The apex Igbo socio-cultural and political organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has distanced itself from comments credited to Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, over the ongoing mayhem in Lagos State.
President General of the organisation, Chief John Nnia Nwodo, said in a statement on Thursday that “Ohanaeze is also outraged by the vituperative and inciting outrage of the leader of IPOB on the #EndSARS activities in Lagos and disassociate the body completely from them.”
According to him, the statement titled, “#EndSARS: Alleged destruction of Yoruba economic assets, the Ohanaeze position,” was in response to a press statement earlier issued by a pan-Yoruba group, the Apapo O’Odua Koya on the ongoing youth protest in Nigeria particularly in Lagos as it relates to Ndigbo youths.
The statement read: “We find the statement disheartening, not necessarily because of the untruth in its sentiment, but that it’s obviously being engineered and targeted at the age long good relationship between the Igbo and the Yoruba.
“Ohanaeze strongly believes that the press statement is craftily drafted showing a skillful use of underhand tactics to achieve a set goal, which in this case is to set Yoruba against Ndigbo.
“We are ready to vehemently resist this in our time, knowing the historical affinity of these two great ethnic groups dating back to the days of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe through to the famous handshake across the Niger propagated by our iconic leader Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu- Ojukwu.
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“This spontaneous relationship built by our forefathers over the years has been strengthened in the last three years by the political emancipation movement, being propelled by the Southern and Middle Belt Leadership Forum made up of four ethno-political bodies of Ndigbo, in the South East, Afenifere in the South West, PANDEF in the South-South, Adenomere and the Middle Belt Forum in the North Central Nigeria.
“Ohanaeze feels based on intelligence available to it that the motive of this disturbing statement is not only to overtake the mileage covered by this group in setting their people free from the hegemonic bondage but to ensure its destruction.
“Ndigbo are focused and unequivocal about what they want in a contemporary Nigeria as already articulated in the terms of engagement of this group which is to restructure Nigeria for a true federal system where justice and equity will reign.
“We therefore wish to refute any position being ascribed to Ndigbo even if such position is being adduced by an Igbo that is not within the realm of the struggle to free Nigeria as encapsulated in the terms of agreement of these ethnic nationalities.”
