Obi of Onitsha, His Royal Majesty, Alfred Nnaemeka Achebe, Agbogidi, has called on Nigerians to care for the under-privileged in the society, as he commended the nation’s national carrier, Globacom for its efforts at re-awakening the cultural essence of the Nigerian people.
The Monarch made the remarks in Onitsha on Saturday at the beginning of this year’s Ofala Festival celebrations.
He encouraged Nigerians to always show love and concern to the less-privileged in Nigeria as such affection will give them a sense of belonging in the community.
Agbogidi, while calling on Nigerians to show more concern for the under-privileged in the society, said that in the course of his seclusion preceding the Ofala, he had communed with the ancestors and God to forgive the people’s communal misdeeds and give them a brighter and hopeful future.
Similarly, the highly revered King noted with delight that Globacom has supported the Oreze International Arts Exhibition as part of the Ofala celebrations in the last two years.
“For the second year running, our indigenous artists have mounted an international art exhibition in this palace as part of the Ofala Festival. The exhibition is showing works from some eighty artists from Nigeria, Ghana, Benin Republic, Togo, and Nigerian artists in the Diaspora. We are grateful to Globacom and the contributing artists for collaborating with the organisers of the exhibition since inception. We would like to thank all our sponsors for their continued support to make Ofala Onitsha second to none as a cultural festival. In particular, we thank Globacom Limited, which has been our main partner for the fourth consecutive year,” the monarch said.
Igwe Achebe commended the Federal Government for the robust and the systematic response to contain the Ebola endemic, adding that, but for the way it was managed, the virus could have caused unimaginable havoc in the country.
In his goodwill message to the festival, Chairman of Globacom, Dr. Mike Adenuga Jr. (GCON), said that the 2014 Ofala Festival “means a lot to us in the Globacom family as it signals the beginning of a new phase in our relationship with the Onitsha palace on Ofala Festival.”
“The 2014 festival commemorates the renewal of the partnership for another three years, and it is a confirmation of the abiding faith and implicit confidence Your Majesty and the good people of Onitsha have in us. We see and regard this as a call to greater responsibility, and I want to assure you all that we will not fail in this task of making Ofala one of the biggest and most celebrated festivals in this part of the universe,” Dr. Adenuga said.
The year 2014 Ofala Festival celebration was attended by many dignitaries, among whom were the Executive Governor of Anambra State, Chief Willy Obiano, Chief Ben Obi, who represented President Goodluck Jonathan, General Zamani Lekwot Rtd, Professors Ben Nwabueze, Chukwuemeka Ike and Ben Obunze, and Senator Joy Emordi, former Minister of Aviation, Mrs. Stella Oduah, the representatives of the Chief of Defence Staff, The Chief of Army Staff and a host of others.
