Igwe Chidume marks 1st Ofala, foresees economically viable community

The rich culture of Omor, in Anyamelum Local Government Area of Anambra State, was again on display recently, when His Royal Highness, Igwe Chris Oranu Chidume, Eze Ana-Ukwu, Eze Igulube of Omor Kingdom, marked his 1^st Ofala Festival.

Ndi Nze Omor, Omor supreme elders’ council, Ndi ichie, royal cabinet council and the entire good people of Omor, came out en masse with cultural dances and masquerades to celebrate Ofala with their chosen Igwe, who has restored peace and harmony in the community, within one year of ascending the throne.

Obi of Onitsha, His Royal Majesty, Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe, also led about 25 members of the Anambra Traditional Rulers Council to witness the event.

Before the emergence of Igwe Chidume, Omor was without a traditional ruler for 10 years. The community within those 10 years was divided along political lines, thereby making development difficult.

However, the emergence of Igwe Chidume, has restored peace and engendered development in the community.

Omor, now hosts one of the biggest rice milling plants in the country, which is managed by JOSAN Agro-Allied Limited, a public Private Partnership (PPP) initiative between Joseph Agro-Allied Limited and Anambra State Government.

His Royal Highness, Igwe Oranu Chris Chidume, through the instrumentality of his office, has also rehabilitated roads in the community, provided electricity and ensured that his people enjoy portable water.

Everybody now speaks with one voice and the community is progressing, says Francis Onwuachi, “Ichie Chinechendo of Omor”, a legal practitioner, from Isiokwe Orenja, Omor.

“Omor has not had it so good.  We have never experienced this kind of gathering in our community in the past 10 years, because of rancor among the people.

Onwuachi, who is a member of Igwe’s cabinet, explained that Igwe Chidume, within his first year on the throne, has rehabilitated the community’s roads, provide electricity and ensured that his people enjoy portable water, which successive governments in the State said was impossible, despite the fact that the community is blessed with a (Owushi) waterfall.

According to him, the previous administration in the State, mounted overhead tanks in the community, but could not get water, but the Igwe has made it possible. He has engaged a drilling firm that would use the overhead tank to reticulate water to the four quarters of Omor.

He revealed also that Igwe Chidume is discussing with two commercial banks, to set up branches in Omor, to support fresh investments in rice production.

“Igwe has been able to bring everybody in Omor together, from the top to the least, including Justice Obidigwe, a retired chief judge of Anambra State, who is a member of Igwe’s Elders Council, Peter Obuasi, the first medical doctor in the entire Anyamelum and Ikechukwu Onyeabo, a well respected politician in this area, and so many others.

“Omor has come together more than ever before and it is for our good”, he stated.

He appealed to members of the community to support the Igwe, noting that he has the capacity and will to develop Omor.  “Our neighbouring communities will now know that we have a leader”.

Mocha Joseph, Ichie ka Ibeya, one of Igwe Chidume’s 50 cabinet members, described the Ofala, as fantastic and one of a kind in the history of Omor Kingdom.

“We see this as a starting point and a good beginning. We have the type of Igwe that is worthy for Omor people. Omor is a large community and we needed a gifted person to lead us and God has giving us a exceptional person.

“If our Igwe was a student, he would have been described, as an exceptional child, a child, who measures above others. Our Igwe measures above others and he has made a good start.

“He has conferred titles on his 50 cabinet members. He is a hardworking Igwe, a humble Igwe, a royal father, who cares for the progress of his community”.

Igwe Chidume, a successful entrepreneur explained that he accepted to mount the throne of his fore-fathers to render service to his people.

According to him, the journey so far has been one filled with a lot of experiences, geared towards bringing development, providing platforms, where every Omor person would have a sense of belonging, particularly as it relates to their core competencies and shared beliefs that people in a community should relate with one another.

He explained that the community has made remarkable achievements in the direction of building a community, where people live peacefully among themselves, within one year on the throne, as the traditional ruler of Omor that the community.

He noted that he achieved this, through brokering peace among individuals, both intra and inter communities, which if neglected, would have resulted to something serious. “This brought peace and love for one another, which the throne advocates.

“In the same spirit of unity, we have successfully inaugurated high caliber professionals into the supreme elder’s council and the royal cabinet council. Members of these councils were drawn from the four quarters that make up the community.

“Within the period, we embarked on a total overhaul and rehabilitation of dilapidated electrical installations that supplied electricity to the community, while at the same time, commenced plans on provision of potable water to the community, through sinking boreholes, among other projects.

He enjoined men of goodwill to join hands with him to making Omor, a united, peaceful and harmonious town.

Igwe explained that typical Omor man is hardworking, bold, fearless and honest in pursuing a cause he has interest, stressing that the community needs to harness these strengths with the aim of raising a populace, whose impact would be of global relevance.

“This we can achieve through human capital development by provision of quality education, access to health facilities, potable water, access roads and other infrastructural development of the town”.

He called on the state and federal governments, to provide infrastructure in rural communities to reduce rural-urban migration, noting that introducing the people to agriculture with a sustainable enticement, would go a long way in stimulating agriculture value chain, which is one of the core pillars of the government of the day in Anambra State.

He further observed that agrarian communities in Nigeria, just like Omor, with a bubbling youthful population, are usually faced with challenges of the youths indulging in illicit and hard substances and other social vices.

The youth according to Igwe Chidume are the strength and future hope of any nation and urged government to see to their wellbeing, through positive engagement of their potentials.

He stated that his cabinet in partnership with a non-governmental organisation (NGOs), some social organisations and the elders of the community are working out strategies that can stem the tide of the plague of these unfortunate phenomena.

Omor hosts the Lower Anambra-Imo River Basin Development Authority, which is an important Federal Government project in rice value chain, consequently, Igwe Chidume hopes that farmers in the community would engage in three-season per year rice farming, when the farm is resuscitated.

He stressed that resuscitation of the farm would create a multiplying effect on the economy of the community and its neighboring towns and expedite federal government’s resolve in stopping rice importation.

In his words, “The good news here is that the off taker of this rice, JOSAN Rice Mill and Farm, who acquired the giant mill, whose annual rice production capacity is estimated to be around 50,000 metric tons, the biggest rice milling plant in Nigeria, will not be lacking input.

“Going by the capacity of this giant mill and other rice milling plants around, with other viable ventures springing up around Omor and Ayamelum, like the Gas project being undertaken, by Ibeto Group in Omasi, I see an economically viable Omor and Ayamelum.

“These are clear justifications of the expediency of bringing in a commercial bank, who will tap into the economic potentials of these enterprises around Omor and Ayamelum.

“Consequent upon that, it’s time we beckoned on our state governor, Wille Obiano, to bring your political will to bear in positioning a commercial bank in Omor”.

He also appealed to the federal government to rehabilitate roads in Anyamelum Local Government Area, especially, the Otuocha-Omor-Adani road to allow movement of farm produce from the area to other parts of the country.

His Royal Highness, Igwe Chidume, affirmed that opening up the area, would unblock the economic fortunes of the region and further encourage inter-regional exchange of goods and services and bring boom in both agricultural and commercial activities in these communities and beyond, thereby discouraging rural-urban migration.

He commended Governor Obiano’s leadership in Anambra State, stating that people are enjoying the peace and development, which his government has brought to the State.

“I commend the government of Anambra State under your leadership for the giant strides in actualizing a better Anambra, using your “Four Pillars of Development”-Aggressive Mechanized Agriculture, Oil and Gas, Trade and Commerce and Industrialization.

He appealed to the South Eastern Governors to raise a think tank that will fashion out modality of instituting an integrated and synergic economic programme for South East, whose core mandate will be identifying the core opportunities that should be explored such as integrated railway systems, natural gas pipelines, etc with a view of taking a readiness position in receiving their brothers and sisters, who may likely heed to the think-home philosophy.

Omor

Omor is a community in Ayamelum Local Government Area of Anambra State adjudged to be one of the most populous communities in the state with a productive agrarian population.

The community, which sits ashore the Omambala River, has an arable land and good vegetation which makes the town reputable for production of rice and a variety of other agricultural produce, such as yam, cassava, maize, Okra, vegetables, among other cash crops.

The town is made up of four quarters, namely: Orenja, Akanator, Aturia and Amikwe with several villages and kindreds under them.

Tradition

In as much as colonialism altered the culture and tradition of the community, by infusing elements of practices alien to their belief, an Omor man, just like any other Igbo man, had a well-defined culture. His thoughts, actions, behaviour and general disposition were guided, by natural laws.

Today, Omor has come to a point where its people are witnessing changing times, brought about by globalisation and industrialisation. Consequently, these changes are gradually affecting the tradition and the way they relate with one another.

Nevertheless, they still recognise the fact that before you have a harmonious community co-existence, you must have respect for rule of law. You must understand why the next person must exist.

The community has overtime, nurtured this tradition as a norm, which is an inherent principle taught by every religion.

This tradition according to Igwe Chidume, has also made the people to have identity as having evolved from somewhere and not just as a group of persons perceived to have originated from the bush, as some western scholars posit. “We can only imagine how we would be regarded assuming some of our traditions and ingenious inventions of our people were not conserved”, Igwe queried.

The three-day Ofala festival started with a press briefing, tagged “Omor In focus”, which was attended by His Royal Highness Igwe Onuora Onwuneli, Eze Malume 1 of Igbakwu, Igwe Benjamin Okeji, Eze Diorannma of Omasi, who is also the chairman Anyamelum Traditional Rulers Council, Eze Chidubem Simeon, Igwe Aboor of Umunbo, Eze Nwuneli Elias, Igwe Gbauchara and His Royal Highness, Igwe Ofokansi, Igwe Udo of Anam.

One of the high points of the event was the conferment of titles to 50 cabinet members, by Igwe Chidume, which was unprecedented in the history of the community.