Some key Igbo leaders in Bauchi State have made case for one Nigeria, frowning at gestures of some Igbo people in the southeast drumming for the balkanization of Nigeria.
Chidi Chukwunta, the President General Igbo Community Association (ICA), Bauchi in an exclusive interview with WikkiTimes said that secession is by no means the answer to the problem of the Igbo race.
He said,” We do not subscribe to secession or violence, but to peaceful negotiations and dialogue to decide the fate of the nation.
“As far as I am concerned, God does not make mistakes, he has created us and put us in this country called Nigeria, we need each other, there are things you can find in East, North, others in the West; no one or region is an island and can truly succeed on its own”.
He argued that the ubiquitous and industrious nature of Igbos do not just make them invaluable to the economic stability of anywhere they reside but also uncomfortable to be confined within one region.
“Go to any part of this country, once you remove the indigenous people, the next you find is the Igbos, wherever we go, we help to develop, we build permanent businesses there, establish and settle there like home; that is why it is important that people should factor this into what they are doing”.
Chukwunta insisted that “What we need is a participatory democracy where every tribe matters and if we are given a chance at the leadership of this country called Nigeria, we will bring in our expertise, hard work, ingenuity and goodwill to ensure that the nation moves forward”.
He warned Igbos in the east on the danger of advancing for secession, warning that such kinds of moves were subjecting the lives of Igbos in danger.
“Life is sacred, the sanctity of human life must be respected; wanton destruction of lives and properties are not the way to go, when you destroy these things, even government institutions, you need money to re-establish them and it is costly that way, but can you also do the same for human life”?
Another prominent Igbo leader in Bauchi, Dominic Ifeanyi Chukwu, JP, the National Treasurer of Igbos Delegate Assembly in the 19 Northern States and FCT, Abuja told our correspondent that; “We condemn the secessionist going about destroying properties and lives in the name of agitation.”
“We believe in Nigeria as a corporate body where everybody has a right to live, develop and establish lawfully without any rancour.”
Ifeanyi Chukwu intimated our correspondent of the outcome of a recent meeting of the Igbos Delegate Assembly of the 19 Northern states in conjunction with the council of kings (Ndi Eze) in the 19 Northern states and Abuja.
“We deliberated on the national issues and come up with a communiqué affirming our solidarity, membership and belief in one Nigeria.
“We implored the Federal government to do everything possible to ensure that Nigeria remains one indivisible country.”
