Elder statesman Chike Obidigbo has once again called the attention of President Bola Tinubu and other well-meaning Yoruba people and Nigerians to what he described as the misguided activities of some unrepentant Yoruba ethnic bigots, who are championing the ejection of Igbo from Lagos and the entire Yoruba land.
He wondered why people threaten their fellow citizens and loudly agitate for their forceful exit from any part of the country with no meaningful and convincing official reprimand or security caution.
He said it was very unfortunate that President Tinubu has been surrounded by ethnic bigots and political riffraff who, according to him, believe that their tribe would be better off without the contributions of other citizens.
Newspot reports that recently, an X user with the handle #LagosPedia had threatened to start a massive protest from August 20th to 30th, 2024, under the hashtag #IgboMustGo, to compel Igbo to leave Lagos State and, by extension, all of Yoruba land.
The elder statesman said he was not surprised by #LagosPedia’s announcement, adding that it was a reflection of the body language of some political rabble-rousers in the current administration.
“Our [Igbo] decision to see every part of Nigeria as home is in the spirit and letter of the country’s Constitution and must never be used against us,” he said in a statement he signed and made available to the media on Monday.
“At this point in time, it has become necessary for the promoters of #IgboMustGo to be reminded that the Igbo have neither been soldiers of occupation nor economic parasites in any part of the world they find themselves.
“If these ethnic hirelings think that the only way they could be productive to themselves and their environment is to execute a xenophobic attack on the Igbo, they are widely mistaken.
“It is on record that from 1967 to 1970, the Igbo, with their treasured neighbors, desired a nation of their own, and till today, their youths have renewed the agitation for a referendum to undergird Nigerians’ resolve to remain one nation.
“Those behind #LagosPedia should prevail on their principals to consider more civilized ways of achieving that same goal with less rancor and bitterness.
“I have personally and convincingly stated that Nigeria as a country is far too large for one black man, with our low exposure level and low mental capability, to manage successfully and profitably.
“Given the boldness and effrontery of #LagosPedia to articulate and set a date to begin the #IgboMustGo protest, the salient implication of the pronouncement is not lost on well-meaning Igbo. And we are ready to oblige the sponsors if they come out in a more civilized manner.
“It is most unfortunate that younger Nigerians are being schooled to mistake divisive rhetoric for realpolitik. Right from the 2019 general elections up until now, the exclusion of Igbo from Nigeria in all ramifications has become an easy plea to divert attention from the malaise plaguing the country as a whole.
“The Igbo had been threatened with possible massive drowning in the Lagoon if they voted according to their God-given conscience and against the dictates of potentates.
“The violence and threats reached a dizzying height during last year’s elections when homes and business premises of Igbo were targeted and destroyed under many guises and policies, while government agencies and security outfits looked the other way and, in some cases, openly participated in the atrocious treatments.
“In all these vengeful and punitive measures against the Igbo in a country where they are true bona fides, nobody remembers that the Igbo make positive contributions to the development of their areas of residence.
“Not long ago, even our revered Prof. Wole Soyinka expressed the hope that Mr. Peter Obi would not bother to contest the 2027 presidential election. As if that was not enough, a Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, another Yoruba elite, blatantly and without valid proof accused the former Anambra State governor, Mr. Obi, of sponsoring the ongoing nationwide hardship protest, just to serve the same purpose of ethnic baiting of the Igbo.
“Ndigbo wanted to participate in the ongoing nationwide hunger protest. They became automatically profiled. They decided to withdraw, and they became stigmatized. Where then lies Igbo comfort inside Nigeria?
“With President Tinubu as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, some of his foot soldiers in Lagos believe that the Igbo constitute his only obstacle to perpetual control of the country.
“I, for one, think that the time has come for the powers that be to come out and issue an executive order pronouncing a separate nation for the Igbo, instead of all these unwarranted wranglings that often lead to avoidable destruction and sometimes bloodshed.”
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