Chief Chukwuemeka Ezeife, a former Anambra State governor, in a recent interview in “TheWill”, suggested that the federal government should treat secessionists Nnamdi Kanu and Sunday Igboho with respect because they speak for their ethnic nationalities. . “Nnamdi Kanu is no longer just Nnamdi Kanu. He is a leader of a very high percentage of south-eastern people. The same thing goes for Sunday Igboho,” he said. “I think the Federal Government should be careful in handling both men. I think it is better to begin to dialogue on the issue rather than punish people. This is the time to engage in a dialogue with ethnic agitators. Let us convert these problems to a solution to our problems by having dialogue with those represented by Igboho and those represented by Nnamdi Kanu. Let us see how we can solve the problem without resorting to violence.”
Asked if he wanted the two released from detention unconditionally, this was Ezeife’s response: “It depends on how their detention is handled. The Federal Government should make sure that they are well treated and allowed to say what is on their minds. Those of us from the South-East are prepared to go and talk with President Muhammadu Buhari and the government. Let us know what the people are agitating for.”
On restructuring, Ezeife said if that did not happen Nigeria would cease to be one nation. “If we don’t restructure, Nigeria will disintegrate and there may not be a Nigeria any more. As I see it, there is really no problem with restructuring.” According to him, the only problem he sees is that it is only the North that is opposed to restructuring. “The problem is that some people in the North are confusing restructuring with resource control.
“Yes, resource control is an aspect of restructuring, but nobody should think that if you restructure today, states and local government councils in the North will cease to receive oil revenues tomorrow. That cannot happen. We should plan in such a way as to make sure that every level of government is given support. Even with respect to oil revenues, we can decide that oil is nationalised. Oil exploration and gold mining could be nationalised. We can also decide other valuable things that we can call national. And then those states in whose lands we found the nationalised products will be given a percentage from their assets much higher than the rest of the states. But other states will gain from it. So there will be no issue of ceasing to give oil revenues to any group because of restructuring.”
We have problems with the positions Ezeife is pushing. Firstly, Kanu and IPOB. The former governor is wrong in saying that Kanu is “a leader of a very high percentage of south-eastern people.” The truth is Kanu is a member of a banned terror group and, therefore, he is a terrorist. The respect Ezeife is asking for the fugitive the federal government is already giving him by having him tried in a court of law.
As for Igboho, Ezeife is bringing his name up because it is politically convenient for him to do so. Kanu and Igboho are hardly two faces of the same coin. Kanu has been spreading terror in the Southeast, not so Igboho.
Secondly, on restructuring, Ezeife claims it’s only Northerners that oppose it. Well, he may right. If restructuring means breaking up the nation as people like to push for clandestinely, Northerners are right to oppose it. They gave their lives and resources to defend it from ‘Biafrans’ who wanted to break away. Why would they so cheaply give away their prize? Somebody wants to take what he could not win in battle. No.
Thirdly, talking about dialogue with Ezeife’s “ethnic agitators”, again, we say no. Aburi is an experience that won’t go away so easily. It is a town in Ghana where Biafra secessionists met with Nigerian leaders on January 4-5 to negotiate the resolution of a “brothers’ quarrel”. The quarrel turned out to be anything but brotherly as Chukwuemeka Ojukwu was insistent on breakaway by the Eastern Region. The breakdown of the “Aburi Accord” led to the worst chapter of Nigeria’s history book. It has been closed and should not be reopened.
