OJUKWU, THE STAR THAT ECLIPSED ALL STARS IN NIGERIA FIRMAMENT - FEMI KAYODE

"He was a man that inspired such loyalty and courage by his very presence. He was a man that risked everything for the lives and liberty of his people. He stood firm when others ran. He was a great and a proud warrior. A true son of Africa. The strength and pride of the Igbo race. Ojukwu has fallen yet he lives. He is buried, yet what he stood for, the Aburi declaration included, is not buried with him. Those ideals shall live and endure forever and shall be manifested in our lifetime no matter how hard the Nigerian state tries to deny or resist them. The right to self-determination, the freedom to live in peace with our values and cultural identity, unmolested and intact even in a multi-religious and multi-cultural state, the right to be free from genocide, ethnic cleansing, religious persecution and tribal bigotry and oppression and the right to live in a country where all people are equal regardless of their state of origin, religious persuasion or ethnic identity are ideals that Ojukwu symbolised and fought for during the civil war and indeed throughout his life. These values and principles live and are not dead and buried with him. He stood firm and fought hard for his people when it mattered the most. The father of Biafra. He was a man of great courage, strength and vision. What an extraordinary and noble heritage that Ojukwu represents. Nothing else counts." Icheoku says Femi Fani-Kayode has once again delivered and we accordingly applaud and concur. Like Jesus declared, "it is finished!"