Biafra
Igbo leaders urged their people to focus on their strength and stop lamenting their position in the country.
Vanguard reports that they made this known in Lagos at the public presentation of a book entitled: The Land of My Birth which was authored by a legal practitioner, Mr. Abraham Nnadi.
At the forum, they reached a consensus that the country needed to be restructured.
Commodore Ebitu Ukiwe (retd) who is a former chief of general staff said: “Igbo people are great people, it is unfortunate that they are being hated. But I am urging them to stop lamenting. This is not the time for lamentation. Igbo people should get up and move on because hatred is not always a bad thing. Ndigbo have good manners. Let them practice good manners and move on. We are not known for being idle. Igbo people will succeed in this country.”
Prof Anya Anya urged Igbo people to stop lamenting and said the country was due for restructuring.
“Ndigbo should stop lamenting over their position in the country. Nigeria needs restructuring. Ndigbo should assist in building the reputation of Nigeria by being united. It is only with unity that Ndigbo would achieve their goals in Nigeria. But Ndigbo must stop the habit of lamentation.”
Onyeka Onwenu said that the innovation of Igbo people during the Biafra war was destroyed by Nigeria and that the region would have done well in Biafra.
She said: “Ndigbo have done well despite the civil war. We like to work hard. At the end of the war, we had nothing but we are everywhere today. That shows that we would have done well with Biafra. Biafra was producing and refining petroleum and weapons. But since the war ended, none of them were sustained by the Federal Government. The government destroyed the capacity of the Igbo people to produce the things they were producing then.
“We lost everything and the Igbo were downgraded. Igbo women are also being downgraded. You can never waste money training a girl. Igbo women should stand tall in their Igboness. We have Igbo women who are holding political positions but when they contest for positions, they find it difficult excelling. I contested for local government chairmanship for eight years but never won because I was not supported.”
