The campaign by Owerri Zone for the 2027/2028 Imo governorship has run into a major hurdle in Okigwe Zone, where prominent stakeholders questioned both the interpretation and acceptability of the so-called Charter of Equity.
The position emerged during a consultation by leaders of Owerri Zone United with Okigwe stakeholders at the country home of Chief Tony Chukwu, Umueze I, Ehime Mbano LGA, on August 16, 2026.
The Owerri delegation, led by its Coordinating Chairman, Prince Charles Amadi, appealed to Okigwe Zone to support the emergence of an Owerri governor in 2027/2028, arguing that the arrangement was in keeping with the Imo Charter of Equity as declared by the State Elders Council. He argued that this would strengthen political understanding among the three senatorial zones.
Among the prominent Owerri leaders at the meeting were former Minister and Ambassador Lady Kema Chikwe, Senator Ezenwa Onyewuchi, Deputy Governor Lady Chinyere Ekomaru, Prince Marcon Nlemigbo and HRH Eze Fred Nwachukwu, alongside other political, traditional and community leaders.
In his response, on behalf of Okigwe zone, a former President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Nze Fidelis Ozichukwu Chukwu, referred to an earlier position attributed to Governor Hope Uzodimma, saying the Governor had asked the Owerri leadership to engage the people of Okigwe on the question of the next governorship. Ozichukwu then asked the Owerri delegation whether their visit was in fact the proposed engagement with Okigwe or whether they had simply come to seek support for the Owerri project.
That question set the tone for Ozichukwu’s broader interrogation of the Charter. He acknowledged that a document advocating rotation of the governorship among the three senatorial zones exists, but questioned whether its interpretation and implementation truly satisfy the principle of equity and inclusivity.
He further maintained that it would be difficult for the Okigwe stakeholders present to take or endorse a position on behalf of the entire zone when some of its foremost political leaders, including former Governor H E. Ikedi Ohakim and Prof. Maurice Iwu among many others were conspicuously absent.
Other notable Okigwe leaders at the meeting included HRH Eze Oliver Ohanwe Chairman Okigwe Global Elders Forum, Chief Tony Chukwu, Hon. Dr. Gloria Akobundu, Rt. Hon. Ike C. Ibe, Bishop Godson Ukanwa, Prof. Nnamdi Obiaraeri, Prof. Ossy Nwebo, Prof. Dede Konkwo, Barr. Ifeanyi Agwu, Dr. Ezechi Chukwu, HRH, Eze Osondu, Chairman Okigwe Council of Ndi Eze and his Secretary HRH Eze Dan Emereonye. Others are Hon. Barr. Chris Okewulonu, Sir Bright Nwachukwu, Bishop Athan Azubuike, Rt. Hon. Maxwell Duru, Rt. Hon. Kennedy Ibe and Ambassador Eddy Onuoha, among many others.
The exchange left a clear impression that the Charter, as presented by Owerri delegation, does not enjoy an undisputed or authentic consensus across the three zones. More significantly, the reaction from the Okigwe people at the meeting clearly indicated that the zone does not in any way accept the Charter as a basis for the next governorship election.
Rather than producing the endorsement sought by the Owerri delegation, the engagement appeared to have opened a fresh debate over the meaning of equity, the extent of consensus behind the Charter and whether Okigwe people have actually subscribed to the arrangement being presented in its name.
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