WHY OJUKWU SHOULD BE IMMORTALIZED -BISHOP IKEAKOR
For the pioneer and new Anglican Bishop of Amichi Diocese in Nnewi South council area of Anambra State, His Lordship, Rt Rev.Ephraim Ikeakor, the late Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu was one Igbo man that did Ndigbo proud. Therefore, this man of God wants Ojukwu to be immortalised even as he frowned upon the actions of those who are fighting for the Ezeigbo Gburugburu title, saying that Ojukwu did not struggle to become an Igbo leader, but earned it. Bishop Ikeakor who is a trail blazer also looked at his diocese's plans to excel.
Did the late Ikemba Nnewi represent Ndigbo well while he was alive?
Yes and without fear of contradiction, I don't want to know what anybody thinks. My answer is a very solid yes. That man was an Igbo man to the core. He was a true son of Igbo land. That man really made us to know that an Igbo man is somebody who is very resilient in whatever he believes in. He was very firm to the blood. So, I hail him, because he represented us very well. We are proud of his antecedents.
Chief Ralph Uwazurike as successor to Ojukwu
Ezeigbo Gburugburu is a very serious position that nobody should toy with. We can't be in a haste to look for Ojukwu's replacement as Ezeigbo Gburugburu. You know nobody even chose Ojukwu, it was his activities that placed him in that position. So, if anybody is coming out now to say he is crowning somebody Ezendigbo or Ezeigbo Gburugburu, that person is making a great mistake.
Ojukwu was never crowned by anybody, but his actions spoke for him. He started defending the Igbo race long before it was formalized. His activities made every Igbo man to believe in him and to accept that as his correct title. A situation whereby one is given a name or a title and nobody accepts to call him or her that; is that justified?
So, we should not be in a hurry to name a successor to Ojukwu because I don't know what these people you are naming have been able to do for Igbo land. I don't even know their sacrifices to Ndigbo that would merit that position. That they joined a particular group because they believe in this or that does not make them to become Igbo leaders. Do you know what it means to be Ezeigbo Gburugburu?
You must have convinced every Igbo man of your achievement, your commitment, your sacrifice and denial of your rights. You know that Ojukwu would have relaxed if he wanted to and government would be pumping in money for him and he would betray the Igbo race like so many others did.
But Ojukwu sacrificed his comfort, his rights, his conveniences to see that his people are not marginalized; his people are not treated as subordinates or subjugated in their own country. So, it is hasty for us to start crowning somebody Igbo leader even when Ojukwu has not been buried. Let that person prove it as Ojukwu did and all of us will follow him as our leader.
What the Igbo will miss with the death of Ojukwu
We as Ndigbo, will miss true Igbo patriot and we have lost in Ojukwu a man of unflinching conviction. Nothing moves his conviction. Ojukwu is a man of determined resilience. These are the three words I will use to summarize Ojukwu for you. Ojukwu was a great man of valour.
Do you think the national burial for Ojukwu was enough?
The national burial was just casual. Ojukwu should be nationally and state-wise be immortalized. They should look for universities, major institutions and major streets in all parts of this country and name them after Odumegwu Ojukwu.
They should go to Abuja and look for a major street and name it Odumegwu Ojukwu Street, Avenue or Road. They should go to each state of the federation and look for an institution and name it after Ojukwu.
That man was just our all because he sacrificed his all for this country. So, a regional or national burial was just a casual one-day thing and it's over, but we need something that Ojukwu would be remembered for.
We need monuments in his honour. That is a challenge, especially the South-east leaders and governors because the other parts of the country may not see it this way, we are seeing Ojukwu as a hero to be immortalized. The state governors, political appointees and members of the National Assembly from Igbo race should think in that direction.
What future for Nigerian churches in face of upheaval in the North
I know that it is Boko Haram you have in mind, but I want to remind you that the future of the church is not in anyone's hand. Whether they like it or not, let them pull down every Church building, but let me reiterate what our Lord Jesus said in the scriptures. The church of God must continue to march on and the very gates of hell shall not stop it. Christianity has come to stay in Nigeria and by and by, nothing can stop it. Remember this church belongs to God himself and not man. If it is man's church, it is a different thing, but as far as it is God's church no man can destroy this church in Nigeria.
Churches are everywhere in Nigeria even in Damaturu, we are only talking of church building not being there, but there are churches everywhere there. Churches are springing up and Christians are taking over because God has given us the assurance. Christians should continue to watch and pray because evil shall never prevail over good or darkness over light. We are serving a living God. And all servants of God can never rejoice in destruction not to talk of partaking in it.
The Boko Haram menace and Christians in the North asked to leave
Let me start with the Northerners themselves, Boko Haram members are not spirits, they are human beings. They live in houses and wear clothes. They are known people. Let the Northern politicians and leaders be sincere for once to say, 'we know where they are'. Maybe you don't know, there was a time a particular part of Anambra State was known for this kidnapping of a thing. Once somebody is kidnapped, they are taken to a particular part of Anambra State, but the governor; Mr. Peter Obi rose to the challenge. He called the traditional rulers of the areas and warned them that if the kidnap didn't stop in their domains that he would deal with them. And within weeks that stopped.
The Northerners know what is happening about Boko Haram. Let us stop painting this matter. When they came up to tell us that Boko Haram is not an Islamic sect, what is it? The first step is let the Northern leaders fight Boko Haram and it will stop immediately. Let the government be decisive in dealing with those already found guilty of engaging in that menace. The government must be very strong in dealing with them and others will learn their lessons.
This may sound strange to you, but we are entering into another level of greater enlightened Boko Haram. This Almajeri School, we are trying to establish in this country where no other person would interact with them. Their curriculum is known by them. They are trained in their own way and they are given their own education. Watch out what it will lead to. Why can't they mix up with other people and be educated. Why should we have that separately with our national money and income? Why? Why would a group be gathered and the Nigerian government would give them a special education called Almajeri education. We are only raising Islamic fundamentalists in this country. Very soon, it would boomerang on the nation. The government should be decisive on this Boko Haram issue. Let the Federal Government look into the security agencies because from what we are seeing, Boko Haram has permeated into the army, the police and other security agencies. Let the Federal Government look into it even if it warrants bringing in foreigners to retrain our security agencies, I think it will help us.
Would Christians fight back if pushed to the wall?
Our Holy Book has said it all; 'thou shall not kill'. And that's why this people have taken us for granted. Christians understand and believe in the sanctity and sacredness of life, as the Holy Bible and the Word of God have said. As Christians, we can never at anytime advise them to go and take up arms to defend themselves. But now that Jesus is reminding us that He sent us as sheep among wolves. What does that mean? They have to be careful. In their worship areas let them be security conscious, whether it is worship or fellowship, there should be enough security.
They should create car parks far away from where they are worshipping, so that par adventure, if anything happens, it would not affect so many of them. The church now should be locked up after every programme so that people would not penetrate and cause sorrow to them. They don't know what heaven is all about. They are just there to kill us. If you remove Christians in this world like it or not, you are in for darkness. More security consciousness, more careful in planning programmes but above all, the Bible said that the effectual fervent prayers of the righteous avail much. With prayers we would overcome Boko Haram and its sponsors.
What is the journey so far as the Bishop of Amichi Diocese?
The journey has been tedious, very challenging, but at the same time very encouraging. We thank God that we are three years in this office and the diocese is also three years. By the grace of God things are taking shape, we started with two Archdeaconries and two Archdeacons, but administratively we have expanded to nine Archdeaconries and nine Archdeacons. We started with one convent which had a population of a hundred-plus. But today, by the grace of God we have a very standard convent called Holy Child Convent with a population of nearly 700.
We also have a standard seminary called the Masters Vessel Seminary, which started September 2011. We initially had accommodation problems in the seminary, but now we have a magnificent three storey building that can accommodate over 1,500 students. We also have a diocesan hospital. We have concluded arrangement with a social club that handed it over to us fully. Before, it was called Akuluo-uno hospital built by Akuluo-uno Social Club of Amichi, but now it is called Diocesan Hospital of the Anglican Diocese of Amichi; a very large expanse of land, with buildings scattered everywhere. We will start to develop it to a modern hospital.
Likewise, we equally acquired a massive piece of land at Ekwulumili for what we call our Diocesan Retreat and Conference Centre. We want to replicate what we have at Ibru Center Agbaraoto, where people can come for executive conferences and relax in a good environment.
In spirituality, we have introduced so many programmes by the direction of God and leading of the Holy Spirit. We have a monthly programme we call Prayer Breakfast. This happens every first day of every month at the Cathedral. People from all walks of life attend this. We also have a programme for women called Wailing Women Prayer Summit which holds once a year. We have a prayer session for every first born called First Born's Night to position them to take their all round position as first born. We can also say that we have a functional diocesan media center, where we do a lot of things like cyber café, so many things in one about publishing and media in ICT age. I can say so far God has been our helper. We started with about over 20 clergy men, but now we are heading to over 40 clergy men.