Mrs Onyung made the appeal in a press release, even as she also urged the Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIGP) Zone 2 Command, Lagos State to ignore the petition purportedly written by Obasi.
In the said letter being circulated by Obasi and his group, they alleged that the name and logo of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos State are being used in the organization and promotion of a football tournament without the approval of the Executive of the organization. Consequently they petitioned the Assistant Inspector General of Police Onikan, Lagos to make sure that the football tournament does not take place under the name of Ohanaeze.
The petition which has
the screaming headline: ‘Disclaimer Disclaimer
Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos State and ST. Eve Concept’ read in part”
The attention of
Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos State Executive have been drawn to a football tournament
advertisement been circulated on the social media and Television stations. The
state executive of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos State hereby dissociate itself from
the football tournament. The organisers of the football tournament are not
known to the executive members.
Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos State does not have any contract agreement with ST. Eve Concept to sponsor or participate in any football tournament. The public and Ndigbo at large are warned not to participate in such fraud.
The security agencies are to stop any football tournament under any guise that
associates with Ohanaeze Ndigbo or her trade mark logo and arrest anyone or
group of persons involved.
Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos
State is committed to providing support services for Ndigbo in Lagos and will
not allow scammers to defraud our people.
The letter was then signed by Robert Obasi, Secretary General, Ohanaeze Ndigbo
Lagos State, the man who declared himself president.
Mrs Onyung in her
rebuttal disclosed that the Executive of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos State was duly
notified about the plans to organize a football tournament using Ohanaeze
structure.
According to her, a
letter written by ST. Eve Concept, organisers of the Football Tournament, and
addressed and dated July 7, 2023 was sent to the Executive. The said letter
allegedly brought notice of the football tournament to the Executive soliciting
their collaboration.
To proof her point she presented
the letter from St. Eve to the media:
The letter which was dated 7th
July, 2023 read in part:
The President, Ohanaeze Ndi-Igbo,
Lagos State, No.1 Don Onyekachi Street, Ogudu GRA, Lagos.
INTRODUCTION AND REQUEST TO USE
OHANAEZE NDI-IGBO LAGOS STRUCTURE FOR ST. EVE FOOTBALL TALENT HUNT
The above subject matter referred,
St Eve Concepts Ltd, is a consulting firm incorporated with Cooperate Affairs
Commission as a limited liability Company. We pride ourselves with human
capital development through creation of programmes that enhance and develop
organizations and communities. Our team, through our uncommon strategies and
audacious nature came up with an iconic project to discover and develop
football talents across all the 20 Local government Areas of Lagos State
through Ohanaeze Ndi-Igbo structure. Football unarguably has become a goldmine,
considered as the most prominent among all sports across the globe. Our idea is
to harness the heaped and undiscovered football talents domiciled in our local
communities and bring them to applicable height in the soccer career.
The letter went ahead to state some
of the benefits of the tournament and the nature of collaboration sort from
Ohanaeze. “This league will unify us immensely
both among ourselves and other tribes. This will enhance Ohanaeze as an
organization in Lagos State. With the heated tension of the Igbophobia going on
in Lagos State, a project like this is well needed. We will improve and
give our younger generations of football enthusiasts a sense of belonging. New
talents can be harnessed and coached to be future stars in the international
playing field. Ohanaeze will be seen as organization adding value to the Igbo
ideology in Lagos. This will remove the already ill sentimental thinking and
disappointment among the Igbos in Lagos.
“This investment in sports will
bring about a whole new value of the organization across board. More
flourishing ideas and other investment will spring up for both members and
investors alike. This competition can be held annually to make this Ohanaeze
exco regime one of the best in the history of the organization.
“We propose the competition begins
from the month of a July as the schools are preparing for the long vacation in
the country. This will be like a boot camp for the kids of the desired ages.
With a month coaching and playing the game next month and before the new school
year begins in September. We request for you and your excos to give a preferred
date for a formal presentation on this project. This will accord the
opportunity to explain verbally how the project will run to a successful completion,”
the letter read.
According to the Initiator of the
Football Tournament, the executive of Ohanaeze Lagos State was duly informed
about the tournament. She said “The Letter said 7th of July, it
was just a month after the letter was sent, not hearing from them we thought
they were with us and we invited the President for a press conference and he
came. So the president did not go against any of the organization’s law, by the
way, there is a company, a consultant who brought up the initiative, and
decided to use Ohanaeze structure, Ohanaeze is not funding it and the
tournament has a sponsor, it has nothing to do with using Ohanaeze fund or
idea, it is not as if we stole money from Ohanaeze.”
Our source also revealed that the
secretary has no authority to push out letter on behalf of Ohanaeze without the
signature of the president, hence his petition to the AIGP is null and void and
of no effect. “The secretary does not have the right to send out a letter
without he president’s signature appended on the letter. This letter is even
null and void, because it doesn’t have the appendage of the president. First of
all we are not even going to honour the letter because he is not the president,
and he has no right to sign a letter without the president’s signature.
“But for reference purposes, a
letter was sent to the exco and was read to the exco, so you can’t say the exco
didn’t know about it, and by the way you are not the only exco, and in any
other organization, the secretary is not the only exco and does not have the
right to write a letter without the endorsement of the president. As far as
Ndigbo are concerned that letter is null and void, they are only fanning the
embers of discord,” our source said.
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