Igbo Billionaire, Charles Odunukwe’s Leadership Quality Is Worthy Of Emulation—Chief Solomon Ogbonna Aguene, President, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Lagos
OpenLife Nigeria reports that as the question of Igbo leadership continues as daily debates, Chief Solomon Ogbonna Aguene, President, Ohanaeze Ndi-Igbo, Lagos, says Chief Charles Odunukwe, CEO, Colonades Hotels, Ikoyi, Lagos has the quality to lead the Igbo. He speaks to OpenLife at his private office in Ikoyi, Lagos
The issue of Igbo leadership and lack of unity have become the butt of discussions everywhere. In specific term, can you point out someone with credible leadership quality among the so many people you meet everyday?
We have quality leaders. But what we are suffering is the problem to make the right choice.
If Ndi-Igbo will agree with me, Chief Solomon Ogbonna Aguene, to give leadership to a person like Chief Charles Odunukwe, the problem of leadership of Ndi-Igbo will be reduced up to 70 percent.
And if Anambra State should have somebody like Odunukwe as governor, he is going to supersede my wonderful former governor Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State in the area of infrastructural development.
Politicians, don’t be angry with me. I am saying what I know. Dave Umahi did well as a governor. Nobody should play politics with the truth.
I did not receive one Naira from him throughout his governorship tenure. He has not been supporting my regime as Ohanaeze Ndigbo President, Lagos State.
However, that will not make me to down play his good work in Ebonyi State. The most important thing Ndi-Igbo need now is unity and togetherness. And I think Charles Odunukwe has the answer.
Charles Odunukwe has a quality that is very rare.
He reckons with the poor and he can eat with beggars even on the street. The Blue Orange end of the year party on Sunday, November 26 at his hotel, Colonade Hotel, confirmed that Ndi-Igbo billionaires that matter call him master.
Sometimes, I, Chief Solomon Ogbonna Aguene, ask myself how does Odunukwe make money?
I asked this question because of the level of sacrifice he makes by giving out his hotel including the event centre of free almost every weekend for Ndi-Igbo in Lagos.
And this is happening in a State where he does not have any political ambition.
One other area Charles Odunukwe is good is his respect for elders and leaders.
I know that a lot of people will be surprised that I, Chief Solomon Ogbonna Aguene, is talking about Odunukwe.
This is because few of our people who have no job apart from Igbo association especially Ohanaeze Ndi-Igbo to survive, once they feel that you are going to be a blockage to them from going to Odunukwe to beg for money or any other favour including other personalities, they will cause problem between you and the person with their venoms which is blackmail.
But I want to take this opportunity to let people know that I, Chief Solomon Ogbonna Aguene, fought Charles Odunukwe for over four years as my opposition in Ohanaeze Ndi-Igbo, Lagos because we are in different camps.
He is my very good friend. We travel to east together and I stay, most time, in his family house in Oraukwu, Anambra State.
Both of us had left his family house to Abiriba for Professor Anya Oko Anya’s 80th birthday. That period was when Odunukwe stood on his feet that I will be his vice in Aka Ikenga.
But when I decided to contest Ohanaeze Ndi-Igbo president, Lagos State, against Tony Nwakaeze, who was our provost at Aka Ikenga, Charles Odunukwe supported him. I felt that it was because I am not from Anambra State.
But I knew Nwakaeze earlier before then. I knew that he is a man that boasts, trying to position and make himself superior above those who are better than him.
But , I have nothing to worry about because I knew I would win Nwakaeze with wide margin which I did.
In success and leadership quality including contacts of Anambra people and beyond, the distance I gave Nwakaeze is like the distance between Lagos and Maiduguri till date. Tomorrow may be a different story. God knows.
I was not afraid in that 2018 election of Ohanaeze. But above all, 95 percent of Anambra people voted for me. Nwakaeze is a professional in the area of boasting. He is known for that, no doubt.
Sometimes, he challenges me in public and I will laugh at him because those who knew the way he was campaigning against me will understand why he is angry of himself anytime he sees me.
The way I defeated him where he got 201 votes and I got 401 votes with all his campaign of calumny against me is enough for him to be furious against himself.
So, I, Chief Solomon Ogbonna Aguene; President Tinubu; governor Uzodinma of Imo State and others that courts have given power through judgement with Certified True Copy, the best anyone can do for himself is just to seat down and watch until the tenure elapses. Anything outside that becomes foolishness.
But anyway, the good thing is that I, Chief Solomon and Charles Odunukwe have realized that it is politics and not enmity especially during the burial of Ugochukwu Offodile {Ayola}.
The way Charles Odunukwe took it upon himself to organize the burial of my very good friend, Ayola, proved him beyond doubt that he is a born leader.
Now to the main business, if someone like Charles Odunukwe becomes governor, the South East governors forum will have automatic meaning because he knows how to unit people.
When south east governors forum is united, Ndigbo generally will begin to enjoy dividends of democracy without minding what comes or happens at the federal level.
This is because, we have everything but the only problem of Ndigbo today is that we don’t have a capable leader. Leadership is about sacrifice, wisdom, native intelligence, common sense and practical exercise that people under your leadership will see, touch and taste.
That is what Igbo man believes and Charles Odunukwe has all these qualities listed above. I say it time and time that Anambra State is the pride of Ndigbo. Anyone that counters this statement is just doing so out of jealousy and envy
Another man I respect so much for his connection with common people both small and big is Chidi Anyaegbu,{Chisco} and his friend Mike Umeh and few others.
These are billionaires that you can call one O’ clock in the night and as far as the phone is with them, they would answer you and respond to your problem no matter how poor you are while some people who have achieved success feel that answering the phone calls of someone they are better than is a great favour.
Since I became the President, Ohanaeze Ndi-Igbo Lagos State, I know what Charles Odunukwe has done for Ohanaeze National, Enugu especially in the area of finance.
His financial contributions to Ohanaeze affairs during the regime of John Nnia Nwodo as president general is above 60 percent. Majority of our leaders in Ohanaeze national are not interested in the welfare of Ndi-Igbo .
They are more interested in politicians that will recognize them with envelops as dividends.
Some of them have no job. Some are retired and tired. Some come to Odunukwe’s hotel and they would not want to go back to Enugu, which is the headquarters of Ohanaeze because he gives the rooms free. Most of these our old men are very good in compiling profiles from 1955 till date.
Then, they would mention all the countries they have visited including the schools they attended and were prefects. They will even extend the narratives by telling the story of Biafra war more Odimegwu Ojukwu.
They call themselves leaders of Ndi-Igbo. It is laughable.
You asked them a simple question: What are the benefits for Ndi-Igbo in all these profile you are exhibiting?
No answer.
Why I am bold is that as a born leader, I have western world approach by nature, telling people the truth so that they can change. Above all, I have never experienced poor man’s life.
Even Charles Odunukwe I am talking about , I have never asked him for a favour of any kind.
I have never gotten a penny or ask him for a free hall in any of my events since the beginning of my regime as Ohanaeze President till date. I cannot ask for what I already have.
That is my nature and that is why you cannot see me pestering on anyone in the name of leadership.
Charles Odunukwe is making Ndigbo proud in Lagos and beyond.
Why I am lamenting that we don’t have leadership is that the first week governor Hope Uzodinma got judgment against Emeka Ihedioha, 70 percent of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Enugu called Uzodinma all sorts of names under Nnia Nwodo leadership.
They castigated him and said he came number four in the election and his governorship cannot never fly.
Today, they are licking his shoes.
When the Ohanaeze election that brought late professor George Obiozor to power approached, they found a way to go through Obiozor as an old man and penetrated Uzodinma and began praise singing because of money.
Today, professor Obiozor is no more. They are happy that they have established themselves with governor Uzodinma, telling him what he will like to hear so that they will get money
Sometimes, they will divide themselves. The first group will go to the governor to tell him lies. The second group will go there and confirm the lies of the first set to be truth. It is not only Hope Uzodinma they are playing the game with. They do it to other governors.
It is only former Ebonyi State governor, Dave Umahi who was very smart to understand their tricks and left them early with their stories before his tenure elapsed. It is a shame. We have no leader in Igbo land at the moment. Most of them are above 70 years.
But I am not complaining about their age but many of them have no leadership quality while few that have are not allowed to work by the the greedy ones. The president of Ohanaeze Ndigbo world wide, Chief Emmanuel Nwanyanwu is a very good man.
But there are so many fake old men around him. Their main purpose is to see how many times Nwanyanwu can lead them to seat with governor because they are sure that they will not go home with money from governor as kola and not what they can do to improve the situation of Ndigbo in Nigeria.
Example, Professor Obiozor was in the mortuary, his deputy from Rivers State, was also in mortuary.
So, Ndigbo, don’t we have young men again that will take over the leadership of Ndigbo?
Ndigbo, our prayers should be that God should give us someone like Charles Odunukwe, the Anambra billionaire, either as a governor or general leader of Ndigbo.
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