Igbo never mandated anybody to talk about secession – Iwuanyanwu

Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). [Photo credit: Daily Post]
Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). [Photo credit: Daily Post]

A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, has said that Igbo never mandated anybody to talk about breaking away from the country.

Mr. Iwuanyanwu said this in Abuja on Saturday in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

He expressed worry over agitations by some groups calling for the nation’s dissolution.

Mr. Iwuanyanwu, however, said the call for restructuring was appropriate to address the numerous challenges confronting the country.

According to him, restructuring doesn’t mean division of the nation, adding ‘‘let us forget about the talk of secession by some young people.

‘‘I am an Igbo man and a leader.

‘‘I was the Chairman of Planning and Strategy of Ohaneze Ndigbo, so when you talk of any decision on the Igbo, it must have my consent.

‘‘Igbo have never mandated anybody to go and talk about secession.

‘‘We have heard that some youths reversed the call for the exit of the Igbo form the north.

‘‘l am happy that Nigerian leaders as well as the governors are coming up to say that Igbo are safe in their places.

‘‘Many Igbo in the north have been coming to me asking me of what to do; I want to assure them that nobody is going to hurt them.

‘‘We all stand for one Nigeria and in future if anybody makes a statement, nobody should generalise and say it is Igbo,’’ he added.

According to him, there are good and terrible people amongst the Igbo as it is in other tribes.

‘‘People should stop generalising individual’s comment as if it were the general Igbo who made the comment.

‘‘I am happy that the President (Muhammadu Buhari) has said that anyone who made threatening comments would be disciplined and he has said he would put security measures to protect them.

‘‘Therefore, Igbo shouldn’t go anywhere.

‘‘I just want everyone to accept this restructuring and by the way, this restructuring issue is not a complicated one.

‘‘We have had two constitutional conferences during Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and Dr Goodluck Jonathan civilian governments. We don’t even need to have a sovereign national conference.

‘‘If the National Assembly members can be honest with themselves, they should form a committee of the whole which includes both chambers and call it a restructuring committee.

‘‘Call for submission by people then include it with the submissions from the conference by Obasanjo and Jonathan, then they will know that we want to restructure to give more autonomy, money and development to the region and avoid people running to Abuja for everything.

‘‘We need a system where people can stay in their states, create industries and get jobs,’’ he said. (NAN)

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  • aboki

    Tell them let them hear CHIEF!
    Nigeria we hail thee !

  • Maitama Tambari

    So there are serious minded Ndigbos in Nigeria that can come out to face truth and facts on ground. One of the greatest countries in the world is Nigeria but we have continued to disgrace it with our bad attitudes. Since the 50s it is one marginalization of the North against the South. This caused the civil war which led the Military to break Nigeria into twelve states, nineteen states and then thirty six states and yet Ndigbos and now the Yorubas are clamorous for restructuring of Nigeria. The young ones may not know that in the 50s we used to have Native Authority Policemen. Politicians cried foul. The claimed that Regional Government were using Native Authority Policemen to rig elections especially, as usual, the North. Central Policemen are constituted and now every State should be allowed to have its own Policemen. “Rawan ‘yan mata, nagaba ya koma baya ” Young girls dancing, the one in front should go back.

  • Bright Ezeh

    Some elders went through community scholarship and enjoy the country when naira have value and end up killing the country economy with corruption and introduce divide and rule so that Nigerian youths will not unite but divided to remain the slave’s of the elders especially in the North but when biafra is established l think every good person will enjoy it because nothing works in Nigeria again because of the corruptions of elders like lwuanyanwu

    • Chukwuka Okoroafor

      So you see divide and rule the elites are using yet secessionism will fix it? Look at South Sudan today and tell me if it has fixed divide and rule. Khartoum used divide and rule to weaken the Southern rebels and one line of reasoning for the secession was that the supposedly Arab North was using divide and conquer on the South. Today, it is the Dinka elites that are using divide and rule.

      • absam777

        My brother, ignore those dreamers. majority of them do not know the consequences of war.

    • Mufu Ola

      It’s d lazy & get rich quick youths that are spoiling Nigeria. I have some loafer friends who recently finished in university & want to be Reps or govs just bcos they are ‘young’!And they’ve never had meaningful working experience.

  • uOkwunna

    Iwuanyanwu, you and Nnamdi Kanu who is a true Igbo?, Nnamdi Kanu does not need permission of the likes of you to make any demand. But for courtesy sake let me enlighten you a little, IPOB/Nnamdi Kanu are demanding for a referendum in Biafra land not secession so that Biafrans of all works of live will through their votes decides whether they still wants to remain in this British contraption or not. Iwuanyanwu opportunist like you, our politicians and the social cultural group that called themselves Ohaneze Ndigbo does not has the moral justification/jurisdiction, the dignity and respect to speak on behalf of Igbos in particular and Biafrans in general in respect to rights to freedom. Respect yourself please.

    • Chukwuka Okoroafor

      But you will use a referendum to campaign for secession thus you are demanding secession in that sense. Let us be honest here.

      • uOkwunna

        No my dear rather it is called opinion poll, Britain had it and EU respected it so if we have it the Nigeria government if expected to accept and respect the out come which will either be unity in love and honesty or disintegration in love and honesty. Not secession because secession is by force, war and hatred. It is when you refused the rational that the irrational become the “render of the last resort”, the alternative.
        Be wise we are not playing politics.

        • Chukwuka Okoroafor

          But you are still campaigning and if there is a vote for unity, you will still try again. There is no use in trying to change the language. In the definition of secession, there is no mention of using force specifically. It is defined by the gold standard dictionary Merriam-Webster as ‘formal withdrawal from an organization.’ A referendum of this nature is you pushing for secession with the expectation that you will sell it to people and will get it.

          • uOkwunna

            Reach the bridge first before you cross it, right now you are crossing a bridge that is still mile away from you by this your phrase “you will still try again”

          • Chukwuka Okoroafor

            But those in Quebec tried again in 1995 after they failed in 1980. Plus, oil is on the line. Why would the agitators just give up due to one failure?

      • Julius

        Straight talk. Thank you sir !

  • absam777

    Finally, the wise one are talking. Let the wannabe Igbo leaders get lost.

  • Owejah

    “Igbo never mandated anybody to talk about secession” Ah! Deedeh! Den go insult you o!

  • Julius

    ‘Igbo have never mandated anybody to go and talk about secession’.
    Sir, but you sat there quiet while kanu was running around looking for weapons and insulting all other Nigerians. Aboki gave you a mere note and all hell broke lose and y’all coming out talking nonsense..with due respect sir, you are part of the problem and you all need to call the boy to order.

  • obiora

    Iwuanyawu it is not about talking for IGBO or not. But to make sure that your Family is not one of the Families that Traded IGBO and other Black people during Slave. Igbo man Slave Trader who Sold other IGBos during Slave Trade will never talk for Ndi-IGBOagain. So tell us first your Family Lineage. So in Referendum is where every IGBO Man will talk for himself.

  • nonso

    Who appointed/ voted ohaneze to speak for the igbo. Nnamdi kanu has more support and mandate from igbos than ohaneze fools filled with looter and saboteurs of Igbo race. As an Igbo i advice all my brothers and sisters in the north to relocate then after the October 1st and weeks after that then they can go back, because the quit notice is real, forget about the suspension pretence. Many northern miscreants will sure carry out the ordeal on innocent Igbo’s/ southerners. they certainly will, I know this people and their evil mentality. I have lived with them for decades. And by the way, why should arewa youth give a quit notice on innocent Nigerians if truly we one. Just Nnamdi Kanu is Igbo tribe then every of his short comings can be blame on any Igbo individual we meet on our way, or any Igbo neighbor living on our street. its unjust and that tells u the extent of the hatred those uncircumcised bastards have toward us igbo

  • Gbola

    Ahhhhhhhhhh

    Chief Inwuayanwu, Dis your comment would draw you insults from these hopeless and miserable retarded biyafaran youths oh.

    They don’t like entertaining Alternative opinions and views.

    They believe ALL IGBOS must think alike and file behind Nnamidiot.

  • wilsongaga

    Where there are wise elders,their goat will not be allowed to deliver with a rope on its neck,You help to advice your spoilt brat kanu to stop disturbing the peace of law abiding Nigerians.