Anambra Government names Prof Chidi Odinkalu and Amb Bianca Ojukwu to lead a 15-member Committee on Truth, Justice and Peace.
Secretary to Government, Prof Solo Chukwulobelu, announced last night that Odinkalu chairs the Committee while Ambassador Ojukwu manages its Secretariat.
The list released by the Government shows that Committee members were selected from the five states of the Southeast.
“Given the cross-border nature of the conflict, the focus goes beyond Anambra, and possibly covers the entire Southeast,” Chukwulobelu explained.
The committee is to dig for truth and facts that can be used to search for peace, reconcile the aggrieved and develop the state.
Government also hopes to use the Committee’s report to find healing for victims of violence while imposing responsibility and accountability on the actors.
The Commiittee will also guide government on issues of amnesty to perpetrators, restitution for losses, and rehabilitation for the perpetrators
The overall aim, Chukwulobelu said, is “restoration of peace and justice as well as promotion of development in the State…”
Terms of Reference
To achieve this aim, the State Government specifically mandated the Committee to:
- Identify the remote and immediate causes of the agitations, restiveness, violence, and armed struggle in the South East since 1999.
- Document victims/circumstances of death, brutality and incarceration.
- Identify stakeholders and groups who have played critical roles in the agitations and conflicts, their roles, capabilities and demands.
- Address any other issue(s) that may be germane to unravelling the extent of the crisis and charting the roadmap for the future.
- Make recommendations for sustainable peace and security in Anambra state/Southeast.
The Committee will directly report to the Governor or anyone else he designates, Chukwulobelu said.
Gov Soludo pledged to provide administrative support to the Committee which is given six months to complete its task.
Chukwulobelu did not however announce date of inauguration but said this will be communicated to Committee members.
Committee Members
Members of the 15-member Committee are as follows:
- Professor Chidi Odinkalu (Chair)
- Amb. Bianca Ojukwu (Member/Secretary)
- Dr. Joe Nwaorgu
- Dr. Udenta Udenta – Member
- Dr. Uju Agomoh — Member
- Rev. Fr (Msgnr) Jerome Madueke
- Canon Dr. Okechukwu C. Obi-Okoye
- Mr. Charles Oputa (Charly Boy)
- Dr. John Otu
- Mr. Ngozi Odumuko
- Ms Onyeka Onwenu
- Dr. Joe Abah
- Mr. Chukwuma Okpalaezeukwu
- Mr. Sam Egwuatu
- Prof. Joseph Ikechebelu
Odinkalu Bianca Ojukwu lead Anambra Truth Committee
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