President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday stayed away from the much publicised South East Economic and Security Summit in Enugu.
This is as the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu called on the federal government to, without further delay, release the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
The President according to media report had confirmed his willingness to attend the summit to the organisers but failed to show up without reason or sending representative.
It would be that recalled that a group had in a statement asked the President to stay away from the summit in Enugu over what they called “murder of innocent Igbos under the watch of Buhari led government”
The visibly angry Ekweremadu said that Kanu and other pro-Biafra agitators should be given fair hearing at the courts of competent jurisdiction and should be released if the court asked them to be released.
Ekweremadu wondered why no Igbo is included in the security council of the nation.
He said, “There is no way there will be peace in Nigeria if Igbo are not included in government.”
Ekweremadu also advocated state police saying this would ensure true security of lives and properties.
“The present strength numerically cannot contain the prevailing insurgencies – Boko Haram, armed herdsmen menace, kidnapping, etc.
Ekweremadu lampooned the organizers for deliberately omitting his picture from the brochure of the event saying, “They think I am having problem with the president”.
“Put me in the programme. Nobody is going to arrest you. I have no problem with the president,” he said.
Former president and Special guest of honour at the occasion, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, harped on the importance of security stressing that that there was no way the economy of a nation can grow in the face of prevailing security challenges
“You cannot have security if the economic well-being of a nation is not taken care of. If security is not taken care of, the economy cannot grow,” Obasanjo said pointing out that the Summit would open up avenue for people to do what they can do for themselves.
He said that one of the challenges that beset the nation is youth restiveness occasioned by lack of employment noting that, without jobs after education, there is no way youth restiveness would not arise.
He counseled the South East governments and people to work in synergy to ensure security and economic prosperity of their people who he described as enterprising and adventurous people.
Speaking about agriculture, Obasanjo described the South East as the ‘food basket’ of Nigeria because of its vast arable land, pointing out that when harnessed well, there could be agric shows in Igbo land to showcase the agric products they have comparative advantage over other states to encourage farmers and ensure bumper harvest.
The Chairman, South East Economic and Security Summit, Prof. Barth Nnaji, in his address at the occasion said that Nigeria had a lot of challenges that ought to be identified and redressed for progress to ensue.
Speaking particularly about South East geo-political zone, Nnaji said that the challenges in include poor infrastructure such as bad roads, railway, electricity. He however said the problems did not start with Buhari government but pointed out that they could be redressed in his time since successive governments had neglected Ndigbo since the end of the Civil War.
Speaking on behalf of other Governors from the South East, Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State appealed to the federal government to rehabilitate federal roads in the South East and reimburse the states for embarking on the rehabilitation of the Federal roads in the zone.
