BY AGNES NWORIE, ABAKALIKI
Some elderly Nigerians have called on the Federal Government to allow the wish and will of Nigerians to prevail by ensuring free, fair and credible conduct of the general elections in 2023.
These aged, who are the elders council of Ezza Ezekuna clan in Ebonyi State, made this call during the 2022 new yam festival of the clan, otherwise known as Okeaku Festival.
Okeaku festival is the cultural celebration in Ezza Ezekuna clan of the state which heralds consumption of new yam for the people.
Speaking in an interview with The Point at their ancestral home, Okpoku Ezekuna Ochionu in Ezza South Local Government Area, the elders led by the council chairman, Bartholomew Ugbo noted that free and fair elections would go a long way to address the challenges facing the nation.
Ugbo decried the incessant security threats witnessed in the nation and called for measures to ensure permanent stop.
The chairman who kicked against call for postponement of the general elections in some quarters, appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to support continuation of democratic system of government in Nigeria beyond 2023
Giving insights to the ceremony, he said, “Okeaku Festival is the New Yam Festival of Ezza Ezekuna people. It dates back to the days of Ezekuna, the progenitor of Ezza.
It is the first and the greatest cultural festival of the Ezza Ezekuna clan. It is a festival of unity. So, with this celebration, we have entered a new year culturally. Every Ezza man and woman is free to harvest and eat the new yam. Ezza needs unity, we call on all for unity of purpose. We all must unite for our progress as a people and Nigeria in general.
“As it concerns next year’s general elections, we pray that our leaders will allow justice to be done. President Muhammadu Buhari and all other powers that be should allow free and fair elections for the progress of the nation. It is time to allow votes to count. Imposition of candidates should stop. We believe that when a popular and generally accepted candidate wins, the nation will be redefined for our general good. There are fears of military takeover but we call on President Buhari to support continuous practice of democracy in its fullness in Nigeria.”
