By Muhammad Ajah<\/p>\n
Biafra Republic! Niger Delta Republic! Ijaw Republic! Boko Haram Republic!
\nThis is senseless. How many countries will emerge if Nigeria is to be
\nbroken into pieces? God forbid. Even if we are to go by the six
\ngeopolitical zones, it will not work. The Ikwerre man does not believe to
\nbe Igbo. The Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River people have disassociated
\nthemselves from the renewed agitation for Biafra. Prominent Igbo have
\nexempted themselves from the agitation. The leadership of the Nigerian
\nnation and major stakeholders have carpeted the campaign. All is calling
\nfor one and indivisible Nigeria.<\/p>\n
There can be no genuine agitation for a cause through the destruction of
\nlives and properties of fellow citizens except by unpatriotic elements who
\noften capitalize on situations to actualize their selfish interests. There
\ncan only be genuine agitation via non-violent but continuous protest, even
\ndire criticism of the government that be and also protracted dialogue.
\nThere can also be genuine agitation through legal means. Physical
\nconfrontation with government by whoever agitators world over have often
\nspelt doom for the country, most times endangering the agitators. Yes,
\nprotests and agitations conducted under guided and peaceful atmosphere are
\npart of democratic expressions. Again, the world is fast becoming tensed
\nup; developed countries are after developing countries and arms producers
\nand dealers are intensely in search of places to test and dump their
\ndestructive technology.<\/p>\n
Nigerians are willing to remain together. The civil war caused by the
\nattempt to create Biafra brought very sad consequences on the Igbo nation
\nwhich they are still suffering till date. That attempt seems to have made
\nother powerful nationalities of Nigeria to be suspicious of the Igbo. The
\nIgbo are believed to be over-conscious of material values for which they
\ncan betray any trust any time. That is a partial judgment, anyway.
\nBesides, the Igbo are hardly pretentious, but frank, dexterous and ever
\nhopeful for prosperity. More to this point, the Igbo see themselves as a
\nvery unique species of human beings within an enclave where they are
\ndenied from freely showcasing their intellectual sagacity and economic
\nprowess in democratic governance. Summarily, the Igbo think too big to be
\nsubjected to second class citizens in their fatherland.<\/p>\n
Howbeit, this is far from the truth. To me, Nigeria is for all Nigerians:
\nthe Igbo, the Hausa, the Yoruba and all other three hundred or so tribes.
\nThe truth is that the Igbo seem not to have realized that war does no
\nnation any good. Have there been any correct figures of how much the Igbo
\nlost in person and material during the 30-month war, 1967 to 1970? Those
\nwho witnessed the civil war amongst the Igbo, one can be sure, cannot wish
\nthat such mayhem befalls them again. All these set aside, the Igbo have
\nbeen regaining their position in Nigerian politics. They have repositioned
\nthemselves in what they know best \u2013 business. Other component
\nnationalities of Nigeria trust them. So, why should they reopen the old
\nepisode that harmed them badly in the past?<\/p>\n
Is it not inferiority complex that instead of proving one\u2019s economic
\nstrength, political prudence and mental combustion in a society, one
\ndecides to cut off from the society? But the Igbo can never be inferior in
\nNigeria. They can never be subdued by other nationalities. So, they should
\nrefrain from allowing professional hooligans to distract them from being
\nNigerians and paying their full allegiance to the Nigerian nation. In
\nwhatever disguise, be it<\/p>\n
The nation\u2019s highest authority has assured the citizens of the oneness of
\nNigeria. President Muhammadu Buhari, speaking at the launching of the 2016
\nArmed Forces Remembrance Emblem at the Presidential Villa, observed that
\nNigeria remains one indivisible entity despite several grievous
\nchallenges. \u201cSince independence, Nigeria has witnessed a lot of internal
\nstrife, survived a civil war and has remained united. This feat achieved
\nby the country is an eloquent testimony to the determination of our
\ncitizens to remain as one people\u201d.<\/p>\n
Few days earlier when Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Sule, Chief Godswill
\nAkpabio, Dr. Dozie Ikedife and a host of Nigerian citizens were meeting at
\nSheraton Hotels and Towers, Abuja, the Muslims of the South Eastern part
\nof Nigeria had met at the Nyanya axis of the Abuja metropolis under the
\nauspices of Ndi Igbo Muslims Forum of Nigeria (NIMEN) to discuss the
\nimplosion of violent protests from the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra. Since
\nthe violent protests erupted, many prominent Nigerians and groups have
\ncome up to condemn any cessation attempt. The Sheraton meeting under the
\nauspices of North, South-South, South-East Elders\u2019 Dialogue had its theme
\nfor discussion as \u201cAgenda for Strengthening National Unity and Stability\u201d,
\nfrom which a communiqu\u00e9 was drawn for the government, amongst others, to
\nimbibe the spirit of respect for all component parts of Nigeria and indeed
\nensure equitable distribution of positions and opportunities for all
\nNigerians.<\/p>\n
The group, which apparently did not include citizens from the Southwest,
\nadmitted that the unity of Nigeria remains sacrosanct despite the inherent
\nimperfections in Nigeria. Chairman of the Dialogue, Ambassador Maitama
\nSule, would prefer to question if Nigeria has enjoyed any peace since the
\nend of the civil war in 1970. For him, before independence, Nigeria had
\npolitical leaders who worked to gain independence for the posterity;
\nleaders who served, but not served; leaders like Azikiwe and Awolowo. He
\nbelieves that the present political leaders need to do enough.<\/p>\n
The NIMEN called on Igbo Christians, Igbo Pagans, Igbo free thinkers and
\nIgbo Muslims to live together and avoid the temptation of seeking
\nseparation from Nigeria as it was inimical to the interests of the Igbo
\nnation in the midst of other ethnic groups making up Nigeria. It condemned
\nin strong terms the unfortunate attacks on the Onitsha Central Mosque and
\nverbal threats to the lives and properties of Muslims in the region who
\nare endangered in such situations.<\/p>\n
While former President Olusegun Obasanjo is sure that Nigeria will win the
\nwar against Boko Haram the same way the nation defeated Biafra
\nsecessionist, having been a commanding force that conquered Biafra amongst
\nother civil disturbances that threatened the unity of Nigeria, Minister of
\nDefence, Mohammed Dan Ali, warned that the pro-Biafra agitations might
\nescalate and constitute threat to national unity.<\/p>\n
The Nigerian Army was on a red alert to use necessary force within its
\nRules of Engagement (ROE) to suppress any insurgency. The General Officer
\nCommanding 81 Division, Major General Isido Edet, while reviewing the
\nNigerian Army Rules of Engagement at the 81 Division Officers Mess,
\nVictoria Island, said the Nigerian Army was constitutionally obligated to,
\namong other things, suppress insurrection and act in aid of civil
\nauthority to restore order when called upon to do so by the President. He
\nsaid:\u00a0 \u201cWe had a civil war and in some areas we are yet to overcome the
\nconsequences. For people to start talking about the dismemberment of the
\ncountry is the most unfortunate thing at this point in time in our
\ncountry. \u2019The Nigerian Army would like to send an unequivocal warning to
\nall and sundry, more specifically, to all those threatening and agitating
\nfor the dismemberment of the country, those committing treasonable felony
\nand arson as well as wanton destruction of lives and property that once
\nthe army is deployed, we shall apply ROE to the letter.\u201d<\/p>\n
Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, while speaking at a peace
\nconversation with religious leaders organized by the National Orientation
\nAgency (NOA) in Abuja, was quoted to have said that the agitation for
\nBiafra was legitimate, but that the campaigners should take appropriate
\nchannel to ventilate their discontent. Speaking at a News Agency of
\nNigeria Forum in Abuja, the minister said the basic cause of Biafra
\nagitation was \u201ceconomic\u201d which would have gotten worse but for the efforts
\nof the current administration. He appealed to leaders in the country not
\nto exploit the economic situation to further destabilize Nigerians. \u201cThere
\nare many political frontlines in Nigeria, religious, ethnic and the like
\nbut these things do not come to the fore until when there are serious
\neconomic problems like we are having today. It is in the overall interest
\nof Nigeria that we all understand our differences, respect them and forge
\na united Nigeria. There will be no alternative to one united Nigeria.\u201d<\/p>\n
A pro-democracy coalition, Africa Democratic Alliance (ADA) described the
\nBiafra protest as an unwelcome distraction and a ticking time bomb to
\nAfrica\u2019s democracy. ADA\u2019s President, George Agbakahi condemned the call
\nfor secession of Igbo land from Nigeria through peace or arms. The
\nclamour, he said, was nothing but a ruse by outmanoeuvred political elites
\nin Igbo land who are using misguided, uninformed and impressionable Igbo
\nyouths in an attempt to extract political concessions from the present
\nadministration. \u201cThe call for structural reforms of corporate Nigeria
\ncannot realistically and responsibly be achieved through a balkanization
\nof the nation in the name of Biafra. The vast majority of those pushing
\nfor Biafra agenda are teenagers who did not experience the horror of war
\ncaused by Biafra and were born long after the Nigerian Civil War\u201d, ADA
\nposited.<\/p>\n
Imo State Governor and Chairman of Progressives Governors\u2019 Forum, Chief
\nRochas Okorocha, took exception to the pro-Biafra violent protests and
\ndisassociated the governors and leaders in the Southeast states from the
\nprotests which he described as embarrassing, disturbing,
\ncounter-productive and to a large extent, distracting. Governor Okorocha
\nalso called for the immediate restructuring of Nigeria at a lecture on
\n\u201cManaging Change in a Democracy\u201d during the FRCN 2015 Annual Lecture. He
\nsaid it was worrisome that since the nation\u2019s independence in 1960, it is
\nstill battling with how to coexist as one nation devoid of all the
\nnumerous problems of ethnicity and religion. \u201cThere is a major issue that
\nwe must address urgently in Nigeria and that is the issue of unity of the
\nFederal Republic of Nigeria. Today, I must say that the only force holding
\nNigeria is God because all the qualities and qualifications of nations
\nthat have broken, all of them are here and all the characteristics of a
\nbroken nation are in Nigeria. Our main problem is tribalism and
\nsectionalism.<\/p>\n
Okorocha said he met with members of MASSOB in Owerri they gave him five
\nreasons as follows: i) Some of them who ran back home from the Northeast
\nare orphans and jobless, ii) Those of them who were part of the Niger
\nDelta militants surrendered their arms but were excluded from the amnesty
\npackage, iii) They were humiliated in Lagos as their shops were locked up
\nduring last general elections, iv) More than 160 corpses of their members
\nlitered all over the country without burial, and v) They want God to hear
\nthem and everybody to know that the issue that led to Biafra is still
\nthere.<\/p>\n
The Guardian Newspaper editorial of November 24, 2015 on the agitation for
\nBiafra was quite blunt on the national issue. It observed that for many
\nyears, successive administrations have maintained a portentous imbalance
\nand inequitable structure that disfavours meritocracy. The administrations
\nhave glossed over the continuous capitulation of the political class in a
\nprogressive fashion to a point of disaffection, thereby fostering a forced
\nunanimity. \u201cWhile the unity of Nigeria should be discussed, the agitators
\nmust be strongly cautioned to channel their grievances without
\nperpetrating acts that could be interpreted as an attempt to enthrone
\ninstability and dismember the country.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dare Odufowokan wrote in The Nation on the facts, fiction and driving
\nforces about Biafra. Reasons for renewed agitation for Biafra, he quoted a
\nfounder of the Igbo Youth Movement (IYM) and Deputy Secretary of the Igbo
\nLeaders of Thought (ILT), Evangelist Elliot Uko, as saying that the
\nyounger generation of Ndigbo are bitter about the structure of Nigeria
\nbecause they believe that the structure is skewed against them, in
\npolitics, in education, in the provision of social infrastructure, and the
\nagitation for Biafra is real. \u201cPersonally, I don\u2019t agree with them. I\u2019m
\nnot advocating for secession, but I know that they are not miscreants
\nbecause I\u2019ve been talking with them for years. In fact, Ralph Uwazurike
\nvisited me in August of 1999 at Toyin Street in Ikeja and told me that he
\nwould establish MASSOB the following week.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chief Checkwas Okorie, founder of embattled All Progressive Grand Alliance
\n(APGA), said the issue for the agitation for Biafra has to do with
\nagitation for self-determination by people who wish to be treated with
\nfairness, equity and justice. He said that the young Biafra agitators were
\nborn after the civil war and so looks ignorant of the cause. \u201cThey cannot
\nunderstand why their own people since they were born are invariably
\ndifferent from their peers in other parts of the country. The Southeast
\nhas suffered the most neglect from the Federal Government of Nigeria in
\nterms of road construction. Even under former President Jonathan\u2019s
\nadministration, it was not any better\u201d.<\/p>\n
The Igbo socio-cultural organization, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, through the
\nPresident of the Ohanaeze Youth Council, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro,
\nbelieves that dialogue was the only way out of the various agitations.
\nAccording to him, the needless call for the secession from Nigeria by
\nMASSOB, the treasonable felony been perpetrated by one Nnamdi Kanu, under
\nthe aegis of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), and his Radio Biafra, his
\narrest and the simultaneous coordinated protest rallies that followed as
\nthe its aftermath call for caution and deeper reflection for Nigerians and
\nthe nation. \u201cIt stands as an immutable and sacrosanct fact that the
\nunified and continuous existence of Nigeria as an indivisible entity
\ncannot be compromised on any score. The business concerns of Igbo
\nbusinessmen and women extend across all geopolitical zones of the country
\nthe north and south. These meticulously built investments running into
\ntrillions of naira cannot be mortgaged on the plinth of unbridled
\nsentimental proclivities, as we believe that Mr. President is a listening
\nleader and we can achieve more through peaceful dialogue.\u201d<\/p>\n
Traditional rulers from the northern zones led by HRH Alhaji (Dr.) Yahaya
\nAbubakar (Etsu Nupe) of the coordinating committee, National Council of
\nTradi\u00adtional Rulers of Nigeria were in Owerri to meet with the Southeast
\ncounterparts on the Biafran quagmire. The Southeast tradi\u00adtional rulers
\nwere led by the chairman of the Council, HRM Eze Ebere Dick, who is also
\nthe chairman of the Abia State Council of Tra\u00additional Rulers. The Etsu
\nNupe said their visit was at the instance of the Sultan of Sokoto to
\ndiscuss the pro-Biafra issue and to find how the situation can be
\narrested. He emphasized the need to protect the nation\u2019s unity. Eze Ebere
\nDick expressed the monarchs\u2019 resolve to work together with the Southeast
\ngov\u00adernors to amicably resolve the MASSOB and IPOB is\u00adsues.<\/p>\n
Nigerians have condemned this potential threat to Nigeria\u2019s unity. The
\npro-Biafra groups are believed to be politically motivated by some
\ntreacherous individuals. It should be investigated. The ugly memories of
\n1967 to 1970 should not be reawakened. On the other hand, the government
\nmust rise up to its responsibility of governance by justice, equity and
\nhumanity. Nigerians can be assured that the incumbent federal government
\nis on the right track to achieving the desired united, peaceful and
\nprosperous Nigeria which every patriotic citizen yearns for. Just a matter
\nof little more time!<\/p>\n
Muhammad Ajah, a publisher, is an advocate of peace and humanity and the
\nrule of law. Email: mobahawwah@yahoo.co.uk<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Muhammad Ajah Biafra Republic! Niger Delta Republic! Ijaw Republic! Boko Haram Republic! This is senseless. How many countries will emerge if Nigeria is to be broken into pieces? God…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":27255,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-44836","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles-opinions"],"yoast_head":"\n