Igbo apex body, Ohanaeze Ndigbo has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to seek a political solution to the matter involving the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
The body insisted that if Kanu continues to deal with the legalities of the question, the judicial struggle would last for too long with its political consequences.
Addressing a press conference in Enugu after the maiden meeting of the National Executive Committee, the newly elected President-General, Chief Nnia Nwodo said, “as father of Nnamdi Kanu and father of Ndigbo, I am asking the President to seek a political solution, and I am prepared to discuss it.
“Naturally, if your son is incarcerated, you cannot but ask for his release. I am asking for a political solution to Kanu’s issue.
“The people in MASSOB and IPOB are my children; there is no way I can abandon my child either for his misdemeanour or for the fact that he is disparaged by others. Right or wrong, these children are my children. Because they are my children, I have to call them back; in fact, I can announce to you that this committee has decided to have a meeting with the leadership of IPOB and MASSOB, and we are going to do so shortly.
“There is no way you can have a son who is sweating out there in the sun, labouring hard to make a point and you just leave him on his own without advising him. And you know, this son is motivated by his anger about what he is seeing happening to us.
“I have seen the war, I know the war; a young man who has not seen it will hunger for it out of rage and anger of his marginalisation and his subjection to second class citizenship. These boys are angry …but because of age and experience, I cannot be angry the same way. So, when I say they are my children, it means I understand why they are angry even when I don’t agree with their method.
“We want to bring them back as fathers and dialogue with the Federal Government. There are certain undertakings we are prepared to take, so that this warfare doesn’t continue. And those undertakings will ensure that the reasons that made them go out to war are no longer there.”
Nwodo expressed regrets that under the curent Federal Government, Igbo representation is abysmal and falls short of the constitutional provisions for the reflection of federal character in the appointment into important government positions.
Meanwhile, as Donald Trump is inaugurated today as the 45th President of the United States of America, indications emerged, yesterday, that IPOB will explore every available opportunity to present its demand for self-determination.
Co-founder of Radio Biafra, Dr. Chukwuma Egemba told Daily Sun exclusively that the group would not say it had any form of relationship with Trump because he was yet to be inaugurated.
However, the United Kingdom-based Biafra campaigner said the group would have relationship with him just as they had with other governments of the world, adding that IPOB will present its case to him once he settled down.He expressed happiness with the level of attention Biafra agitation had received from leading countries of the world.
adding that the awareness so far generated by IPOB and other groups in the Biafra movement globally can no longer be wished away.
Egemba, who paid a solidarity visit to detained IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu at Kuje prison, said the group had adopted diplomatic and political approaches in pursuing their objective.
“We have representation and doing representation to various governments of the world; to major governmental centres, to governments and political organisations that matter.
“We have been doing inroad to AU, UN; there is hardly any foreign government that does not know that Biafra exists, that Biafran people through IPOB and other organisations are fighting for their freedom.
“They are seeing what we are doing so far; what is happening and at the right time, they will come out to prove that they know what is happening,” he stated.
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IPOB: How we’ll relate with Trump
From MAGNUS EZE, Abuja
As Donald Trump is sworn in today as the 45th President of the United States of America, indications emerged yesterday that Nigeria’s separatist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), will explore every available opportunity to present its demand for self-determination.
Co-founder of Radio Biafra, Dr. Chukwuma Egemba told Daily Sun exclusively that the group would not say it had any form of relationship with Trump because he was yet to be sworn-in.
However, the United Kingdom-based Biafra campaigner said the group would have relationship with him just as they had with other governments of the world, adding that IPOB will present its case to him once he settled down.
“When he takes office and settles down, then, I am quite sure the issue of Biafra will be one of the things that will be handed to him; that he will inherit or will come to find out. Of course, Biafra people will present their case to him directly. I will not say we have relationship with him directly because he is not yet the US president,” Egemba stated.
He expressed happiness with the level of attention Biafra agitation had received from leading countries of the world, adding that the awareness so far generated by IPOB and other groups in the Biafra movement globally can no longer be wished away.
Egemba, who paid a solidarity visit to detained IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu at Kuje prison, said the group had adopted diplomatic and political approaches in pursuing their objective.
“We have representation and doing representation to various governments of the world; to major governmental centres, to governments and political organisations that matter. We have been doing inroad to AU, UN; there is hardly any foreign government that does not know that Biafra exists, that Biafran people through IPOB and other organisations are fighting for their freedom. They are seeing what we are doing so far; what is happening and at the right time, they will come out to prove that they know what is happening,” he stated.
Source :sun
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