Bianca Ojukwu’s chieftaincy title: Anambra community tackles Soludo

Bianca

The concerned sons and daughters of Awka Ancient Kingdom, in Anambra State, alongside supporters of Igbo cultural heritage, have tackled the state government for deriding a chieftaincy title conferred on the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu in the town. The group rejected the Anambra State government’s unwarranted interference in the conferment of the esteemed chieftaincy title “Anyanwu N’Awalu Ora” (The Light of the Community) on the widow of the late Igbo leader, Dim Chukwuemeka Ojukwu, The Ikemba Nnewi. His Imperial Majesty, Obi Austin Ndigwe, Ezeuzu III of Awka, had late last year, bestowed the minister with the chieftaincy title in recognition of her contributions to Ndigbo and the nation, at large. But the Anambra State government discredited the chieftaincy title describing it as ‘fake’ because according to it, the traditional ruler was an ‘impostor.’

Regardless, the concerned sons and daughters of Awka said the state government’s action not only undermined the sovereignty of their traditional institutions but also represented a blatant overreach into matters that were the exclusive preserve of the Awka people.

In a statement by Prof. Emmanuel Obi, for representatives of Awka Sons and Daughters, and in Solidarity with His Imperial Majesty Obi Ndigwe, Ezeuzu III, the group said that the attack on Odumegwu-Ojukwu was uncalled for.

The statement read: “First and foremost, the traditions, customs, and cultural practices of Awka are not subject to the whims of state bureaucracy or political expediency. These are sacred elements of our identity, passed down through generations, and they remain the sole domain of the indigenous sons and daughters of Awka.

“It is we, the people of Awka, who hold the authority to select, crown, and affirm our leaders in accordance with our ancestral laws. His Imperial Majesty, Obi Ndigwe was unanimously elected and crowned as Ezeuzu III by the Oha Awka (Council of Elders), the Ndichie (titled men), and the broader community in a process that reflected the collective will of our people.