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From Jude Chinedu, Enugu
The Alaigbo Development Foundation (ADF) has accused President Bola Tinubu’s administration of sidelining the Igbo in key federal appointments and policy decisions, describing recent developments as evidence of growing marginalisation of the South-East.
In a statement by its President, Prof. Ukachukwu Awuzie, the group pointed to a pattern of anti-Igbo discrimination and said the latest appointments and proposed legislations under Tinubu’s government had further deepened the exclusion of Ndigbo from national decision-making.
One major concern raised by the group was the recent constitution of an eight-member National Population and Census Commission. According to ADF, the commission includes five Yoruba and three northern representatives, but not a single person from the South-East.
“This is a deliberate attempt to sideline the Igbo in a sensitive national body,” the statement said, warning that the exclusion could be a strategy to manipulate future census results against the region.
The ADF also took exception to the sudden removal of Dr. Nkiruka Maduekwe as Director-General of the Nigeria Climate Change Council (NCCC), less than two months into her appointment. She was replaced by Omotenioye Majekodunmi, a Yoruba appointee, despite earlier public praise from presidential aides for her work at the Council.
Similarly, the group condemned what it sees as an effort to block the promotion of Deputy Comptroller General B.U. Nwafor, an Igbo woman, by extending the tenure of the current Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adeniyi, beyond the statutory retirement age.
According to the statement, “The move is aimed at paving the way for another Yoruba officer to succeed Adeniyi, sidelining Nwafor despite her seniority and qualifications.”
The ADF also criticised the President’s recent appointment of 16 new directors at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), none of whom, it said, was from the South-East.
Beyond the issue of appointments, the ADF strongly opposed a bill currently before the National Assembly that proposes naming the Sultan of Sokoto and the Ooni of Ife as permanent co-chairs of the National Council of Traditional Rulers. The group called the proposal an insult to Nigeria’s cultural diversity.
“This bill is not only provocative but also subjugative. President Tinubu should note that there is a limit to provocation. A million Tinubu cannot subjugate Ndigbo,” the group warned.
The ADF urged Igbo lawmakers in the National Assembly to reject the bill and take decisive steps to defend the interests of the region. It also called for a reversal of what it described as “illegitimate measures” threatening national cohesion and fairness.
The group warned that the continued exclusion of the South-East undermines the core principles of federalism and poses a serious threat to Nigeria’s unity and long-term stability.
