The Vice Chairman of the All Progressive Congress (APC) Central Senatorial District of Cross River State, Hon Cletus Obun, has lamented the attitudes of the political elites of Igbo extraction, blaming them for not doing much to quell the agitation for Biafra Republic.
Speaking to DAILY POST on phone, Hon Obun regretted that the elites including the ministers, the senators, House of Reps members, business men and women have not called their people to order as expected.
“The Igbo political elites, the political elites of Igbo extraction in the Nigerian federation especially those benefiting from the Nigeria federation in terms of appointments, the ministers, the senators, House of Reps members, businessmen and women must call these people to order. For me the height of rascality is to engage in struggle for a republic.”
He said the agitators have failed to ask their political elites to resign from the position they are currently occupying before agitating for Biafra, “Without asking your people to withdraw from the Nigeria federation, you can’t be using the Nigeria naira and holding Nigerian appointment and getting the Nigeria fund to fight Nigeria and claim secession” he pointed out..
Speaking further on the issue of marginalization, he said, “The Igbo marginalized more than any other. What is marginalization about? It means that in this tenure; they didn’t get as much appointments as they got under the tenure of President Jonathan, is that what they call marginalization.
“Every state is supposed to have a Minister. Are the Igbos not having a Minister, every state is suppose to have three Senators, don’t they have? So what are they talking about, what is marginalization here?
“Last time, they got more appointment than any other zone and that was normal, now you got less, then it is no longer normal, it becomes marginalization and you must irritate the system. Of course, they should know that irritation is just for the Igbo speaking people and in Igboland.
“Because if you shut down market in Aradia, it doesn’t stop market in Borno state, if you shut Onitsha market, nobody in Minna is going to be affected, nobody in Takum in Benue state or in Taraba state is to be affected.
“If there is shooting in Enugu market, the people that will die there will not be the people of Plateau, there will not be people of Boki in Cross River, it will be the Igbo that will die and then you are shouting that they are killing Igbo, who do you think that should be killed, they cannot be people in Cross River, who should they killed in Onitsha market, should there be people in Cross River.
“You irritate the system and cause your people more harm and blame that you are doing marginalization. That is suicide; the Igbo elite should do more than, what they are doing now and call their children to order.
“Secession is not a civil action, it is military action, it is a call to arm, you cannot be asking for a country in conference, what Kanu and his gangs are doing amount to affront with threat, not just to peace but to the territorial integrity of Nigeria, to the unity of Nigeria to the fundamental objectives of defence and therefore, the military action for one is the best that could have happened.
Given the experience of civil war, he wondered if Kanu was born before the civil war, “I am not sure he was born during the war, he think that Biafra is a song that must be re-enacted and re-invented, he cannot do that for his Father and Mother who are keeping quiet about it, they are not doing the Igbos any good.
“You asked us to give you presidency so that you use it to create an Igbo Nation, to build an Igbo federation, you make your case for presidency weaker. I for one will not want an Igbo to be president so that he will not come and ask me in Cross River to become a Biafra.
“Look at the map of Biafra starting from Ogoja; you want to make me a Biafra, that is conscription, you want to conscript me into a place I am not, there is no referendum that I say I want to be part of it from Cross River, I don’t think any Akwa Ibom person would like to be a member of Biafra given our experience after Independence. It was Igbo Federation where everybody who must be somebody must have to be from Igbo extraction.”
Hon Obun advised Nigerian Government to petition International Communities over the action of any country involved in supporting IPOB, “And I heard that Turkey and places like France are funding IPOB, that is a matter that United Nations need to hear about.
“Nigeria Government ought to take that up, our Foreign Affairs Ministry has a Minister, the Minister should take that up, they have to draw the attention of International Communities because those agitation have gone beyond the ordinary.
“Even Ojukwu before he died said Biafra was dead, Ojukwu said so, so what Kanu is fighting for, I no longer know. He wants to resurrect the dead body, he must be Jesus to do that and those who are supporting and funding him must know that they are carrying the joke too far.”
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