Orluzurumee, the apex socio-cultural organisation of Orlu Zone in Imo State, says it will not rush into endorsing either Owerri or Okigwe Zone ahead of the 2027 governorship election, insisting that its recognition of the Imo Charter of Equity does not amount to surrendering Orlu’s right to independently determine who should succeed Governor Hope Uzodimma.
Ugochukwu Nzekwe, president-general of Orluzurumee worldwide, stated this at a press conference in Owerri while presenting the organisation’s position on the Charter of Equity and the 2027 governorship succession. Nzekwe said Orlu recognises the charter as an instrument for promoting fairness, political accommodation, stability and peaceful rotation of the governorship among the three senatorial zones — Orlu, Owerri and Okigwe.
He recalled that the Imo State Council of Elders adopted the charter in 2023, while Uzodimma, an indigene of Orlu and the incumbent governor, publicly expressed his commitment to its implementation. However, he said Orlu’s status as the zone currently occupying the governorship does not prevent it from exercising independent judgment on who should succeed the governor. “That distinction is fundamental,” Nzekwe said.
According to him, Orluzurumee has taken note of the consultations between Owerri and Okigwe over the 2027 succession but said the reported failure of the engagement to produce an identifiable consensus or mutually acceptable resolution makes any immediate declaration by Orlu inappropriate. “It would be premature, irresponsible and politically unwise for Orlu Zone to rush into declaring support for either of the two zones while the two principal claimants themselves have not arrived at a satisfactory understanding,” he said.
Nzekwe said Orluzurumee had also previously cautioned against interpreting positions expressed by some prominent Okigwe leaders in favour of Owerri as an automatic transfer of the political support of the entire Orlu Zone. “No zone should assume that Orlu’s support is automatic,” he said, adding that the zone would consider the credibility of any political arrangement, the character and competence of the leadership being proposed, the interests of Orlu and Imo State, as well as assurances and commitments emerging from the consultations.
The Orlu group said its present neutrality should not be mistaken for weakness, confusion or political inactivity. Nzekwe illustrated the position with an Igbo proverb, saying: “We cannot blindly enter a room that is unfamiliar to us in darkness. We will wait until there is light. When there is light, we shall see clearly.” He added that when the issues become clearer, Orluzurumee would speak “clearly and very loudly.”
The organisation appealed to leaders of Owerri and Okigwe to continue their dialogue in good faith, resolve their differences without rancour and place the broader interests of Imo above immediate political calculations. “Let them build consensus rather than seek to manufacture endorsement,” Nzekwe said, stressing that “Orlu Zone is not an appendage of either Owerri or Okigwe” but an equal and indispensable component of the Imo political family.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the position of Orluzurumee at this time is one of principled neutrality,” Nzekwe said. “We are not endorsing Owerri Zone. We are not endorsing Okigwe Zone. We are not closing the door to anyone.” He said the doors of consultation, dialogue and persuasion remained open, but “the door to premature endorsement is firmly closed”, adding that Orluzurumee would make its position known at the appropriate time, guided by equity, justice, peace, the interests of Orlu Zone and the greater good of Imo State.
