I have watched with keen interest the brouhaha generated by the call for secession by the “Biafran people”.
Some days back, I saw a picture of some South Sudanese eating grass as food (I do not have empirical evidence whether it is true or not). One thing immediately struck me. Some years back, when the agitation for the creation of South Sudan was at the peak, we all thought that by now, South Sudan will be in a state of “oyunua”(wonderment), especially because of the abundance of oil. Alas, we all know the true story. No sooner had they achieved independence that they remembered that they were not only South Sudanese but belong to diverse tribes. Today, the newest African country is involved in a state of “wadoghe” and “filaga filogo”(apologies to Hon. Patrick Obahiagbon).
Today, all the promises the nascent nation once held are no longer there. There is no more Omar Al-Bashir to blame for their calamity. Every mallam is now with his kettle.
Similarly, in the build-up to our independence, Ahmadu Bello, Obafemi Awolowo, Nnamdi Azikiwe and Abubakar Tafewa Balewa were ALL Nigerians, they were not Ibos, hausas, yorubas etc. Immediately we became a nation, everyone suddenly rem remembered his tribe.
For those who have studied the BH phenomenon, you will discover that one of the factors that aided the acceptance of the sect in the north=east is what I call the “gbogbonise effect”. This is the belief that should Sharia’h law become implemented, then most of the problems would automatically die a natural death.
Methinks it is the same factor driving the quest for Biafra- the belief that if Biafra secedes, all the problems facing the igbo people will automatically vanish. Fa-fa-fa- foul!!! So, the Aguleri man and the Umuleri man will suddenly become chums? The Abia/Imo mnn will permit his child to marry from Enugu/Anambra?
Ask the igbo man what his problem is and he will tell you he is suffering “marginalisation”. I laugh whenever I hear this. You want to know what marginalisation is? Let me tell you. The Idoma man hails from Benue state, but can never dream of governing the state. Same for the Igbirra man, the Irigwe man, the Akoko-Edo, the Ogoni man cannot dream of ruling Kogi, Plateau, Edo and Rivers states respectively. And you talk of marginalisation? Which tribe is not being marginalised? Some tribes have not gotten as much as a special adviser in their state not to talk of Commissioner or minister. Therefore, your cry of marginalisation is not peculiar to your tribe alone. Besides, who said access to political appointment is a sine qua non to the development of an ethnic group? By now, the north would be a paradise of some sort. A state like Ogun would have been a paradise having had their son rule the nation for over eleven years, minus other appointments that may have been made from the state. The idea that once Biafra is attained, everything will be transformed is nothing but laughable.
When you bicker about how the federal government has treated your region, what have you done to your governors and local government chairmen? Are you not the same people who have consistently elected a clown like Rochas, and inefficient governors like Ikedi Ohakim or T.A. Orji? The igboman should stop blaming every other person for his woes. I do not think I would be wrong if I say the south-east has the worst network of roads as a region (perhaps, excluding Enugu state). Have the governors done anything to fix these roads? Just in case you do not know, some state government have been fixing federal roads.
Truth be told, the igbos as we speak hold the economy of this nation in their hands. They control almost all the business ventures in Nigeria. Go to any state nationwide and remove the Ibo investment and see what happens to that state. One time the ibos closed shops in protest over a member of theirs who got killed, the town got grounded. That is how powerful they are economically.
The question that needs to be asked is, why does the Ibo man find it more convenient to invest outside the South-east that at home? I have met some ibo people who told me they will rather remain in the north than return home, because they do not want to be killed in their primes. As we speak, more people are still coming to the north from the east.
For the igbos, I would recommend what Ichie Benjamin Amaechi would call “economic Biafra”. This refers to the economic development of the South-east. The Igbos should invest more at home and develop the region, rather than being cry-babies shouting “marginalisation” and “secession”. Imagine if Aba were to be a big manufacturing hub like Guangzhou in China and Onitsha a huge market hub, Imagine if Ndigbo built more industries at home, rather than abroad or outside the region. Take a cue from the Jews. They are hardly interested in governing America but because of their economic powers, they play a critical role in who governs America. I stand to be corrected but I think Joe Liebermann is the only Jew I know to have sought a high-ranking office (and he even ran as vice-president. Yet, the Jews control almost every facet of the country’s life. That is why the USA will are not take any step inimical to the interest of the Jews in the Middle East. Dem wan die?
Another interesting factor is how the proponents abuse every other person (including Ibos) who does not buy their ideologies. They keep referring to Scotland and Cataluna. While the Scots were going about the referendum for independence, I never heard them refer to the Unite Kingdom as a “zoo”. Neither did they abuse the Welsh, English or Northern Irish. They went about it maturely and in a civilised manner, till they got what they wanted. I never heard the Catalans blames or insult the Basques or threatened them. They went about it till they got what they wanted. Here, the Biafran agitators would insult the yorubas, the hausas and everyone and blame everyone minus themselves for their woes
One other funny thing I must say that most of the people carrying the matter on their heads are people who would probably not have a total net-worth of u-p to a hundred thousand naira an some who still feel pained that the man they supported in the last elections (who has moved on with his life) lost the election.
The part I do not understand is how they want to co-opt the south-south by fire, by force into their Biafra. Ojukwu did it in 1967, running away to Ivory Coast when the heat became too much and left Phillip Effiong, a S/Southerner to do the job of handing over, only to return years later, when they smoke had settled. Nnamdi Kanu is in the UK, enjoying all the good things of life because there is a government that works am you who do not have up to N5,000 in your pocket, you are joining him to make noise about war and succession? I pity you. I have witnessed a little bit of crisis in Jos an I do not need a dibia to tell me that war is a more horrible situation that must be avoided at all cost. Try and watch Al-Jazeera, CNN. Fox CCTV and other international stations and see what was does to a nation. Even those wey bi say when dem dey school, frat men show hostel, dem go enter under bed still join dey make mouth say they are ready for war.
Dem dey count meat for soup, “kpomo” sef dey raise muscle. Dem dey count animals with horns, Snail go mark register (Albert Einstein, 2005)
Assuming without conceding (Go forbids!!!) that it happens, so na Nnamdi Kanu go be una “Onye-isi?
If succession must be done, it should be one in line with internationally agreed ways of so doing, and not to threaten violence and insult people
Meanwhile, those wey come dey lament say FG no give dem job, yet call Nigeria a zoo, una case ehn Amadioha still dey research wetin im go d o to una.
Una ndooooo!!!!
As an aside, why has Nnanmdi Kanu not been able to meet his bail conditions? So, no Igbo man can come forward to be a surety? Also, why are the Igbo elites not expressing support for the Biafran cause?
Written by Mudia Leo
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