John Azuta-Mbata

President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Senator John Azuta-Mbata, has appealed to the Federal Government to release detained IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu so he can access immediate medical treatment.

In a video message shared on Thursday, Azuta-Mbata also encouraged every eligible Igbo citizen to register and collect their voter cards during the ongoing voter registration exercise, stressing that political participation is key to the region’s future.

Kanu, arrested in Kenya in 2021 and held by Nigeria’s Department of State Services, has faced treason-related charges since 2015. Azuta-Mbata warned that the federal government gains “no real advantage” by keeping him in custody and urged a political resolution to the long-running case.

“The government must ensure Kanu’s safety and allow him urgent medical care,” he said. “It’s time to end this impasse through dialogue, not prolonged detention.”

Azuta-Mbata’s call renews pressure on Abuja to consider a negotiated settlement to one of Nigeria’s most polarizing political and security crises.

ENUGU- The United Igbo Elders Council (UNIEC), has urged the newly elected President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Sen. John Azuta-Mbata, to prioritise reconciliation and promotion of unity in Igboland.

Justice Alpha Ikpeama, Director -General of the group,made the call in a statement signed by him on Friday in Enugu.

Ikpeama said there was an urgent need for unity among the Igbo people,urging the new Ohaneze President-General to bridge existing gaps across various Igbo communities and leadership structures.

He advised him to strengthen inter-ethnic relations in the South East and South South.

Ikpeama also urged Azuh-Mbata to foster stronger collaboration between South-East and South-South governors for accelerated economic development of the regions.

According to him, Igbo leadership must come up with the right policies and take the necessary actions to promote business growth, technological advancement and infrastructural development in Igboland.

He lauded Azuta-Mbata’s leadership capacity and commitment to the collective interests of Ndigbo.

“UNIEC extends its warm congratulations to Sen. John Azuta-Mbata on his emergence as the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the apex socio-cultural organization representing the Igbo people worldwide.

“We express confidence that his tenure would mark a new chapter of unity, progress, and strategic engagement for the Igbo people both at home and in the diaspora,” Ikpeama said.

While wishing Azuta-Mbata a successful tenure, Ikpeama pledged the council’s support for his leadership to achieve the mandate of promoting the Igbo cause.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalled that Azuta-Mbata, a former Senator representing Rivers East at the National Assembly, on January emerged the new leader of the Igbo apex socio-cultural organisation.

He was elected by the Ohaneze Ndigbo General Assembly in Enugu. (NAN)

LAGOS- A former two-term Lagos lawmaker, Sir Jude Idimogu, has urged Sen. John Azuta-Mbata, the new President-General of Ohaneze Ndigbo Worldwide to make Igbo voice heard in Nigeria’s political circles.

Idimogu, who represented Oshodi-Isolo Constituency II in the Lagos State House of Assembly between 2015 and 2023, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Lagos.

The lawmaker, who is also Deputy Apex Leader, Ndigbo in Lagos State APC, said that the new leadership of the Igbo apex socio-cultural organisation had a lot to do to change political narrative for Igbos in Nigeria.

Congratulating the newly elected leader on successful election, Idimogu said: “I challenge you (Azuta-Mbata) to ensure that Igbos are heard in the highest level of Nigeria’s politics .

“I challenge you to bring Igbos together for them to have a formidable voice. It is high time Igbos also had a meaningful say in the activities in the nation, politically .

“We cannot continue to complain of marginalisation or sit on the fence.

“We should take steps and move forward to support whoever we think will take Igbo matters seriously, and those that will have Igbos objectives and goodness in their minds.”

The former lawmaker said he hoped the new leader of Ohaneze Ndigbo would surpass the achievements of the past leaders of the group.

He said the election of Azuta-Mbata, who hails from Rivers, showed that there were a lot of Igbos outside the South East.

“The President-General’s primary duty is to represent the interests of all Igbo people within and outside of Nigeria,” Idimogu said.

NAN recalls that Azuta-Mbata, a former Senator, who represented Rivers East at the National Assembly from 1999 to 2007, emerged the new President-General of the Pan-Igbo socio-cultural group at its meeting in Enugu on Friday.

His election followed the demise of Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, the immediate past president of the organisation, who died on July 25, 2024 at age 82 and was buried on Nov. 1, 2024. (NAN)