Biafran agitation" nwodo speaks as he asks Mbuhari to emulate late Yaradua

Former National Chairman of the People’s Democrat­ic Party (PDP), Dr. Okwe­silieze Nwodo, has appealed to the Federal Government to negotiate with pro-Biafra agitators to reduce tension in the country.

 

He specifically asked Pres­ident Muhammadu Buhari to emulate the late President Musa Yar’Adua who saved Nigeria from unnecessary tension by granting amnesty to the Niger Delta mil­itants.

 

Nwodo also said that the shocking revelations in the on­going probe of arms purchase involving the ex-National Secu­rity Adviser (NSA), Col. Ibra­him Dasuki (rtd) and others had shown the height of impunity and financial rascality in the party.

 

Nwodo, who stated this in an interview with newsmen at the weekend after he received an Honourary Doctor of Science De­gree at the 7th Convocation of the Michael Okpara University of Ag­riculture, Umudike (MOUAU), Abia State, said that the PDP had paid dearly for failing Nigerians.

 

The ex-PDP boss warned that the use of force against the Biafra agitators or ignoring them would be counterproductive as they might get out of control like the Boko Haram sect in the North East zone.

 

Arguing that Nigeria might not survive the Boko Haram in­surgency in the North and a Bi­afran uprising simultaneously in the East, Nwodo called for a quick resolution of the debacle.

 

He also added his voice to the clamour for the implementation of the recommendations of the 2014 National Conference, say­ing that the document remains the panacea to Nigeria’s hydra-headed maladies.

 

“The conference has drawn a roadmap that can help us a lot”, he said, adding that, “even this agi­tation by Biafran protagonists, as well as the Boko Haram menace will all fade out if some of the rec­ommendations of the conference are implemented.”

 

“We say we are a federation, but we are operating as a unitary government as if we are in the army barracks,” he lamented.

Nwodo said that Nigerian leaders could not afford to fail the unborn generation, and called for urgent action to end the many woes plaguing the country.

 

In another development, the former governor of Enugu State said that the PDP, which had been at the helm of affairs in the coun­try suddenly became an oppo­sition party because of endemic corruption and lack of transpar­ency.

Jubilation in Onitsha over mo­tion on Biafra Independence in UK Parliament

 

Meanwhile, there was wild jubilation among members of the Indigenous Peoples of Bia­fra (IPOB) in South East, South-South and even abroad, following the alleged tabling of the motion for Biafran Independence in the British Parliament.

 

According to the Financial Director of IPOB under the Su­preme Council of Elders, Nnam­di Anaenugwu, the members are excited that their dream is com­ing closer to reality and urged the Federal Government to en­sure nothing that would create confusion as perpetuated recent­ly by overzealous security agents who killed armless protesters in Onitsha.

 

A press statement endorsed by Nnadede Nnabuike, BVI Chief Editor, which was made available to The AUTHORITY on Sunday, states that, “the decision by the Supreme Council of Elders of In­digenous Peoples of Biafra, led by Eze Ozobu, to lobby the British Members of Parliament, is begin­ning to yield fruits.

 

“Two British lawmakers on 3rd December, 2015 tabled a mo­tion for Biafra Independence in the British Parliament.

“Tom Elliott, an MP repre­senting Fermanagh and South Ty­rone, and Danny Kinahan, who represents South Antrim Con­stituency, sponsored the motion.

 

“This came a few weeks, after the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, said that the British Government would not support the Biafra agitation for self-deter­mination.

 

Tom Elliott, who is a mem­ber of Ulster Unionist Party, said:

“That this House recognises the calls for the independence of territories that constituted the Bi­afran Republic; acknowledges the Biafran issue could be improved with the cooperation of the Nige­rian government by offering a ref­erendum; and urges the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to use its diplomatic strength to assist in the resolution of this matter.”

 

“The motion, which was ti­tled “Motion 808” will be further discussed and debated after the Christmas break.

 

Reacting to the news, Gen. Joe Achuzia, the Secretary of the Su­preme Council of Elders of IPOB, said that he wasn’t surprised. He urged all Biafra agitators to re­main peaceful.

 

Peter Obi backs FG’s dialogue with agitators

Also yesterday, the former governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, called for dialogue in the handling of the pro-Biafra groups, arguing that any group that attracts a large crowd for a cause should not be ignored.

 

Obi would, however, not dwell on the allegations by his successor, Governor Willie Obi­ano, who claimed that the N75 billion in cash and investments he (Obi) said to have left behind was false.

 

Obi simply said that “it is not an issue for the newspapers.”

According to him, “even if an­ything can be ambiguous, figures cannot be because one plus one will always be two.”

 

Obi, who has been away from the country for studies in Europe and the United States of Ameri­ca (USA), urged the government to do more consultations and un­derstand what the agitation rep­resents as violence, most times, does not solve any problem.

 

Speaking to The AUTHORI­TY in Lagos on Sunday, Obi de­scribed dialogue as a better way of solving a problem, arguing that,” when you dialogue, you are in a better position to get to the root of the problem.

 

“When you dialogue, you get to the root cause of the prob­lem. And then you can proffer solutions to those you can. And those you can’t, you appeal to the people, you appeal to their conscience because war is in the mind,” he reasoned.

 

On the arrest of IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu, which triggered off the current protests, Obi said: “I personally think he should be released and then Federal Gov­ernment should dialogue with them. I urge that now that they have investigated him, he should be released and then tried in court.”

 

IGP warns policemen against harassing peaceful Anambra residents

In a related development, the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Solomon Arase, has warned po­licemen deployed in Anambra State not to molest law-abiding residents while monitoring the activities of the pro-Biafra agi­tators.

 

Arase, who spoke at the week­end in Awka, the state capital, said any molestation of law abiding people of the state would present the force and the Federal Govern­ment to the international com­munity in negative light.

 

He spoke at the Command Headquarters, Awka after tak­ing delivery of 25 special secu­rity vehicles fitted with facilities to detect drunk drivers and over-speeding donated to the state po­lice command by Governor Willie Obiano to enable the police en­sure quick response to crime.

 

He commended the police of­ficers for promptly controlling the violence which broke out during the pro-Biafra protests in Onit­sha, the state’s commercial nerve centre last week.

 

The IGP observed a minute silence in honour of an officer who lost his life during the Onit­sha violence and promised to pro­mote all the officers posted to en­sure peace in the state at the end of the operation.

SHARE ON: