Top Igbo personalities, on Saturday, filed out in Enugu to eulogise the late President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, during the night of tributes, urging the Federal government to immortalize the late politician.
They also appealed to the government to release the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
It was a grand but solemn event tagged “Enugu Day of Tributes” and the South-East leg of the national tributes and farewell songs in honour of the industrialist and newspaper publisher, who passed on in July at the age of 81.
The strident calls and appeals came as various speakers of Igbo extraction at the service of songs/tributes, including the Umuada Igbo Nigeria and in Diaspora, the umbrella body of Igbo Women, joined in the call on the Federal government to release Nnamdi Kanu from the custody of the Departments of State Security (DSS).
According to them, releasing Kanu was Iwuanyanwu’s last assignment from where he passed-on. They, thus, urged President Bola Tinubu to give Iwuanyanwu his last wish by releasing Kanu, while also seeking the immortalization of the late Ohanaeze P-G.
The various speakers noted that Chief Iwuanyanwu was a full Nigerian by all standards of nationalism, patriotism, and statesmanship.
The President-General and founder of Umuada Igbo Nigeria and Diaspora, Kate Ezeofor, said: “May God bless President Bola Tinubu as you oblige us with the immortalizing of Chief Dr. Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu and releasing of Nnamadi Kanu from DSS custody.”
Enugu State governor, Mr. Peter Mbah, described the late Iwuanyanwu as an Iroko and a bridge-builder, noting that he fostered unity each time there was trouble.
“He possessed remarkable work ethics, and he left a profound impression on me. He was a trailblazer in the media, sports, industry, engineering, and aviation. He was indeed ahead of his time,” Mbah eulogized.
Former Governor of Ebonyi State, Dr Sam Egwu, in his own tribute, said that Iwuanyanwu was a great man with a great frame and personality, acknowledging that Iwuanyanwu’s actions distinguished his personality.
A former President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Garry Igariwey, described Iwuanyanwu as a man who had a strong belief in the Igbo ethnic group, adding that the late icon was great in every sense of greatness.
“We crave the indulgence of the late Iwuanyanwu to ask Mr. President to please heed the call and release Mazi Kanu,” Igariwey pleaded.
The Secretary-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Ambassador Okey Emuchay, recalled that Iwuanyanwu never failed to tell his Biafra story and his civil war sojourn.
Prof Uche Azikwe, wife of the first President of Nigeria, the late Nnamdi Azikiwe, joined in the plea to the Federal government to immortalize Chief Iwuanyanwu.