Threat on Ndigbo to vacate North, a treasonable felony- IYF
The Preident Igbo Youths Forum (IYF), Comrade Kenneth Emeh, has described as “treasonable felony” the call by the Coalition of Northern Youths for Ndigbo to leave Northern states by October 1, this year.
Emeh who spoke to newsmen in Onitsha, the Anambra State commercial centre, lashed at the security agencies especially the Directorate of State Security (DSS) and the Nigerian Police for not arresting the leaders of the Coalition who are well known by them.
He said if such statement had come from the Youths of other regions, especially the South East the security agencies of this country would have moved into action to arrest them, but now they appeared helpless because it came from the North.
He also condemned fickle response from the Northern leaders who he said the youths were carrying their mandate and therefore called Igbo leaders to brace up for the challenges ahead because they have started again like 1967 -1970 pogrom.
“They met at Arewa House, the official conference centre of the North , to show you the whole thing has the stamp of authority of the Northern leaders. And where was the DSS? If it is in the East DSS would have arrested the youths that is if they would allow the meeting to hold.
But the North is sacrosanct. They can say and do anything and nobody queries them. This call is pure treasonable felony” Emeh said.
He then enjoined Ndigbo in the North to as matter of utmost urgency start coming back, so that they join in the working for the referendum preparatory for the eventual exit from Nigeria.
He said programmes and policies of All Progressives Congress (APC) led by ailing President Muhammed Buhari have shown a clear attempt to further marginalize the South East, saying that beyond deliberating scheming out Ndigbo in his appointment, the recent exclusion of South East in $5.851b railway project, the throwing away of the South East Development Commission Bill by the House of Representatives, intimidation and arrest of prominent persons both in government and business like the unwarranted search of the residence of Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu , detention of Ifeanyi Uba for several months now without arraigning him before Court as required by the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria are all geared towards marginalizing Ndigbo.
Said the youth leader, “Ndigbo are not the problem of the North. Their problem is self –inflicted. We did not ask them not to go to school. It is clear that this our union is not working. And it has to be dissolved.
This marriage of inconvenience cannot work. Since Nigeria has rejected us, we can’t reject ourselves. The president is behind them. He unleashed Herdsmen on Nigerians and that is why nobody has been arrested. The president is solidly behind them”.
He said as it is now the acting President is incapacitated and cannot stop this Northern project to cling to power at all cost, calling on Igbo elites not to be indifferent to this call if they know that they and their children would not be massacred again as was the case in the past.
He dismissed the rather weak condemnation of the Northern Coalition by Governor El-Rufai as a mere smokescreen, which does not amount to anything , accusing the Northern elites of being behind what is happening.
Alphonsus Nweze, Awka
