IGBOZURUOKE MEDIA

 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free—John 8:32

While the incident of enslavement may happen with the complicity of the victim, the innocent must reject this condition by clearly following steps that exonerate him or her from being a complicit.

The fact that Ndi Igbo have found themselves in the above-mentioned position in Nigeria today is lamentable but not surprising. Because, when a clan decides to covet greed, selfishness, treachery and personal aggrandizement over concern for the welfare of its people, sense of brotherliness and belief in developmental strides that have wider positive impact and ensures growth and happiness for a greater number of the people.

Unfortunately, the selfish engagements of Ndi Igbo that have impoverish the clan and make it lose prestige and latitude in Nigerian affairs have also created an illusion: the idea, that wealth creation, pedigree and grandstanding alone, would earn them equity, justice, fairness and a level-play-ground in the Nigerian space. This assumption has backfired and exposed Igbo stupidity and ignorance.

Thus, the best way to redeem this miscalculation is for Nd Igbo to get off their high-horse and seek for the black goat before it becomes dark. In this case, the way to go is the route Dr. Alex Otti, Governor of Abia State, is meticulously charting.

Recently, the governor hosted a council meeting of Southeast and South-South traditional rulers at Umuahia; excerps:

 GOVERNOR OTTI CALLS FOR UNITY, JUSTICE AS SOUTHEAST AND SOUTH-SOUTH MONARCHS MEET IN ABIA

Abia State Governor Dr Alex Otti has called for greater unity, justice, and regional collaboration as traditional rulers from the Southeast and South-South converged in Umuahia for a high-level council meeting.

Speaking at the Southeast Traditional Rulers Council gathering held at the JAAC Building on March 20, Governor Otti urged leaders across the regions to work together, noting that sustainable development can only be achieved through collective effort.

The Governor reminded royal fathers that their positions are life-long and carry a sacred responsibility to uphold fairness and equity in their communities. He stressed that justice must remain the cornerstone of leadership, describing it as both a moral and divine obligation.

Governor Otti also dismissed reports of disunity among Southeast governors, explaining that differences in state priorities often reflect varying local needs rather than political conflict.

Highlighting his administration’s development strategy, the Governor said Abia’s policies in infrastructure, healthcare, and education are guided strictly by pressing realities on the ground.

The meeting also featured remarks from traditional rulers across the South-South and Southeast, who emphasised the importance of cultural preservation, grassroots governance, and regional integration in tackling insecurity and youth unemployment.

The gathering reaffirmed the pivotal role of traditional institutions in promoting peace, stability, and development across Nigeria’s southern regions.

 If it the news is true, that is the way for Ndi Igbo to follow and nurture.

Like an Igbo saying goes: “A man, who resented his neighbours because they covet his wives, will knock at their doors when a whirlwind descends”(which means, a man should priorities his vengeance to avoid foreclosing every opportunity to make amends when the need arises.)

Ndi Igbo, due to a schism that took place in N.C.N.C. in 1952; excerps:

 Having been ousted by Awolowo from becoming the first Premier of the Western Region in the famous carpet-crossing saga (of 1952), Azikiwe went to the East and ousted Eyo Ita …
The bitterness generated by that single stroke of political injustice was at the root of the attitude of the Eastern minorities in the bloody disputes of 1966- … the first blame must rest squarely on Azikiwe …”. Aladinma went further to apologise “on behalf of our fathers to the people of the Niger-Delta for that wrongdoing that ruined the brotherly relationship we had from time immemorial” (By Adefatima, Nairaland) Forum

For that incident and what seemed like a payback by the South-South people, when they sabotaged Biafra and assisted the Nigerian side, during the war, the Igbo may have shunned any further collaborate efforts with the former, since the war ended. Incidentally, that is the crux of the matter and it highlights Igbo foolery.

To counter this myopia, the following facts can be adduced, the 52 Battalion, Biafra army stationed at Okpala Sector, Okpala, a town in today’s Ngor-Okpala LGA, Imo State, during the Biafra war, had about 15% of today’s South-South people that made up of the combatants. Out of this, people from Akwa Ibom, could be 50%, Ogoni, 40%, while the others would make up the number. 

Ojukwu’s second-in-command, Gen. Philip Effiong, who handed over Biafra’s surrender to Obasanjo was an Akwa Ibom man. If a non-Igbo would agree to shoulder such responsibility on behalf of a collapsed venture, seen as Igbo dominated despite the inherent dangers to his person, he or whatever he represents must be appreciated and seen as brethren.  

Geographically, any monumental development the Igbo nation may have conceive cannot be properly calibrated and situated without the idea of an inclusive plan that involves the South-South. For example, the support of the South-South people is vital for developmental efforts that require sea access to accomplish. For that alone, since the nearest  seas are in that zone, any pretence, arrogance or illusion the Igbo may habour for proper development  without some consultations or collaborative efforts with that  zone will be unattainable.  

As cab seen, prolonged Igbo indifference and apathy directed towards courting the South-South people has constituted an incalculable Igbo downturn in both developmental strides and geopolitical engagements. The sum up of this Igbo folly can be seen in another Igbo maxim that says: Ukpara rega ọku, echena na nya na aha nmanu (It is foolishness and ignorance that make a burning grasshopper to assume it blooms as the burning body emits oil.) The Igbo have been foolish to abandon a meaningful courtship with the South-South zone for any reason. He who refuses to ameliorate the malign of a younger brother risks the invasion of mischievous neighbours.  

It is inconceivable that Ndi Igbo have conveniently forgotten why the first action Gen, Yakubu Gowon took to break Igbo resistance was to create a 12-state structure that separated the Igbo from their South-South neighbours in 1967, that evil masterstroke put the Igbo in a quagmire till date. If the Igbo had wisely brushed aside their neigbours’s infidelities against them and the latter’s’ seemingly idiotic actions and inactions towards the plundering of their resources and the environmental damage that follows, by the Nigerian state, and focus on the bigger picture, things would have turned out better for both. The antics and slavish dispositions of people like Godswill Akpabio towards Igbo antagonists should not discourage them.

In this instance, the Igbo being a bigger brother should condescend; align with positive elements in that region; engage in activities that would reduce their suspicions and replace them with trust and prospects. Today, the Igbo are bleeding, likewise the South-South, the Hausa and the Yoruba, in particular are having and operating the viable seaports, cornered all the federally-sponsored vital assets necessary for rapid development and control the source of Nigeria wealth located in that zone.   

Once more, Governor of Abia State, who knows how it pinches the Igbo, has started in the right direction by conveying this council meeting, Ndi Igbo must follow up. Ohaneze Ndi Igbo, whose current leader—though—an Igbo, is from that zone should take on the mantle with zeal and with the right attitude. Ọkukọ anagh asọ anya na akwu ya. (A fowl does nothesitate to approach it’s nest)

Boniface Alanwoko