Ex-president Goodluck Jonathan’s loyalists
have been touted as sponsors of the pro-
Biafran protests rocking the eastern part of
the country, The Punch reports.
This much was revealed by a pan-Igbo group,
The Igbo Conscience (TIC), which assuredly
stated that some former political office
holders who served in the administration of
the defeated former leader were behind the
revolt.
The group, through its leader, Monday Ubani,
noted that the protests gained momentum
immediately after Jonathan was defeated at
the poll because the politicians got ‘juicy’
appointments under the immediate past
administration, but did not improve the
standard of people living in the region.
Ubani, a former chairman of the Nigerian Bar
Association, Ikeja branch, during a news
conference in Lagos on Wednesday, said: “As
recently as six months ago, the Igbo occupied
and boasted of occupying prime positions in the
country during the six years of President
Jonathan’s rule. Why is it that immediately after
the defeat of the past regime in March, the
cries of Igbo marginalisation rose to high
heavens with slanderous allegations against the
President-elect?
“What were the merits the Ndigbo derived from
this much-vaunted strategic placing in critical
positions for six years? Should the Igbo be
crying of marginalisation just a few months
after sitting on the upper echelons of the
country’s political and economic spheres if
these political beneficiaries benefitted the
Ndigbo with their positions?
“Should roads and other facilities in the South-
East be as dilapidated as they are today if we
benefitted from these former office holders,
some of whom are sponsoring the present
agitations?”
The legal practitioner also noted that many
of the protesters had been brainwashed into
believing that secession was the only way to
address national problems, a situation which
even the late leader of the defunct Republic
of Biafra, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu,
reportedly said, was a “struggle of the mind
and not a physical one.”
While recalling that countries like Pakistan
and South Sudan, which seceded from India
and Sudan respectively, had not fared better
even after attaining independence, Ubani
urged the agitators to have a rethink before
they continue with their agitations.
The TIC leader said also that even Nnamdi
Kanu, the Radio Biafra director, on whose
behalf the protests have gained momentum,
was an impostor and did not have the
interests of the Igbo at heart.
The group, which has since disentangled
itself from the agitations, also blasted the
protesters stating that the move is politically
motivated and has no strong basis.
Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari,
has in strong terms, condemned the
agitations of the easterners, noting instead
that Nigerians are peaceful people and have
shown this through their unity and bond
since the country gained independence over
55 years ago.
have been touted as sponsors of the pro-
Biafran protests rocking the eastern part of
the country, The Punch reports.
This much was revealed by a pan-Igbo group,
The Igbo Conscience (TIC), which assuredly
stated that some former political office
holders who served in the administration of
the defeated former leader were behind the
revolt.
The group, through its leader, Monday Ubani,
noted that the protests gained momentum
immediately after Jonathan was defeated at
the poll because the politicians got ‘juicy’
appointments under the immediate past
administration, but did not improve the
standard of people living in the region.
Ubani, a former chairman of the Nigerian Bar
Association, Ikeja branch, during a news
conference in Lagos on Wednesday, said: “As
recently as six months ago, the Igbo occupied
and boasted of occupying prime positions in the
country during the six years of President
Jonathan’s rule. Why is it that immediately after
the defeat of the past regime in March, the
cries of Igbo marginalisation rose to high
heavens with slanderous allegations against the
President-elect?
“What were the merits the Ndigbo derived from
this much-vaunted strategic placing in critical
positions for six years? Should the Igbo be
crying of marginalisation just a few months
after sitting on the upper echelons of the
country’s political and economic spheres if
these political beneficiaries benefitted the
Ndigbo with their positions?
“Should roads and other facilities in the South-
East be as dilapidated as they are today if we
benefitted from these former office holders,
some of whom are sponsoring the present
agitations?”
The legal practitioner also noted that many
of the protesters had been brainwashed into
believing that secession was the only way to
address national problems, a situation which
even the late leader of the defunct Republic
of Biafra, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu,
reportedly said, was a “struggle of the mind
and not a physical one.”
While recalling that countries like Pakistan
and South Sudan, which seceded from India
and Sudan respectively, had not fared better
even after attaining independence, Ubani
urged the agitators to have a rethink before
they continue with their agitations.
The TIC leader said also that even Nnamdi
Kanu, the Radio Biafra director, on whose
behalf the protests have gained momentum,
was an impostor and did not have the
interests of the Igbo at heart.
The group, which has since disentangled
itself from the agitations, also blasted the
protesters stating that the move is politically
motivated and has no strong basis.
Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari,
has in strong terms, condemned the
agitations of the easterners, noting instead
that Nigerians are peaceful people and have
shown this through their unity and bond
since the country gained independence over
55 years ago.
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