Raymond Ozoji, Awka
The spiritual leader of the Igbo nation and proprietor of Rojenny Games Village Oba in Idemili-South local government area of Anambra state, Chief Rommy Ezeonwuka (Ogilisi Igbo) has tasked Ndigbo to use this period of lockdown against the spread of Coronavirus to evacuate all the corpses that are long deposited in mortuaries across Igboland, commit them to mother earth and give them burial ceremonies when necessary.
Ezeonwuka said that the sand unto sand and ashes to ashes rituals which liberates the soul, must be done within 72 hours of death of any human being on earth so as to free the soul and to free the Igbo nation from the spirit of those whose souls are locked down at the mortuaries.
Speaking during an interview, Chief Ezeonwuka stressed the need for Ndigbo to take advantage of the challenges posed by Covid-19 to deal with negative forces militating against the lives of the people, pointing out that keeping dead bodies in cold rooms is responsible for the negative forces causing problems such as crime, youth restiveness, diseases, poverty and a host of other things in Igbo land.
He said, “Once more, let me use this period of lockdown to draw the attention of Ndigbo on the need to remove all the dead bodies lying in cold rooms for so long because their spirits are disturbing their survivors owing to the the fact that their souls are not at rest.
“Nature and tradition demands that a dead body has to be committed to mother earth. Dust to dust and sand to sand within 72 hours of demise. The soul is trapped in the physical body which is dust, and until it returns to dust, it continues to wander about, possessing the youths.
“When the dead body is lying in the cold room, the soul is still tied with the living and it Is a source of problem to the living because it is like the soul is locked down in agony when it is not committed to mother earth as nature and tradition demand.
“As a Spiritual Leader, I am asking Ndigbo to take advantage of the lockdown to clear off the dead bodies in morgues in igbo land. In the same way, I am appealing to Ndigbo to do away with the culture of depositing dead bodies in the mortuaries because it is against our own tradition.”
The Igbo leader once again used the burial rites accorded Biafra fallen heroes in Anambra State by Governor Willie Obiano as example, stressing that it brought the end of violent crimes such as armed robbery and kidnapping in Anambra State.
Ezeonwuka noted that armed robbers and kidnappers terrorized residents and visitors in Anambra for many years until the souls of the fallen heroes were separated from the living through proper burial rites.
Ogilisi Igbo however condmned the reported ill-treatment being meted out on black Africans in China following the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic.
According to him, “The law of nature puts it that people must treat each other well. The Chinese government and citizens should know that Karma awaits them for the maltreatment of Africans. Whatever they sow, they must reap in the nearest future.”