Ohanaeze Ndigbo youths on Monday described repentant Niger Delta militant, Mujaheed Asari-Dokubo, as a jester for saying in an interview that the Niger Delta people will support Igbo Presidency in 2019.
Dokubo had in the same interview threatened that the Niger Delta will make sure that the nation does not know peace if President Goodluck Jonathan was prevented from returning to office after the 2015 general elections.
But reacting, former National Chairman of Ohanaeze Youth Wing, Bismak Oji, said
a race like the Igbo nation that produced great people like Zik of Africa, Chinua Achebe, Phillip Emeagwali and Prof. Barth Nnaji, to mention but a few, cannot be taken for a ride by Asari-Dokubo and his co-travellers.”
According to Oji, who spoke to newsmen, rather than making such inflammatory comments, Asari-Dokubo should prevail upon his brother, Jonathan, to do more towards the development of the South East region of the country.
He said Ohanaeze youths were giving Asari-Dokubo one week to withdraw his statement or else they will look for partners elsewhere to realise their aspirations within the Nigerian project.
Oji said giving political appointments to Anyim Pius Anyim and other Igbo by the President will have no impact on the South East, but only an opportunity for them to further enrich themselves.
He stressed that Igbo youths were looking forward to seeing the President draw up a programme for empowering them and creating jobs like he did for his brothers in the Niger Delta.
“First and foremost, I think it is a big insult to the Igbo nation because Ndigbo are a global brand with interest beyond Nigeria.
“For instance, along the West African coast, from Senegal to Liberia, down to Gabon, Ndigbo constitute a very big percentage of population and economic base of other countries.
“Also the Americans recognise the Igbo as foremost African tribe, hence the founding of Igbo Frontier Village Museum at Stanton Virginia U.S.A. by American Government.
“Therefore, such a race that has defined African identity across the globe, a race that has produced the likes of Azikiwe, Chinua Achebe, Emeagwali and Prof. Barth Nnaji, to mention but a few, cannot be taken for a ride by Asari-Dokubo and his co-travellers,” Oji said.
The former Ohanaeze youth leader who is currently the Executive Director of Centre for Literacy and Leadership (CALL) recalled that on March 12, 2012, the same Asari-Dokubo led a group of youths on a courtesy call to Lady Bianca Ojukwu in Enugu, where he stated openly that Ndigbo gave Jonathan more votes than his Ijaw brothers and that they will reciprocate by supporting Igbo Presidency in 2015.
While pointing out that Asari-Dokubo’s sudden volte-face shows that he has little regards for Ndigbo, Oji said “if he really speaks for the Ijaw nation, it implies that the Ijaw did not appreciate the favour Ndigbo did to them in 2011 by supporting their brother, Goodluck Jonathan.”
“Come 2015, an Igbo candidate shall run for President in Nigeria under whatever party. We are not waiting for 2019 as Asari-Dokubo mischievously said.
“Also, no matter what happens, Ndigbo cannot give President Jonathan, assuming he decides to run, block votes like they gave him 2011,” he said.
As Oji spoke, another group, International Society for Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law (Intersociety), claimed on Monday that recent promotions in the Nigerian Armed Forces as well as appointments in the civil service show that the Igbo are gradually being sidelined in the affairs of the nation.
In a study published in Onitsha, a copy of which was sent to President Goodluck Jonathan and other top government officials, the rights group which has Emeka Umeagbalasi as chairman of Board of Trustees revealed that recent promotions in the Nigeria Police Force did “not follow the Federal Character principle, nor did such exercise toe the line of geographical spread following the six zones in the country.”
It said the President must take interest in what is happening to avoid leaving some tribes neglected.
To buttress its argument the the group stated that in recent promotions in the Nigeria Police Force, none of between 22 and 24 serving Assistant Inspectors General of Police (AIGs) comes from the Southeast geopolitical zone.
It gave their names as: Saliu Argungu Hashimu, Mamman Ibrahim Tsafe, Suleiman A. Abba, Ali Ahmadu, Ibrahim Abdu, Tambari Mohammed, Mohammed Abubakar, Aliyu Musa and Balla Hassan; all Hausa Fulani Muslims.
It also gave the names of nine other non-Igbo-South East AIGs still serving as: Christopher Dega, Julius Ishola, Solomon Arase, Dan’azumi Job Doma, Solomon Olusegun, Michael Zuokumor, Orubebe Gandhi Ebikeme, Jonathan Johnson and Philemon Leha.
“None of the four or six remaining AIGs, whose names are not contained here, is from the Igbo-Southeast Nigeria.
“In the list above, all the geopolitical zones of Northwest, Northeast, North-central, Southwest and South-south are represented in the all-important AIGship except the Southeast zone,” it said.
It noted that few serving Igbo-Southeast state Commissioners of Police are nearing statutory terminal dates and it is possible that when they retired, other set of Hausa-Fulani will replace them.
It also expressed concern about lopsided representation of South East in the Armed Forces, noting that same problem is evidence in the Federal Civil Service.
It gave example of former Comptroller General of the Nigerian Immigration Service, Rose Uzoma, who hailed from the Southeast zone, and who was unceremoniously ousted by the Federal Government under over phantom allegations.
The group noted specifically that the Igbo-Southeast are not represented in the Federal Ministry of Interior’s boards of Prisons, Immigration, Security and Civil Defense Corps, Customs and Police.
“Besides, whereas other geopolitical zones are represented in the Ministry’s Joint Intelligence Board, it is only the Southeast zone that is not represented.
“There is also,” it continued, “lopsided composition of the Ministry of Interior, where the Minister and Permanent Secretary are from the North and chairman and Secretary of the Immigration Board are from the same North.
“The same thing applies to Prisons and Civil Defense Corps, among others,” it stated.
In a related development, aggrieved over non-regular payments of their pension allowances, Biafran military pensioners in the South West on Thursday in Ibadan lamented that they always regret ever fighting on the side of the Nigerian Army during the civil war.
The military pensioners in their hundreds stated this in anger as they stormed the Oyo State Secretariat to protest what they described as their plight, insisting that fighting against Biafran soldiers to ensure the unity of the country was regrettable.
Chairman of the pensioners, Gabriel Oaikhena, while speaking on behalf of the protesting ex-soldiers, said if they had known that the country would repay them in “this wicked manner”, they would have fought for the survival and sovereignty of Biafra.
He said they came to draw the attention of Federal Government to their 53 per cent unpaid arrears and other allowances and not necessarily to disrupt government activities in the state.
To, however, prevent a break down of law and order, all gates leading to the secretariat complex were shut against the angry pensioners in addition to armoured personnel carrier, five police Hilux vans and scores of armed policemen that were stationed at the entrance of the secretariat.
With placards bearing different messages of condemnation of the attitude of the Federal Government, the ex-soldiers displayed the injuries they sustained during the civil war.
According to Oaikhena, “it is unfortunate that we are being treated in this inhuman manner after fighting for the unity of the country.
“Our mission to the office of Governor Abiola Ajimobi is to present a letter on our plight to him for onward delivery to President Goddluck Jonathan.
“We will not allow the government to rest until our money and other entitlements are paid. Many of us are still being paid N10,000 as monthly pension while they are wasting millions over there, it is not fair,” he added.
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