Lingering Crisis in Ahiara Catholic Diocese: Mbaise monarchs beg Okorocha to intervene.

Prominent Traditional Rulers from Mbaise led by the Deputy Chairman of the State Council of Traditional Rulers for Owerri zone, and Chairman Mbaise Council of Traditional Rulers, HRM Eze Chidume Okoro, political leaders from the area led by Nze Patrick C. Onuoha and the foremost socio-cultural organization of the area, Ezurezu Mbaise led by its president-general Chief Nnamdi Cajetan at the weekend, met with governor Rochas Okorocha at the Government House, Owerri. In their address which was presented by Eze Okoro, they appealed to the governor to quickly intervene in the lingering crisis that has engulfed the Ahiara Mbaise Catholic Diocese for years now over the posting of Bishop Peter Okpaleke as the substantive Bishop of the Diocese. They also thanked the governor for all the projects he had sited in Mbaise and also thanked him specifically for the free education programme which they said Mbaise people have benefitted from, more than other areas in the state judging from their population. They equally thanked him for locating a University in Mbaise and told him that Mbaise people love him and he should not take the unfriendly dispositions of few Mbaise sons against his government to mean that of Mbaise people. They told him that Mbaise people would remain grateful to him. The Mbaise leaders used the opportunity offered to them by the visit to invite the governor to the 2016 edition of Iriji Mbaise. In his response the governor assured that he would meet with all the parties involved in the Ahiara Mbaise Catholic Diocese crisis to see to the resolution of whatever is the bone of contention and regretted that a case of that nature involving the church could be allowed to linger for so long. He also reminded the Mbaise leaders that his administration has been exceptionally fair to their people both in terms of projects and in terms of appointments, and remarked that, apart from Mbaise people being the greatest beneficiaries of the free education programme of his administration, he is also building a University in the area because of the love he has for them. The governor reminded them that the Commissioner for Commerce & Industry, Chief Chidi Ibeh, the Economic Adviser, Chief Ike Njoku, his Chief Press Secretary, Sam Onwuemeodo, the Director of Ochiedike Diagnostic Centre, Dr. Ifeanyi Nwachukwu, the Director-General, Imo Foundation, Mrs. Esther Eke, Commissioner in ISOPADEC, Chief Pschal Nwogu, two newly appointed Permanent Secretaries, Chairman SUBEB, Dr. Mrs. Ejiogu, the Director-General of his Campaign Organization Barr. Iheukwumere Alaribe are all from Mbaise. According to him, more than forty percent of the students in the Owerri Rochas Foundation College are from Mbaise. He said he would not change his good impression about Mbaise people because of the unfortunate attitude of few politicians from the area. He also commended Mbaise people for their ingenuity.