The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo has thrown its weight behind the ongoing clamour for the secession of south eastern part of the country from Nigeria.
The group said it was strongly behind the agitation for a sovereign state of Biafra.
Ohanaeze made this affirmation at a recent press conference organised by its outgoing Secretary General, Dr Joe Nworgu on Thursday.
Nworgu cited the alleged continued marginalisation of the Igbo as one of their reasons for wanting to break out.
He said Ohanaeze had not condemned the Biafran agitation by the youths, asking “why should we condemn what is true?”
According to him,“the difference is that while the parent body is preaching patience, the youths don’t have time for such; youths must be youths, so they are responding in their own ways.
“But the problem is the same injustice, insensitivity, exclusionism. All these factors are creating the agitation, but the conclusions are different. The elders or elderly people are advising, thinking that maybe there will be a change of mind, but the youths have no time.”
Nworgu pointed out that the marginalization of the Ndigbo had been on the increase after the civil war.
His words: “It has been very bad since 1970, but under Buhari, it has been exacerbated and his attitude and utterances are not helping matters. In fact, Buhari is even acting to provoke us into taking a wrong step and to have a reason for a clampdown.
“So, we are advising our youths to calm down based on the mindset of our president. When he was appointed I said Ndigbo will desire a president who will be president to all Nigerians because nepotism is corruption.”
He said Buhari’s negligence of the Igbo became manifest when he made his first 32 appointments, but left the Igbo with nothing.
“There are many sectors of governance but when you have taken all the plum things, put them under your town’s people, what do you expect the other people to do, they will feel excluded. That is why Ndigbo are not happy with his administration,” he said.
Just recently, Leader of the Biafra Independent Movement, BIM, Ralph Uwazuruike had claimed that President Muhammadu Buhari was under pressure from the international community to allow for the actualisation of Biafra.