The Igbo community, often celebrated for its entrepreneurial spirit and resilience, is once again shooting itself in the foot with a display of shortsightedness that borders on absurdity. While the world moves toward innovation and economic transformation, some of our so-called leaders, are busy chasing vanity projects that stroke egos rather than uplift our people. The recent controversy surrounding his alleged plan to build a 50-acre “Igbo Village” in Old Ningo, Ghana, is a glaring example of this misguided obsession with personal glory over collective progress. Meanwhile, the Chinese business community has quietly acquired 125
acres in Adenta, Ghana, to build a one-stop industrial and market area with a tech hub—a move that screams strategic vision while our own “big men” play in the sandbox of self-aggrandizement.
Let’s be clear: the idea of an “Igbo Village” reeks of a lone-wolf mentality that prioritizes cultural showboating over economic empowerment. Mazi Ihenetu, crowned in 2012 as the symbolic leader of Igbos in Ghana, has defended this project as a way to preserve Igbo heritage, complete with a palace, a 2,000-seater auditorium, and streets named after Igbo icons. Sounds noble, doesn’t it? But dig deeper, and it’s a hollow gesture—a shrine to ego disguised as cultural pride.
While the “Eze” insists his role is ceremonial and unifying, the backlash from Ghanaians, who see it as a foreign intrusion on their chieftaincy system, exposes the disconnect.
Contrast this with the Chinese, who aren’t wasting time building cultural monuments in foreign lands. Their 125-acre acquisition in Adenta is a masterstroke of economic foresight. This isn’t about erecting statues or naming streets after ancestors; it’s about creating a hub for industry, trade, and technology that will generate jobs, foster innovation, and integrate Ghana into global value chains. The Chinese understand what many of our Igbo elites don’t: real power lies in economic infrastructure, not in parading titles or building villages that serve as little more than photo ops for the wealthy.
This isn’t just about Eze Ihenetu. It’s a symptom of a broader disease among Igbo elites—a braggadocio culture that values flash over substance. We see it in Nigeria, where rich Igbos pour billions into lavish village mansions that stand empty most of the year, and Hotels to aid their illicit activities, while our markets, schools, and industries crumble.
The same mindset drives the Eze’s vision: a 50-acre monument to Igbo pride in Ghana, while Igboland itself bleeds from neglect, insecurity, and lack of investment.
Why build a village in exile when our homeland desperately needs factories, tech hubs, and infrastructure?
Why channel resources into projects that glorify individuals when we could be creating opportunities for the masses?
The Igbo spirit of independence, often our greatest asset, becomes our Achilles’ heel when it morphs into this selfish, lone-wolf mentality. We’re so busy proving we’re “better” than others that we forget to collaborate for the greater good.
The Chinese in Adenta aren’t just building a tech hub; they’re building a legacy of economic dominance. Meanwhile, our elites are stuck in a cycle of one-upmanship, where the size of your palace or the grandeur of your title matters more than the number of jobs you create or lives you transform.
It’s time for a reality check. If we, as Igbos, want to compete in a globalized world, we must shed this obsession with ego-driven projects. Let’s take a page from the Chinese playbook: invest in systems that empower communities, not individuals. Let’s build factories, not palaces; tech hubs, not auditoriums. Eze Ihenetu and his ilk need to wake up. The world isn’t clapping for our cultural displays—it’s moving forward while we’re busy stroking our egos in villages that lead nowhere.
~MAZI OGBUEFI ©2025~
Igbo so called money mis road should, imitate
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