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By VINCENT EGUNYANGA
Many Nigerians were not surprised at the threats of some Northern Youths to the Igbos of the South-East to leave the North within three months. We were not surprised because we saw it coming. America’s Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) had predicted over twenty years ago that the outcome of the 2015 election in Nigeria was going to break up the country, except a pragmatic and Charismatic leader emerged as president.
Many people did not take the warning or the prediction seriously, but I did, some of us did. We knew that Nigeria would break up some day but what I expected was a peaceful breakup. A peaceful breakup without bloodshed or killing one another, so that we could still be friends or good neighbours after the breakup.
The former USSR has broken up into fifteen republics without wars or bloodshed and some of them are still parts of the Commonwealth of States, except maybe some that were sponsored by some European countries who are still fighting their own cold wars. Let me first of all say I am a Nigerian, a proud Nigerian and want to remain a Nigerian, my wish is that the North withdraws the threat in the interest of peace, but this threat should not be taken lightly.
2015 elections have come and gone but the wounds are yet to heal. We have once again been reminded of the civil war that ended almost 50 years ago. The government in power has not even done anything to heal the wounds created by the election and bring all Nigerians together, Instead President Muhammadu Buhari came with his theory of paying attention to 95 percent of those who gave him the vote over the five percent that did not vote for him. He did not just say it but has walked the talk with his appointments so far and the siting of projects, despite constitutional provisions to the contrary.
Various youths groups in the North rose from a meeting in Kaduna with a warning to Igbos in the North to leave the region. One Mallam Abdulazeez Suleiman who read the declaration tagged ‘KADUNA DECLARATION’ said the North is tired of the 1914 Amalgamation of Nigeria. It reads ‘ we are hereby placing Nigerian authorities and the entire nation on notice that as from 1st October, 2017, we shall commence the implementation of visible action to prove to the whole world that we are no longer part of any Federal Union that should do with the Igbo.’
Very strong statement, indeed. What the statement means is that they will begin an attack on Igbos in the North if they refuse to leave. The question is, should we take the warning lightly? My answer is no. The reason is that Northern youths had issued such threats in the past and they were carried out fully.
First, they warned in 2011 that if Goodluck Jonathan won the 2011 election, the country would be ungovernable for him. They carried it out. By the time the election results were announced, over 800 people were killed in the post-election violence. Then, came Boko Haram that actually made the country ungovernable throughout the tenure of Jonathan in office. Infact, Boko Haram issue was one of the reasons why Jonathan lost his re-election bid.
Besides, as we were approaching the 2015 election, the same Northern youths came out with a warning that the country would break up if Jonathan won the election. Even Buhari himself threatened that if the election was rigged Monkey and Baboon would soak in their own blood. To carry out the threat, Fulani herdsmen started to stockpile weapons of different types, especially AK47 riffles. Well, Buhari was declared winner of the election but the herdsmen are now using the AK47 they acquired to terrorize Nigerians, to kidnap, kill and rape. Yet, no one is on trial for now.
Now, what is the offence of the Igbos to deserve this quit notice from the northern youths? The reasons they gave was because of the success of the sit- at home declared by IPOB on 30th May, 2017 to mark 50 years of the declaration of Biafra Republic. The question, is what is wrong in remembering and honouring those who died during the Biafran civil war just as Nigeria itself celebrate Armed Forces remembrance day every year and even some states in the country like Lagos, Rivers, Cross Rivers, Kano etc. also celebrated 50 years of their creation.
Besides, if the sit-at-home order by Biafran agitators was the real reason for asking Igbos to leave the North, why Igbos living in the North who, in the first place, have said many times that they are not Biafrans and also ignored the sit-at-home order. This is exactly what happened in 1966 when over two hundred thousand Igbos were killed in the North because, according to the Northerners, their leaders were killed in the 1966 coups. As a result, over two hundred Igbos living in the North, including women and children, even unborn children in the womb of their pregnant mothers, were slaughtered, most of whom knew nothing about the coup and had nothing to do with the coup plotters. I want to suggest reasons for this quit notice given to the Igbos to leave the North. First, the government wants to divert attention from its misrule as the two years of Buhari’s administration has been a failure.
Secondly, I believe a lot of things will happen in the country between now and October. President Muhammadu Buhari may not be able to continue in office due to ill health or death. This may lead to constitutional and succession crisis between the Yorubas and the North as the North may not want Osinbajo to take over. It’s a way of warning Igbos not to take sides during the crisis, or they will be forced out of the region and they will lose their investments.
This is more likely to happen just as the Oba of Lagos, Oba Akiolu, warned Igbos ahead of 2015 governorship election in Lagos that they would end up in the lagoon if they voted for Jimmy Agbaje. The third reason is that the allegation of the coup plot is yet to die down. The North may actually begin to attack and kill Igbos who are the most visible non-indigenous ethnic groups in the North. The killing will continue and the government will pretend not to be able to do anything about it. It may make the coup plotters to strike ‘to stop further killings of innocent citizens’ as the government would have been accused of failure to protect lives and properties. This third option will receive international support for the coup plotters especially the United Nations, African Union etc.
This was the reason why the military coup in Egypt was welcomed by the international community after the overthrow of former President Morsi of Islamic Brotherhood of Egypt. What, then should Igbos do? I want to caution Igbos not to take the warning lightly. Igbos should begin the process of returning back home and leave the North immediately. Igbo leaders should also draw the attention of the international community, the UN, AU, ECOWAS, America, France, Israel etc to the pogrom that is about to take place in the country. They should seek for international help to help them evacuate their citizens from the North and resettle them in the East.
Many of them were born in the North and do not have any other home except the North and some may not even know where to go to and call home in the South East, an IDP camp may not be a bad idea. Our leaders have gone mad again in the long run, if this period goes without crisis, Igbos should begin to take seriously to the idea of developing their region. Igbos should begin to return their investments and assets back to the East.
Egunyanga writes from Asaba.
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