From Aloysius Attah, Onitsha
All is set for 2022 Ofala of Nnaemeka Achebe, Agbogidi Obi of Onitsha with President Muhammadu Buhari, governors of various states and other top personalities expected to attend the ceremony which also marks the monarch’s 20th anniversary on the throne.
The two-day events, marking the Ofala festival scheduled to hold on Saturday, October 22 and Sunday, October 23, are being jointly sponsored by Globacom and International Breweries Plc.
Chairman of the Ofala Steering Committee, Okey Areh, who disclosed this to newsmen, yesterday, at Ime Obi palace, Onitsha, explained that Achebe would use the occasion to celebrate a blissful thanksgiving ceremony for the 20th anniversary of his ascendancy to the throne as the reigning monarch, having ascended the throne of Ezechima 20 years ago precisely on May 14, 2002, which coincidentally was his 61st birthday.
Areh, the Onya Ozoma of Onitsha, further explained the ceremonies which would span two days – Iru Ofala for October 22 and the Azu Ofala for October 23, would be the high point of the Onitsha ceremonial cycle with Obi of Onitsha as the celebrant of the spectacle which he said is rooted in deep spirituality.
Areh, who further disclosed the Onicha Ado N’Idu kingdom would use the opportunity of the Ofala event to upgrade the annual event from mere Onitsha affair to the status of a major event in the Nigerian, and by extension in the West African cultural/tourism calendar, commended Globacom and International Breweries for partnering with the Onitsha Traditional Council since 2011.