Former Imo State Governor, Ikedi Ohakim, has called for a change of the current political system in the country which concentrates power at the centre, saying Igbos are largely marginalised under the arrangement.
Ohakim made the call at the inaugural Chinua Achebe International Conference held at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, on Saturday.
He spoke on the topic, “The Igbo and the leadership question: The Achebe example.”
The former governor also noted that Igbo people were the major victims of the economic recession.
According to Ohakim, “The Federal Government created a national intervention project in 2006 under former President Olusegun Obasanjo to restore peace and promote a sense of belonging in the country.
” This gave rise to the N400bn East – West Road project, the N600bn Kano/ Maiduguri Road project,the N200bn Lokoja/Abaji/ Abuja Road project and the N150bn Ibadan /Ogbomosho /Oshogbo Road.
“But curiously, the South-East was left out. When we demanded an explanation, we were promised the second Niger Bridge but alas, this project is being pushed to a public-private partnership arrangement with a tolling scheme to recoup the cost of the project.
“Is this a fair deal for Ndigbo? We must continue to ask for our own share of the 2006 National Intervention Fund.”
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