RE-AWAKENING IGBO SOCIO-POLITICAL CONSCIOUSNESS. Prior to Nigeria independence in 1960 and till the civil way of 1967, the Igbo man was a major participant and stakeholder in the Nigerian polity, many sons and daughters of the Igbo nation helped in building this nation before and after independence, almost all spheres of the nation had the Igbo man working whole heartedly without fear of discrimination or death for the Nigerian nation. It is on record that an Igbo son coined the mantra ‘one Nigeria’ popularized later by other ethnic group who had less enthusiasm about the Nigerian project. Perhaps the whole Igbo nation believed in the Nigerian project more than any other ethnic group in Nigeria before and after the independence. How then did the Igbo nation who so much believed in the Nigerian project lose interest in it? How then did the fate of an Igbo man in Nigeria become an aberration? How then were we relegated to the bottom in all affairs within Nigeria? Our woes as a people started shortly before and after the civil war, the war was a total failure we neither made a point nor achieved anything in it, since after the war we have been tagged and treated as a conquered people although individually some had made progress in integrating back into Nigeria but collectively as a people we are yet to make headway. How do we then regain our lost glory, how do we shed this toga of a conquered people? Many have suggested the simple and outright answer secede from Nigeria and declare the republic of Biafra and all Igbo man problem would be solved. For me those who express this line of reasoning are doing so on sentiments and not logical reasoning and are bound to make the mistakes of 1967 which was a direct result of non-efficient planning. At present the Igbo nation lacks the infrastructure to cater for mass inflow of Igbo nation into it if the republic of Biafra is declared. What the Igbo nation needs now is gradual step by step plan which will gradually bring the Igbo man back to the forefront of affairs in Nigeria and help develop infrastructure within the region perhaps if Biafra then secede it effects would not be much on the region. I have within my own understanding listed some necessary issues which need be tackled urgently and collectively. 1. The Igbo nation collectively needs to agitate and demands for additional state creation for equality with other regions and to ensure an increase in land mass, this new state should be mixture of a state in the south east region and other Igbo sub group cut out from the rest by the creation of more states in Nigeria like the ikwerre and anioma group. 2. The Igbo nation needs demand an immediate heavy presence of federal government infrastructures in the region the south Eastern governors in conjunction with the Igbo ministers and major stakeholders needs attract both government and private investments to the region. 3. Agitation needs to be made for the construction of oguta Seaport and the empowerment of the Onitsha seaport for full functionality; we also need to tactically ask the federal government to pursue a policy that will make the Lagos port less attractive. 4. The Igbo nation also need ask reasons why other Igbo sub groups like anoima, ikwerre and co do not want to be associated with the Igbo’s, if there was any atrocities or discrimination directed towards them by us during the civil war we need seek forgiveness from them and integrate them back. 5. The south east governor needs to pull resources together to construct a south Eastern university, and to pressure the federal government to construct a functional power plant within the region. 6. More of Igbo business men should be encouraged to diversify into the formal sector of the economy. 7. Pressure and political maneuvering should be use to impress on the federal government and other ethnic region on why state of origin and ethnicity should be indicated on the census paper irrespective of where you are counted. For me declaring the republic of Biafra without adequate infrastructures to cater for the millions that will troop in would lead to a disaster unimaginable, the Igbo man needs understand the game of politics and get an ally in Nigeria not necessary seeing every one as attempting to annihilate the Igboman. The Igbo’s need lose the psychology of been a defeated people, the psychology that makes you feel that everyone is antagonizing you and understand that the life itself is a competition. We also need to understand that we are not perfect and like all human beings have our own flaws, and some of these flaws tend to attract hate from other people, working on these flaws might help. We need an ideological awakening within Igbo land, we are the cause of our present predicament, lets stop pointing fingers at other and work within ourselves to develop our communities. I look all over Igbo land and I see a nation fast losing it’s culture, a nation which hardly promotes itself or its culture, a nation were wealth is celebrated irrespective of how the wealth is acquired, a nation with a basterdized tittle system, a nation in which all sort of security challenges are inherent, a nation that tends to believes that crimes pay, a nation that celebrates and adore criminals. Many of our problems are inherent within us; let us face these challenges together. FROM EMEKA TRICE OBI.
Posted on: Thu, 01 Aug 2013 18:14:53 +0000
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