Ogirisi Igbo dissociates self from fake AIYO members

The Ogirisi Igbo, Chief Rommy Ezeonwuka has disassociated himself from a group of youths who claim to be Association of Igbo Youths (AIYO), who go about causing trouble in the state.

Ezeonwuka in a statement, said AIYO members who operate outside the guidelines establishing the group are considered as outcasts.

 “Chief Ralph Uwazurike is somebody I hold dearly. And he has ofo Nri Ijele as Igbo leader. Both AIYO and MASSOB are Igbos. He is a man who has the Igbo agenda close to his heart. I am Ogirisi Igbo who also does the spiritual aspect of putting good things in Igbo land.  I want the public to know that the Ogirisi guidelines under which an Igbo youth must adhere to stands. Those that go outside these guidelines are not AIYO members and are considered as outcast. We established this association so to put a stop on dangerous behaviors by our youths. Harassing of law-abiding citizens is not an Igbo trait.  The Igbo youth is suppose to protect the lives and property of every law-abiding citizen living in Igbo land. The youths must obey the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and ensure that government and individual projects are protected by partnering with law enforcement agencies to arrest and prosecute whoever disrupts the laws of the land. This is what AIYO stand for and we must not allow some few miscreants to derail our unity and love for one another. Those who are fomenting trouble under the name AIYO are going against the principle of the association. There are groups that make up the body of this association and members hold dearly the guidelines on which the group was founded and whenever this groups want the association to wind up it will be over. I did not put an association in place for anybody to serve me. The trend of events has shown that something is wrong somewhere,” he said.

He said the AIYO forbids its members to involve in extortion, intimidation, illegal detention, beating or flogging, reprisal attack, mob action, and illegal seizure of people’s properties, while warning that any member caught practicing such is on his own and may see himself as an outcast.

“The conduct of Igbo youth under Ogirisi must be the example of how the Nigerian youth must behave. They should engage themselves in skill acquisition for their daily living and at all times give information to law enforcement agencies in order to flush out criminals. I call on the elite and Igbo stakeholders to look into youths’ restiveness, which I believe has gone beyond control and reflect on the reason why this is happening. I have earlier warned that Igbo must perform the burial ceremony of those souls who perished during the Biafra war. The wondering spirits have not yet transcended to the beyond because of failure to performing the burial rites. We are now faced with too much hatred, disunity, fighting, kidnapping and armed robbery. The only way forward for peace and love to reign in Igbo land is to perform the general burial ceremony of all souls that died in Igbo land,” he said.