ANGO ABDULLAHI: S’East leaders main reason I supported Igbo quit notice

Spokesperson of Northern Elders Forum, Professor Ango Abdullahi, has given reasons why he supported the quit notice issued to Ndigbo living in the North by Arewa youths.

He insisted that the silence of prominent South-East political leaders over the Biafra agitation was the reason he did what he did.

He said that he was worried that notable people as “Dr. Elex Ekwueme, Emeka Anyaoku, Jim Nwobodo and Mbazulike Amechi among others” failed to caution the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) Leader Nnamdi Kanu and other pro-Biafra groups.

Abdullahi stated this on Tuesday during a meeting with Oil and Solid Mineral Producing Communities Landlord Association of Nigeria (OMPALAN) leadership led by Bishop Udo Azogu in Zaria.

He added that he was confused that many Nigerians started condemning him for supporting Arewa Youths openly unlike several other northern leaders who hid their support.

He said the “North and Eastern Nigeria had come a long way in terms of building political bridges starting from the first republic when Dr. Nnamdi Zik conceded the position of Prime Minister to Tafawa Balewa and in second republic when Dr. Alex Ekwueme was supported by the North to become Vice President to Shehu Shagari.”

Abdullahi said that North had always wanted to resuscitate the relationship between them and the South East despite the setbacks it suffered from the three years civil war.

He further revealed that part of their grouse against the Igbo was their failure to appreciate the love which the North showed to them after the civil war by returning all their abandoned properties to them.

Noting that even the rents collected on their behalf by various caretakers assigned to supervise the affected properties were given to them, Abdullahi said that Ndigbo had failed to reciprocate that love which their South South neighbours who “confiscated their properties in Port Harcourt and other South South cities” could show them.

Read also: NDIGBO: Of toddler-governors and a self-acclaimed Supreme Leader

Meanwhile, speaking earlier at the meeting, Bishop Azogu said that OMPALAN goal was to unravel root causes of the rising cases of agitations and hate speeches currently causing tension in the polity and to seek possible means of addressing them.

Azogu explained that his group has seen that the numerous agitations across the country, was a manifestation of failure of leadership by the political class and had decided to work with all ethnic nationalities in the country, including the Northern Elders Forum to save the country from going into precipice.

“It’s like saying it’s nobody’s business. But, Nigerians will not be silent for a long time. The Governors and other political leaders of the South East have failed the region. They’re unfit to represent the region. This is why some people cashed in on the vacuum created by the rudderless leadership of the region to demand for secession. Nobody should be fooled anymore.

‘‘Other aggrieved leaders in the North saw the country on a dangerous collision course with anarchy and kept mute. Ango Abdullahi’s timely statement was not intended to incite lawlessness but, a clarion call to all Nigerians of all climes to work collaboratively and defend the unity of the country,’’ he said.

RipplesNigeria ….without borders, without fears

Click here to download the Ripples Nigeria App for latest updates

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now