The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, has appealed to members of the proscribed separatist group, Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), not to jeopardise Southeast chances of producing the president in 2023.
Ohanaeze urged IPOB to sheathe their swords and allow peace to reign in the region ahead of next year’s general elections.
IPOB threatens no election: This comes amidst threat by the group to disrupt elections in the Southeast following the continued detention of its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, by the Federal Government.
Recall that some members of IPOB during a protest in Aba, Abia State, last week, vowed not to allow the 2023 election to be held in the Southeast over the non-release of Kanu by the Federal Government recently.
They asked Nigeria to forget the 2023 election in the region “if our leader, Nnamdi Kanu, is still in DSS custody.”
Kanu puts IPOB on alert: In a statement issued by his lawyer, Ifeanyi Ejiofor, on Friday, November 11, 2022, Kanu had urged his followers to be “circumspect” because “the enemies were relentlessly exploiting vulnerable means to blackmail IPOB.“
Ohaneze appeals to IPOB: However, spokesman of Ohanaeze, Chief Alex Ogbonnia, told Sunday Punch in an interview that some Southeast elders led by the leader of Ohanaeze, Prof George Obiozor, were engaging with President Muhammadu Buhari to seek Kanu’s release.
Ogbonnia, therefore, begged IPOB members not to ruin the chances of the region in the pursuit of what he described as legitimate rights.
He advised the separatists not to build for themselves a ‘Frankenstein’ that may also consume them.
Ohanaeze’s word: “Our position on this matter has been constant on the matter. Nothing is ever solved with violence. In the first place, the president of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Ambassador George Obiozor, has already teamed up with other Igbo elders to engage the president and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, (Major General) Muhammadu Buhari (retd), to seek Nnamdi Kanu’s release.
“That engagement is in process and we are confident of that. We want to believe that the President will understand the viewpoints of the Igbo elders and do the needful. I want to also believe that this effort will be successful.
“We have often advised our young boys that they have every reason to agitate. They have sufficient reason to do so. However, they should listen to us as elders, especially when the political climate is favourable to the South-East. We cannot at this time create a Frankenstein – a monster that will destroy us. We don’t want to play into the enemy’s territory. We advise our youths to take it easy. We are doing a lot of work to see how we can overcome some of these challenges.’’
