Culture Will Always Find its Way of Appreciating Goodwill, A Study of Chief Maurice Emeka Akueme as He is Conferred Ochendo and Ambassador of Unity in Enugu State

Culture Will Always Find its Way of Appreciating Goodwill, A Study of Chief Maurice Emeka Akueme as He is Conferred Ochendo and Ambassador of Unity in Enugu State

Culture Will Always Find its Way of Appreciating Goodwill, A Study of Chief Maurice Emeka Akueme as He is Conferred Ochendo and Ambassador of Unity in Enugu State

Conferment of Ochendo on Chief Maurice Emeka Akueme by HRH Igboeli Sixtus Kenechukwu Ndo Oha 1 of USA UNN under the leadership of Comr Mmaduabuchi Ifeanyi David – another feather on the cap of a spotless Tiger

Culture will always find its way of appreciating goodwill, just like in the old during the fight for independence by Nelson Mandela called “Madiba”, Kwame Nkrumah named “The Osagyefo” which means “The Redeemer”.

It could, therefore, follow that for any nomenclature suffix attached to a person, such a title must have its cultural and philosophical undertone and of course circumstantial originality.

As may not completely be ruled out, many persons who call Ochendo may not have bothered to ask what the meaning of Ochendo is.

Basically, Ochendo is an Igbo word which translates to protection and defence of life. It could be protection against the vagaries of weather, harsh socioeconomic conditions or inhumanity arising from man against man. In a literary simplified sense, the umbrella, rain-coat, rain-booth, various forms of generosity, philanthropy, liberation and defence symbolize Ochendo or as I have always preferred to put it; ‘Ochendoism’.

Ochendoism as a philanthropic gesture

It derives its thematic and moral suasion from the Igbo cosmological connotations of the word, “Ochendo”, as a protector and a defender.

The idea is encapsulated in the word. The Igbo of Eastern Nigeria speak word to action and hold the word as not only the conveyor of meaning but the carrier of character and destiny. The spoken word, to this race, is a sacred covenant which carries both spiritual and metaphysical underpinnings and which invariably influence the life and actions of the individual.

Igbos are careful about names for they are verdicts of destiny. By the time he was conferred the “Ochendo ûmûakwûkwô”; Chief Akueme, had already been into a covenant and a new destiny that has manifested in his own style of philanthropy. He has always remained the big umbrella accommodating all; the indigent, students, widows, youths, sick, old, poorest of the poor, protecting life and catering for the society.

As a peculiar historical progression, Ochendoism is a new norm of philanthropy and a new culture of caring as demonstrated by Chief Maurice Emeka Akueme in his adventures in Maurice Akueme Foundation. Simply defined, it is the philanthropy of rebirth, reunion and rebuilding (RRR); the philanthropy of the three Rs. It is an ethical imperative that saw an ordinary man healing a traumatised people and rebuilding a polarised and fractured society through his MAF.

These three ideals are translated in Akueme’s determination to alleviate, to palliate and to empower.

Indeed it was a surprise when the man Chief Maurice Emeka Akueme was invited to come up for his conferment, represented by his Media Chief Comr. Ikechukwu Chris Enemoh in company of Miss Agu Judith the personal assistant to Chief Maurice Akueme and another dedicated member of the Maurice Akueme Foundation to represent both the organization and Chief Akueme.

In a similar development as if the conference of Chieftaincy title was not enough, he was also given an outstanding award as “Ambassador of Unity in Enugu State” in appreciation of his numerous support to students especially those of Udi Local Government origin in form of Bursary, Scholarship, Palliative, Empowerment, etc.

Indeed you deserve this new title and award from the student community.

Kudos to the organizers of the Udi Students Association Cultural Day Celebration/Ofalla of Igwe Ndo Oha.

mafnationReporters

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