Enugu State Governor, Dr Peter Mbah, on Tuesday paid a working visit to the newly constructed Ohanaeze Ndigbo World Headquarters on Park Avenue, Enugu GRA, as the landmark facility enters its final phase of construction ahead of a scheduled handover in October.
Governor Mbah, accompanied by a select group of journalists, was received at the site by former Imo State Governor, Owelle Rochas Anayo Okorocha, who is personally funding and delivering the headquarters as a gift to the Igbo nation.
The duo toured the expansive facility, inspecting the twin auditoriums, administrative offices, library, and the underground level.
Speaking during the inspection tour, Okorocha emphasised that the project was conceived to provide a permanent and befitting institutional home for the apex socio-cultural organisation.
”Ndigbo are a strong people. That has never been in question, in this country or anywhere else in the world we have gone. My prayer has always been that our institutions would be as strong as our people.
“Ohanaeze Ndigbo carries the aspirations of millions of us, and a body carrying that weight must sit somewhere equal to the task. That is what this place is. When it is done and in their hands, the question that matters is what we decide, in rooms like this one, about the next fifty years,” Okorocha stated.
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Spanning over 3,000 square metres in the historical capital of the old Eastern Region, the world headquarters is equipped to handle the diverse demands of the organisation.
It features twin raked auditoriums designed with advanced acoustic treatment to accommodate full assemblies without external equipment.
The facility also houses 11 offices, an executive office for the President General with adjoining secretarial space, two conference rooms, an interactive audiovisual library for both print and digital archives, and a subterranean creative art space serving as a permanent working gallery for Igbo history and craft.
Design and execution of the project are being handled by Walsh Blanc, an integrated spatial design and experiential architecture practice and subsidiary of the UL Group, under the leadership of its Managing Director, Mrs. Uloma Rochas Nwosu.
Okorocha reiterated that the facility transcends any political office he has held, noting that his vision is for the building to outlast every name attached to it, including his own.
With construction in its concluding stages, the state-of-the-art complex is slated to be formally handed over to Ohanaeze Ndigbo for full use in October.