Awka- THE threat by the Indigenous
People of Biafra, IPOB to scuttle Monday’s Igbo summit on the restructuring of
Nigeria in Awka turned out to be an anti climax, as the pro-Biafra group was
overwhelmed by the large number and fierce-looking security personnel in the
Anambra State capital.
Heavy presence of the police was
noticed on Sunday night around the Alex Ekwueme Square, venue of the summit,
with bomb detonation experts lined up several kilometers around the area. Many
people who tried to enter the venue were thoroughly screened and those who
could not identify themselves were turned back. Many of them later staged
peaceful protest outside the venue.
Those who managed to enter the massive arena however betrayed their bias to the summit when they started shouting down the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Professor Chukwuma Soludo as he presented the position of Ndigbo on the restructuring.
Soludo had listed a national conversation, new
constitution, convocation of a constituent assembly, six-year tenure for the
president and vive vice presidents from the geopolitical zones with the VPs
holding key ministries, rotation of the president among the geopolitical zones,
scrapping of local government system, creation of additional state for the
South East before considering creation of more states in the country, among
other demands as the position of the Igbo.
With shouts of Noo, many youths and
women trouped out of the arena, with some of them shouting that they did not
want restructuring, but Biafra Republic. Their departure, however, did not stop
the summit from coming to a logical conclusion. President of Ohaneze Ndigbo,
Chief Nnia Nwodo said all the arms of Ohanze accepted the recommendations by
the various committees that drafted the stand of Ndigbo on the restructuring,
adding that Nigeria needed a constitution because ‘the present constitution was
dead.’ Chairman of the occasion, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, in his speech,
observed that in the life of any nation, there should be a time to pause and
reflect into the past, reflect on the present and peep into the future, adding
that though Igbo had a great past and great people that championed Nigeria’s
Independence, they have not had a fair deal in Nigeria. He said: “Today, things
are no longer the way we want them.
In as much as I believe that the future of
the Igbo is great, there are some concerns. In 1966, Igbo didn’t know about the
coup, but they were slaughtered in the civil war that lasted 30 months. “Today,
the killings are taking place in Benue State and it may be others in future.
People talk about Fulani herdsmen, but we have Fulani people in government, as
senators, as ministers and traditional rulers, yet the killings have continued.
“The federal government of Nigeria should be grateful to Ohaneze Ndigbo for
coming up with the programme for the restructuring of the country for the
benefit of all. When Abuja was being created, we were told that there would be
no issue of indigene is rearing its head and nobody is doing anything about
it.” More details soon
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