Ohanaeze directs Ndigbo not to join ‘hardship’ protest

Ohanaeze directs Ndigbo not to join ‘hardship’ protest

The Ohanaeze Ndigbo has directed the Igbos all over the country not to join the ongoing protests against hardship.

Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, in a statement titled “Message to all Igbos Worldwide,”  urged the Igbos to show their support for President Bola Tinubu. Noting that the hardship faced by Nigerians will soon be a thing of the past.

The statement from Ohanaeze’s president Partly, reads, “I write as your leader at this critical period in our country, Nigeria.

“Events in Nigeria today are no doubt very disturbing. The economy has turned very bad, and a sense of frustration is everywhere.

“I have received many entreaties from many parts of the country requesting me to call Igbos to join in demonstrations and violent action in the country against the government.

“As your leader, I am directing that no Igbo group or community in Nigeria or the Diaspora should join in this action.

“I am still studying the situation. I have asked Nigerians who approached me the following questions: What did they do when the past government disfranchised Igbo land?”

Speaking on the alleged marginalization of the Igbos in the country, the Ohanaeze threatened to take legal action if steps were not taken to correct the “injustice” meted out to the Igbos.

Iwuanyanwu said, “Most of the Igbo are in the South East, and the South East is very sadly marginalized in all ramifications.

“We are the only geopolitical zone that has only five (5) states. This situation has cost us billions of dollars in financial losses. It has also cost us losses in both political appointments and legislative representations.

“In 2005 and 2014, we raised this issue at various political conferences. All men of goodwill at the conference agreed that it was unfair for the Southeast to have only five states and recommended that an additional state be created in the Southeast, but up until today, this has not been done.

READ ALSO:

• FCTA seals orphanage over alleged trafficking of 23 children in Abuja
• Return my kidney or pay $1.5 million, man ask estranged wife
• Osimhen gets new coach as Napoli hire Calzona to replace sacked Mazzarri

“I have severally drawn the attention of the federal government to this injustice against the Southeast.”

“This statement should serve as a notice that if no step is taken by the federal government and the National Assembly towards the creation of an additional state in the Southeast, I will have no choice but to go to court.

“In the 1999 Constitution as amended, we all endorsed a federal character. Igbos, by nature, would have preferred the free competitive process rather than a federal character paradigm.

“But we realized that Nigeria is a federation comprising so many ethnic nationalities, and as part of our sacrifice towards the unity of Nigeria, we accepted the federal character option, but unfortunately, it has been used to maneuver the Igbo out of most critical positions in government.

“For example, the former President Muhammadu Buhari openly confessed that he didn’t give us our due because we didn’t vote for him.”

Calling for the release of Nnamdi Kanu, Ohanaeze noted that “youths all over the world are very restive and sensitive to any issue affecting their future. In Nigeria, Igbo youths and youths from other tribes at various times expressed their dissatisfaction with events in the country.

“It is clear to us that when youths from other tribes of the country are involved, they are reprimanded and forgiven, but when the Igbo youths are involved, they are arrested, incarcerated, and even charged for serious offenses.

“For example, the arrest and detention of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu generated a lot of problems for the Igbos.

“Many Igbos, including governors, members of the National Assembly, religious leaders, traditional rulers, and business leaders, pleaded with Mr. President for the release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, but without success.”

He added that Igbo monarchs are not being spared in the alleged injustice. “Also, there are many Igbo youths detained in various correctional centers for flimsy excuses. For example, there is the case of Eze Fredrick Nwajiagu, who has been in detention in Lagos without any justifiable reason.