…say it will be foolhardy for Igbo youths to present themselves as cannon fodders

By Anayo Okoli.

SOUTH East leaders and stakeholders have endorsed the ‘no hardship protest’ by Ndigbo directed by the apex Igbo socio-cultural cultural body, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, saying the reasons adduced were appropriate.

At an emergency meeting held yesterday, at the Old Government Lodge, Enugu, the leaders focused their discussions on the state of the Nigerian nation, the national economy and other related matters; especially as they affect the Igbo.

In attendance were current and former members of the National Assembly, traditional rulers, current and previous leaders of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, captains of Industry, the clergy, and academics, among others.

The communiqué issued at the meeting chaired by the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, commended the decision of Ohaneze Ndigbo “that no Igbo group or community in Nigeria or in the Diaspora should join in a planned protest against the government of Nigeria”.

The meeting also unanimously supported the reasons adduced by Ohanaeze Ndigbo for declining to be part of the protest. Such reasons include: that “Ndigbo have been at the receiving end in the affairs of the country and that all the entreaties to the various authorities for equity and justice towards the Igbo have fallen on deaf ears”.

The meeting noted “for instance, that the South East is the only geopolitical zone that has only five (5) states; and 95 local government areas while one other geopolitical zone has 188 local government areas.

“The above lingering injustice has cost the Igbo billions of financial losses. It has also cost us losses in both political patronages and legislative representations.

“This anomaly attracted the concerns of the members of the 2005 and 2014 political conferences but up till today, nothing has been done; among others”.

The communiqué also pointed out that “it is a common knowledge that the sit at home in the South East is because of the incarceration of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. The sit at home has caused the Igbo and indeed most Nigerians unquantifiable losses in lives and properties. All the appeals to the federal government for the release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu have been rebuffed as an Igbo problem.

“Since there has remained an orchestrated conspiracy to alienate the Igbo from the affairs of the country, it will be foolhardy for the Igbo youths to present themselves as cannon fodders at this critical juncture in our political history”

The meeting also reviewed with intense passion, the level of unemployment, poverty, hardships, especially the rising cost of goods and services in Nigeria, the rate of depreciation of Nigerian currency and the excruciating effect on the masses, and “reminded Ndigbo that they should quickly readjust themselves to the reality of the times and that the Igbo have passed through the worst of conditions in the past”.

They also noted that “there is no better time than now to invoke the indomitable Igbo spirit of brotherliness, hard work, ingenuity, wisdom, resilience, inventiveness, perseverance and capacity to turn adversities into diverse opportunities”.

The meeting urged “the Igbo governors, council chairmen, traditional rulers and town union presidents in Igbo land to take advantage of the upcoming farming season to catalyze massive agricultural production for sustainable food security in our region”.

The meeting also reminded the governors to step up the security networks in their various jurisdictions.

“Since the 2023 presidential electoral matter has reached the Nigerian Supreme Court and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR has been declared the winner; and as law abiding citizens, we have therefore decided to support the Tinubu administration”, Igbo leaders declared.

They announced that an expanded meeting of Igbo leaders comprising of all the South East Governors would soon be convened “to develop options and proffer solutions and guidance to all the sons and daughters of Igbo land on the way forward”.