An apex Igbo socio-cultural organization, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has urged President Bola Tinubu to listen to South East people and address their demands, for him to write his name in history books by releasing the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu.
Secretary-General of Chidi Ibe-led Ohanaeze, Okechukwu Isiguzoro, made this call in a statement in Abakaliki on Wednesday, noting that the Igbo were demanding justice and development, warning that failure to address the demands would only deepen animosity and further marginalise SouthEast region.
The Igbo socio-cultural organisation criticized the views of a mere one per cent minority of the Igbo population, who were crying foul over political appointments given to the South East.
It urged Tinubu to be aware that 99 per cent of the Igbo population “stands firmly” behind the South East Charter of Demands.
The statement read “Ohanaeze Ndigbo has consistently advocated the creation of an additional state for the South East since 2018. We have settled on the creation of Aba State as the rightful solution to the marginalisation and under-representation of Igbo people.’’
“Second, we demand the immediate release of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), through a presidential acquittal, before December. The South East region has been plagued by unrest and violence, and releasing Kanu is a crucial step towards restoring peace and stability before the coming Christmas and New Year holidays.”
The group also called for the initiation of developmental projects that will transform the SouthEast region, as well as the immediate reconstruction of federal roads in the South East using cement technology.
“The poor state of our roads hampers economic growth and poses a threat to the safety and well-being of our people. It is high time the Federal Government took decisive action to address this issue.
“We insist on the immediate inclusion of Anambra, Enugu and Kogi states, which were recognised by the Muhammadu Buhari administration as oil-producing states from the Old Anambra River basin, in the 13 per cent oil derivation allocation. The exclusion of these states is gross injustice and must be rectified without delay.
“Tinubu must be aware that those individuals calling for more Federal Executive Council (FEC) appointments are employing an old elitist strategy to defraud the Igbo people since the inception of democracy in 1999.
“We reject such manipulations and demand that the President focus on the urgent and essential issues outlined in the South East Charter of Demands.”
