The apex socio-cultural body of the Igbo tribe, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, yesterday disowned the leader of the proscribed indigenous people of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, saying his recent outburst was targeted at soiling the age-long good relationship between the Igbo and the Yoruba.
Kanu had on Tuesday called on his protesters who are currently disguising as #EndSARS protesters to ambush and kill all governors, soldiers, policemen, and destroy properties of the leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, as well as government infrastructures.
Kanu also claimed responsibility for burning down the Oriental Hotel in Lagos as well as other government infrastructure in the state, just as he suggested that the ongoing crisis in Lagos where properties worth billions of Naira have been destroyed was because of the state governors decision to impose a 24-hour curfew.
But Ohanaeze Ndigbo expressed outrage over the vituperative and inciting utterances of the leader of disbanded IPOB on the #ENDSARS activities in Lagos and disassociated itself completely from them.
President-general of the organisation, Chief John Nnia Nwodo, stated this in a statement while reacting to a media release issued by a Pan Yoruba Group, the Apapo O’Odua Koya (AOKOYA) on the on-going youth uprising in Nigeria particularly in Lagos as it relates to Ndigbo youths.
Nwodo said, “We wish to state that Ohanaeze is also outraged by the vituperative and inciting outrage of the leader of IPOB on the #ENDSARS activities in Lagos and disassociate the body completely from them”.
Reacting to the statement of the Yoruba group, Nwodo said, “The statement disheartening not necessarily because of the untruth in its sentiment but that it’s obviously being engineered and targeted at the age-long good relationship between the Igbo and the Yoruba.
“Ohanaeze strongly believes that the press statement is craftily
drafted showing a skillful use of underhand tactics to achieve a set goal which in this case is to set Yoruba against Ndigbo.
“We are ready to vehemently resist this in our time knowing the historical affinity of these two great ethnic groups dating back to the days of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe through to the famous handshake across the Niger propagated by our iconic leader Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu.
“This spontaneous relationship built by our forefathers over the years has been strengthened in the last three years by the political emancipation movement, being propelled by the Southern And Middle Belt leadership Forum ( SMBLF) made up of four ethnopolitical bodies of Ndigbo, in the South East, Afenifere in the South West, PANDEF in the South-South and the Middle Belt Forum in North Central Nigeria.
“Ohanaeze feels based on the intelligence available to it that the motive of this disturbing statement is not only to overtake the mileage covered by this group in setting their people free from the hegemonic bondage but to ensure its destruction,” he said.
Nwodo added that the Igbo organisation was focused on what the Igbo want in a contemporary Nigeria as already which is to restructure Nigeria for a true federal system where Justice and equity will reign.
He continued: “We, therefore, wish to refute any position being ascribed to Ndigbo even if such a position is being adduced by an Igbo that is not within the realm of the struggle to free Nigeria as encapsulated in the terms of agreement of this ethnic nationalities.
“Ohanaeze will therefore wish to urge the Yoruba and indeed the rest of Nigeria to disregard any outburst from anybody as coming from Ndigbo that is not as succinctly captured in the terms of agreement of the ethnic nationalities.
“It’s therefore against this backdrop that Ohanaeze Ndigbo wishes to vehemently deny the allegation of Igbo youth involvement in Lagos #Endsars protest as part of a grand design to destroy the Yoruba economy.
“For the obvious reason of having most of their businesses scattered all over the country particularly in Lagos, knocks out the thinking of an Igbo setting out to destroy another person’s economy. Only a fool living in a glass house uses stone to settle scores.
“Already, as it had always been during every crisis in Nigeria, Igbo businesses are the target as it happened last Tuesday in Abuja when car depots, belonging to Igbos were set ablaze by hoodlums.
“Ohanaeze believes and empirically too that Ndigbo youths underlying reasons for getting involved in the on-going #Endsars protests is not anything different from the reasons of other youths in Nigeria which borders on aggravated neglect of Nigeria youths due to poor governance rooted in the dubious political structure.
“We, therefore, wish to urge the Yoruba ethnic group to disregard the position being pushed by the AOKOYA because it’s not based on facts and reality on ground.” Meanwhile, a South-East peacebuilding group has accused the leader of Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, of inciting the region against the Nigerian state.
To this end, the group under the umbrella of Coalition of South East Peace Practitioners, SOEAPAT, has called on leaders of the region to caution Kanu, saying his actions were detrimental to the unity of the country as well as endangering the lives and investments of hardworking and peaceful Igbos across the nation.
The group, in a statement, Thursday, evening, expressed worries over what it called the repeated inciting utterances of Kanu, insisting that his actions threaten national security.
It appealed to Igbo youths not to take the statements by Kanu seriously considering that he was issuing them from outside the country where he and his family would not feel the impact in the event of any consequence.
SOEAPAT, in the statement signed by its Zonal Chairman, Dr. Obi Chibuzor, and Legal Adviser, Barrister Amadi Ojukwu, also condemned the ongoing destruction of properties following the #EndSARS protests across the country even as it decried the killings of unarmed protesters allegedly by agents of security services.
SOEAPAT said it appealed to “all Indigbo worldwide to quickly begin to speak to some of our deviant youths to back down on their grievances before we are misconstrued as trouble makers when in the actual sense we are the victims in Nigeria.”
“We stand here to state categorically that Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is a criminal that must not be taken seriously. He is out to achieve popularity and make money for himself as against the freedom fighter he is claiming,” it said.
It vehemently condemned the use of excessive force against the #EndSARS protesters at Lekki Tollgate in Lagos.
The full statement read: “We have watched with great concern the event that preceded the Lekki Tollgate shooting of innocents protesters by men of the Nigeria Army on Tuesday.
“This act is quite unprofessional, condemnable, and regrettable. We call for an urgent independent investigation to ascertain the motive and persons behind this act.
Our heart is with all the families of those who lost their lives and those injured.
“We call on the federal and state governments to immediately take up the medical bills of the injured victims and compensate families who lost their love once where necessary.
“We wish to wholeheartedly condemn the senseless destruction of properties by some criminal elements who hijacked the protests by genuine protesters demanding an end to SARS and police brutality and better life.
“This destruction is uncalled for and the most costly mistake made by these criminal elements in the 21st century.
“Almost every property that was destroyed will severely and negatively affect the livelihood of the masses they claim to be fighting for. So why the destruction?
“If you are complaining of underdevelopment and bad governance, why then do you destroy properties and loot banks and business premises?
“This is so sad! Nigerian youths of good conscience must rise in unison and resist these criminals who are out to give the youths a bad name. It is will take some time for the people to recover from this great loss in the mist the global pandemic.
“We want to also call on all Indigbo worldwide to quickly begin to speak to some of our deviant youths to back down on their grievances before we are misconstrued as trouble makers when in the actual sense we are the victims.
“We stand here to state categorically that Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is a criminal that must not be taken seriously. He is out to achieve popularity.
While we must clearly state that our people have not been treated fairly in the past on so many national issues we must call for calm and understanding while we press our demands through legal means.