BY CLIFFORD NDUJIHE

CHief Chuba Egolum, former national co-ordinator of the Eastern Mandate Union (EMU) and chieftain of the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), wants the Federal Government to be more result oriented in addressing insecurity in the country, especially the Boko Haram insurgency. In this interview, Egolum, who is now leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Anambra State, speaks on how the South-East can produce the President in 2015 and why Abia State Government should retrace its steps on sack of non-indigenes. Excerpts:

What is your take on comments by Senator Uche Chukwumerije that the Boko Haram insurgency is a ploy by the North to get the presidency in 2015 and that the South-East should brace up for 2015?

Senator Chukwumerije is a man that I have tremendous respect for. He has been around, he understands issues as they affect the nation and the Igbo people as a race. He is not given to frivolities. I can only believe that he thought out what he had said properly. It means that the Igbo will now have some kind of awakening to the fact that 2015 really belongs to the Igbo.

Having said that, 2015 does not belong to the Igbo by mere pronouncement, we have to do what it takes, we have to get our house in order. We still have a lot of work to do to bring about the kind of unity, platform and structure that will enable us hold tenaciously to the fact that 2015 belongs to the Igbo. It is not just a matter of rhetoric, it is about settling down and putting our house in order.

You said 2015 belongs to the Igbo, how?

Egolum

If we are looking at power rotation, it has gone to the various zones and right now, it has come next door to us – the South-South. The Igbo, in our own special way of being our brother’s keeper worked for the realisation of power shift to South-South, believing that it is our turn next. We probably would have gotten it before now but precariously, we failed to put our house in order. Getting power is not what you do by fluke, you must work for it.

Back to Chukwumerije, he averred that the South-West got the presidency through struggle with groups like the Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC); the South-South via the activities of Niger Delta militants; and now the North was angling for it through Boko Haram. What is the South-East doing?

If you look at the history of Nigeria, the South-East is probably the only zone that engaged in real warfare in the last 40 years. That you had been in a war situation leaves in its trail a lot of implications. Some times, it takes a very long time to come out of the backlash of what people who did not quite succeed in a war situation go through. The South-East has suffered tremendous deprivations and sometimes, it seems we even inflicted some of the deprivations on ourselves.

Be that as it may, South-East has experienced militancy or violence in its crudest form. Knowing that we are still in the cocoon of that experience, I don’t think we can advocate militancy or violence to achieve our goal in 2015. There could be other ways. We have to continue to enlighten our people from the grassroots and take it to the national level, where we will insist that it is our turn. Getting our house in order is something we have do quickly because past experience shows that we lost out in the power equation because we did not get our house in order.

What does Boko Haram portend for the foreign investment climate and the economy of Nigeria?

As a student of international business and finance, I do know that investments thrive only in environments where there is stability, where injection of capital is assured and reasonable return realised. Nigeria is an investment haven. Investments will continue to thrive in Nigeria but the negative impact of what Boko Haram is doing is not in the best interest of global investment when it comes to Nigeria.

It is unfortunate we have not got right what the disaster that Boko Haram is causing. The government is still battling, trying to be on top of it. It is not enough to mouth controls and say ‘we should all go about our businesses, that all is well.’ We have to counter terrorism because terrorism is the concern of all of us, even the world because Nigeria is a microcosm of the world.

Terror transcends all borders. We must show capacity and take the lead in addressing this localised terrorism while we await help from elsewhere. If the terror is not checked, it may in the long run affect the investment climate here.

Government should come out more forcefully to demonstrate to Nigerians that the present administration is in charge and must be seen as being in charge. No ifs and buts about it because it is not good for any government. I want to believe that the present administration means well.

They have to do a bit more bearing in mind that sometimes, people want to work against your good intentions. It is the business of the government to know and stay above these negative tendencies. So, the government must be in charge and contain the situation.

What is your take on agitation for new states and converse clamour in some quarters for the states to be merged or reduced to six since most of them are not viable?

The South-East is the only zone with five states, the other zones have at least six and some, seven. Where then lies the equity in a nation where we all claim to be one? I support the creation of an additional state in the South-East so long as the new state will be viable.

On the other hand, I support devolution of power to the states. I support the bunching together of states. The state arrangement as we have seen have not really augured well for us. We did a whole lot better when we were functioning as regions. If we don’t go back to regions let’s go to zones. We have a more structured arrangement in the zones. Perhaps, that will engender progress and better governance.

I started my politics wanting a situation where there is devolution of power, where the centre has certain stated functions and the states have more powers because that is where the bulk of the people are. That is why we say, let the centre not be as powerful as it has been over the years.

If going back to the regional system or sticking to the zonal system, in which we have six zones will do that for us, then so be it. What we have right now is not working the way it should, that is why we have all these hiccups and bickering all the time.

That is why governors are always calling more share of federal allocation. The states have a lot to do. It will be in the interest of the federal government to cede some of these responsibilities back to the states. That brings me to the issue of roads. A lot of states in the recent past have been working on roads that are clearly demarcated as federal roads.

How do you view the recent sack of non-indigenes by the Abia State Government?

That is one of the problems of proliferation of states. That is why you find a state in Igbo land trying to dismember the Igbo nation by the singular act of asking non-indigenes of the state in Igbo land to return home. Where is home for them in Igbo land? The Igbo unity that we have fighting to sustain, in one stroke, you want to kill it. That is a most unproductive thing to do in this day and age. How do you now speak with one voice as Igbo people? How do you say 2015 belong to us as Ndigbo when within Ndigbo some people are being asked to return to base? Where is base? Where is home when you are already at home?

I don’t know whether it is too late for the governor of Abia State to retrace his steps. Mistakes can be made and corrections can take place. I want to believe that he was ill-advised in that pronouncement. He can go back and retrace his steps and let the status quo return. If you say you cannot accommodate non-indigenes, what about your own people elsewhere?