Igbo Socio-cultural organization, Ohaneze Ndigbo has called on Igbos to stop the anarchy threatening the peace once enjoyed in the South-East, while seeking for lasting solutions to the mirage of challenges through dialogue.
This was made known on Monday by the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Amb George Obiozor ,ahead of the Igbo Day celebration on the 29th September 2021.
According to Obiozor, “Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, traditional rulers and stakeholders call for an end towards anarchy in Igbo land. Our youths, particularly the leaders of IPOB, should take notice of the danger violence has posed in Igbo land.
“Ndigbo must avoid being a race that has voluntarily chosen to perish in violence and insecurity, and we must stop threatening ourselves. There must be a stop to violence and violence rhetoric. Something other than the initial objectives of IPOB is taking place and it is dangerous.
“Today, what we see in Igbo land is not liberation, but Ala Igbo destruction and devastation. It is a national tragedy for the Igbo. The liberty and freedom of Ndigbo are threatened internally and externally. I call on IPOB leaders to reassert the authority and control of the organization.
“To our son Nnamdi Kanu himself, what good is it to have the greatest dream in the world, if others reap the benefit and glory. In history, there is only a thin line between a hero and a villain. The greatest tragedy for any leader in history is to end up from a hero to a villain.
“Ndigbo must think again which way forward. Our disgust must be directed at leaders and fellow citizens, who do not want Ndigbo to become emancipated like themselves as Nigerian citizens.
“What Ndigbo want is that we should become a light unto the world, like all good people in the world ought to be. That was precisely part of my critical message to President Muhammadu Buhari during his official visit to Imo State.
“For Ndigbo, there must be evidence of increasing sense of belonging, equity, and justice for Ndigbo. Consequently, we thank Mr President for his appointment to our son, Senator Ifeanyi Ararume, and our daughter, Mrs Okadigbo, as chairman and member of the NNPC board respectively.
“We repeat our preference for dialogue instead of violence or military solutions to national problems. The dialogue should not be delayed further. For Ndigbo, the demand is simple: that the Nigerian federation should be sustained and have a sense of stability. It must be a union of equals, and the composite units must have the ability to survive without begging the centre.
“We must tell ourselves the truth or keep deceiving ourselves by ignoring the calls for decentralization and devolution of power in Nigeria. Ironically, in history, societies where truth comes last, tragedy comes first. We must learn the lessons of history, particularly our own Nigerian history on how the story began. Nigeria must avoid being a failed state.”
Ohanaeze described the failure of the Southeast governors to launch the Ebubeagu security outfit as an embarrassment.
Obiozoe said, “I strongly appeal to the governors without further hesitation to consolidate and launch the Ebubeagu security architecture in the Southeast. The security situation in the Southeast makes this call urgent and imperative.
“Our people must have a security networking agency that is under their control and capable of identifying both internal and external security threats in Igbo land” .
Lolo Ijeoma Njoku reporting, Obinwannem News writer / Sept 27, 2021
