Senator Mustapha Bukar representing Katsina North senatorial district has described the ongoing agitation for the independence of Biafra as senseless, noting that it was high time, truth was told so as to collectively move the nation forward.
Speaking with DAILY POST on Friday in Abuja, the lawmaker stressed that if for any reason, such struggle was necessary, it should be through dialogue which is the best approach in a democratic setting.
“We have had Biafra before and I think it is high time we sit down and tell ourselves the truth. In democracy, if you have things like that, you don’t start asking for secession, but you can start asking for your right,” he noted
“If we have made mistakes before, then we have to own up to that responsibility rather than behaving funny so that our feelings can be understood to others,” he added.
He explained that Nigeria has actually existed for over a hundred years, stressing that the Igbos have benefited from the nation’s magnanimity which has made them wealthier compared to people from other geographical zones even as they are scattered all over the nation.
”I think we have existed for over a 100 years and we all need each other. If you look at the people of the South East in terms of population, you find them all over the country with their living conditions better than people from other zones. So it does not make sense for them to be asking for things they know was impossible,” Bukar maintained.
According to him, those calling for secession are younger people who did not know what happened over four decades. He urged the older ones to tell them stories of what happened so as to avert a repetition.
Bukar commended South East governors and Traditional Rulers for the effort they were making in persuading agitators to think the path of dialogue.
“I think the South East governors and traditional rulers have been talking to them and probably those behind them may toe the path of dialogue which is a good development and I commend them for that,” he noted.
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