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From Jude Chinedu, Enugu
The Igbo Leadership in the United Kingdom and Ireland, Tuesday, called on Gov Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State to be considerate to Igbo residents in the state.
Eze Okwuchukwu C. Nwosu, Eze Isiobi Ndigbo I UK and Ireland, in an open letter he personally signed, said the Igbo race is not treated with fairness in Nigeria. He claimed that since Nigeria’s amalgamation in 1914, the Igbo nation has been at the receiving end of injustices.
He cited the Jan 15 1966 military coup, which was tagged Igbo coup, and the consequent killing of the Igbo in the North.
According to him, the ‘no victor, no vanquished’ declaration by the Gowon administration ‘was a hoax’, adding that, “Rather, all bank savings of Ndigbo were converted to twenty pounds which was equivalent of’₦20, and the balance transferred to Nigerian purse; indigenisation and abandoned property policies were implemented to impoverish Ndigbo the more.”
He stated that, “After the war, Ndigbo were almost beggars. During the regime of Gen Obasanjo, import licences were introduced, and Ndigbo got nothing. The FG also introduced a quota system to kill merits. If Igbo students scored higher in JAMB, they won’t be admitted until students from other nationalities designated as disadvantaged were admitted.
“In state creation, Ndigbo got only five; South-south, six; south-west, six, and North over twenty. Ndigbo continued with their resilience and trade. Their sources of importation at Onne Seaport were closed in 1999. They began importing from Lagos, and the route was made impassable coupled with exorbitant import charges.”
On the demolition of buildings in Lagos by the Sanwo-Olu administration, Eze Nwosu said, “Ndigbo legitimately bought empty lands and swampy areas in Lagos, and built their houses and other investments. They destroyed property of Ndigbo at Ladipo, Balogun, Alaba, Trade Fair, etc. They never destroyed the Igbo property in past administrations. Under Tinubu and Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, oppressive measures are being used against Igbo in Lagos with no justification.”
In politics, Eze Nwosu alleged that Nigeria is structured in a way that makes the emergence of an Igbo president impossible.
Quoting him, “Nigerians agreed that it should be the turn of the Igbo through rotational presidency. But PDP and APC never allowed it. Peter Obi emerged against all odds in the 2023 general elections. INEC ensured that votes did not count. Bola Tinubu was declared winner, and the Yoruba, because Tinubu is theirs, now pounce on Ndigbo in Lagos.”
On the way forward, he stated that, “Two things must happen: to take Ndigbo as partners in decision-making of government in Nigeria or let us go. Ndigbo want one Nigeria. We are law-abiding. Allow us to do our trading because that is the only thing we can do since we are not allowed to preside over the affairs of this country.
“If you want Ndigbo to leave Lagos, let FG peacefully quantify Igbo property in Lagos and settle the owners. Stop using the federal might to fight Ndigbo. There should be immediate compensation for Igbo property already destroyed. Let every Igbo man submit all their investments in Lagos, and get compensated so they can return to Alaigbo peacefully.
“It is our plea. Our investments across the federation can never be in vain. This is the last cry, or Igbo people will defend themselves again. We have seen the war; we lost almost five million souls. Our youths are intelligent. In Lagos, only Igbo properties are discriminately marked for demolition. These injustices must stop.”
