The conferment of the title “Eze Ndigbo” outside of Igboland was deemed unlawful on Thursday by Senator John Azuta-Mbata, President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, who also threatened to punish violators.
At the Ime-Obi conference in Enugu, Azuta-Mbata said that the Southeast Council of Traditional Rulers and the supreme Igbo body had decided to put an end to the practice.
He emphasised that the Igbo leadership will no longer acknowledge such titles and added that anyone who accepts or bestows them outside of Igboland does so at their own risk.
“The National Executive Council of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, after an extensive meeting with the Council of Traditional Rulers of the South-East, declares the award of the title of Eze Ndigbo outside Igboland invalid. Anybody who is being awarded that type of title anywhere outside of Igboland is on his own,” he said.
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The Ohanaeze leader further disclosed that the organisation would formally notify state governments and embassies worldwide of its position, describing such titles outside Igboland as alien and proscribed.
He added that sanctions for defaulters would be determined in consultation with traditional rulers and enforced at the grassroots level through communities and town unions.
Also speaking, the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Lady Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, warned of a growing cultural crisis among Igbo communities in the diaspora, saying it threatens identity and social cohesion.
According to her, certain cultural practices have sparked tensions in countries such as Ghana and South Africa, as well as other parts of the African continent.
“We’re dealing with a crisis that threatens to undermine our cultural identity and even social cohesion within the communities where we reside outside the country,” she said.
Ojukwu commended Ohanaeze for what she described as a decisive step in addressing the issue, particularly its pronouncement abrogating “Eze Igbo” practices outside Nigeria.
“I am very happy today that Ohanaeze has made a definite pronouncement abrogating the Eze Igbo worship outside the shores of Nigeria. We have to be sensitive to the sensibilities of host communities and learn to live in harmony with them,” she said.
She stressed that actions capable of eroding goodwill built by Nigerians abroad must be condemned, noting that Ohanaeze’s directive would be backed with sanctions against those who fail to comply.
“The solution is precisely what Ohanaeze has done. It has abrogated Azibo in the diaspora and will follow this up with appropriate sanctions for those who refuse to adhere to this injunction,” the minister added.
