By Johnson Nwankwo
Mr Chukwuma Okpalaezeukwu, former acting national youth leader of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, has been declared a persona non grata by the pan Igbo body.
This was stated in a release by the national publicity secretary of Ohanaeze, Dr Alex Ogbonna, on Wednesday. Okpalaezeukwu was described as “unfaithful, unworthy, unfit and maladjusted to the core values of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide”.
Ohanaeze therefore warned the general public to distance themselves from Mr Chukwuma Okpalaezeukwu on issues pertaining to Ohanaeze in their own interest.
It was gathered that the action against Okpalaezeukwu was as a result of his refusal to relinquish the position of acting national youth leader of Ohanaeze after he was directed to revert to his position as the secretary-general of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Wing.
Dr Ogbonnia wrote that, “Earlier before the letter to Okpalaezeukwu, the former President General, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, had written a letter of reinstatement as the national youth leader to Engr Damian Okafor.
“The National Executive Committee (NEC) of Ohanaeze was astonished that even after Okpalaezeukwu has been relieved of the position of the acting national youth leader, it appears that another ‘Ohanaeze’ monster has been created.”
He stated that on July 30, 2024, Okpalaezeukwu “invaded the national headquarters of Ohanaeze Ndigbo with thugs. The hoodlums maimed all that stood their way. Okpalaezeukwu and his misadventurers destroyed and desecrated everything that is held sacred in the Ohanaeze secretariat. His anger is a delusion and a wild misconception that he will act as a youth leader in perpetuity. Such unruly conduct by Okpalaezeukwu has been reported to Enugu State director, Department of State Services, and the Enugu State Police Command, among others.”
Dr Ogbonnia added that Okpalaezeukwu continued to parade himself as the acting national youth leader. He however clarified that, “The National Youth Leader of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide is Engr Damian Okafor who emerged through a democratic process on Thursday, August 5, 2021.”
Our correspondent learnt that the emergence of Okpalaezeukwu as acting national youth leader was a result of a rift amongst the youths which dragged for a long time.
Quoting the statement, “In 2023, the youths appointed an acting youth leader in the person of Mazi Chukwuma Okpalaezeukwu from Anambra State. The NEC, which was led by Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, adopted Okpalaezeukwu with a caveat that he was to act pending when the rift in the youth wing was settled.”
Ogbonnia however said Okpalaezeukwu refused to revert to his former position, and described him as riding “on the invaluable footprints of Ohanaeze Ndigbo to defraud the unsuspecting public”.
The secretary general of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Ambassador Okey Emuchay, and the NEC, in the release, alerted “the unsuspecting public that Mr Chukwuma Okpalaezeukwu has been declared a persona non grata”.
