and culturally inspired prayers for healing and redemption. Across Igbo-speaking regions, including Anioma and Igbo speaking Rivers State, we shall engage in monumental remembrance prayers and ordinances, erecting statues and monuments in commemoration of the Asaba Massacre of 1968. Church services, Muslim prayers, and traditional rituals shall illuminate our shared grief and resilience as we strive for a collective healing”.
In a press statement issued during the weekend, he explained that the identity crisis rippling through region, particularly among the Igbo aborigines residing in regions such as Benue, Kogi, Cross River, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta, and Rivers States, demands urgent attention.
“The marginalization, coupled with the tribulations faced by our enterprising business communities engaged in commerce within Northern and South Western Nigeria, require immediate redress”, the document stated.
“In the hallowed spirit of our beloved Igbo heritage, we, the leadership of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, extend our heartfelt greetings to all Ndigbo across the globe. As the apex socio-cultural organization representing the Igbo nation, we stand united in a time of great concern for the current realities faced by our people. The unrelenting oppression endured by the Igbo in Nigeria has become an inescapable narrative, one that burdens our souls and dims the vibrancy of our cultural identity”.
“In the face of these adversities, we commend every Igbo woman and man who displays unwavering resilience amid a ceaseless tide of challenges and provocations. Our people have persistently served as vital economic agents, driving the prosperity of nations and communities since before 1914—an extraordinary legacy of over 110 years rooted in selflessness, diligent engagement, and an indomitable spirit”.
“As guardians of our heritage, Ohanaeze Ndigbo solemnly acknowledges the sacrifices made by our forebearers and contemporary martyrs: the victims of the 1929 Aba Women’s Riots, the Enugu coal mine Massacre of 1949, the abhorrent pogroms of 1966, peaking on May 29th and September 29th of that year respectively, the heart-wrenching Asaba massacre in 1968, and the countless Igbo lives lost during the Nigerian Civil War. There is a palpable and enduring grief stemming from the still-fresh memories of the victims of June 12, 1993, the civilian slaughter during the Operation Python Dance, and the unabated onslaught of killer Herdsmen against our people and other indigenous Nigerian communities”.
As we prepare to observe Igbo Day this year, we earnestly invite all Igbos at home and in the diaspora to come together in a vital act of remembrance and reflection. Guided by the directives of Prince Dr. Richard Ozobu, Chairman of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo Elders Council, and after extensive consultations across the seven Igbo states, we shall in accordance to the usual established norms ,observe a collective moment of silence—one minute of solemn reflection—on September 29th, 2024, at exactly 12 noon as the bell tolls, in accordance with their respective time zones. This moment is not only a tribute to the departed souls of our revered elder statesmen, valiant youths, and slain patriots but also a clarion call to acknowledge the struggles of all those whose lives were claimed by violence, injustice, and strife”.
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