Demand for Self-Determination Inevitable Without Restructuring, Says Ohanaeze
Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja
The President General of the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze, Chief John Nnia Nwodo, has said agitations for self-determination is a product of the years of inaction by the federal government on the demand for restructuring of the country.
He also described that the continued agitation of Igbo youths across the country as a by-product of persistent injustice and marginalisation arising from bad leadership and unjust structure of the country’s polity.
The Deputy National Publicity Secretary of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chuks Ibeagbu, quoted Nwodo in a statement as having said during an interview on Channels Television yesterday that the various restiveness across the country is an indication of an unworkable political system that should be revisited.
The Ohanaeze boss who bemoaned the rising hate against Ndigbo in the country, rolled out list of some Igbo citizens murdered and whose goods worth millions of naira were looted across the country without any reasonable response from government.
He said the current structure of the country is not tuned for development and wondered why the conference of 2014 is not being revisited.
When asked why Ohanaeze did not oppose the sit-at-home order called by the Biafra agitators, Nwodo said it couldn’t have since the order was not violating any known Nigerian law in mourning their over three million kith and kins who died during the war with half of them dying of hunger and starvation.
Nwodo said though the apex Igbo body has not endorsed the secession struggle, it cannot stop the agitators more so when the issues that compelled their action remained unattended to.
The Ohanaeze leader said  what Ndigbo want is a Nigeria of equal ownership not where some see the country as their empire and the rest as a conquered territory.
He described as unfortunate the conspicuous absence of the president at this time that calls for astute leadership for the country and advised the Acting President to rise up to the challenge and make some consultations on how to move this country forward.
Ohanaeze chief noted that nothing can be more evident of bad leadership in the country than the fact that after the lawless statement from Arewa youths was greeted with wide condemnation from reasonable minds in the North, Middle Belt, South-west and South-south, no arrest has so far been made, rather the people are daring the authorities.
Nwodo described as worrisome the fact that after such grave utterance from the northern youths, that touched on national security, the federal government is yet to act, the Inspector General who called his commissioners across the county to read a riot act, is yet to make any arrest.
