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BY CALLY EBUE
As the nation was still dousing the ripples raised by the quit notice given by the foot soldiers of Arewa North, they came up with another infantile political scheme, an afterthought and a face saving scheme to cover their disappointments over the floodgate of condemnations across the federation that greeted their infamous quit notice by taking cover in an open letter to the Ag. President Professor Yemi Osinbajo.
In the first instance, I consider the letter an insult to the person and office of the Ag. President, because they had already placed the cart before the horse. Have they suddenly realised now that Nigeria has a constituted authority to channel complaints to? After they had arrogated to themselves the powers of the executive, legislature and judiciary; and even that of United Nations.
Of course, it is very clear that Arewa foot soldiers have lost a sense of time and history and no amount of desperation and distortion of historical facts can right their wrongs and delusion in assuming that 21st century Nigeria is still the same as 20th century Nigeria.
Actually, it is not the intension of this author to respond to every issue raised in the said letter to the Ag. President, which were mere subterfuge, decoy and a red herring for a covert sinister political scheme they are planning, but I feel obliged to separate facts from the historical fantasy for the benefits of the uniformed as well as attempt to heal the historical amnesia of the Arewa foot soldiers.
It is a granite fact of history that the Arewa North was the originator, custodian and executor of ethnic hatred and violence in Nigeria. Long before the independence in 1960 and the almighty January 15, 1966, coup which they always use as an excuse, they have manifested their hatred and violence culture on the people of Southern Nigeria, especially the Igbo people and non-Muslims. I am specifically referring to the 1945 Jos massacre and 1953 Kano pogrom. What have Igbo people done to them then? January 15, 1966, coup has not taken place then.
Subsequently, over the years, they have unleashed violence and mayhem on Igbo people who are 99% Christians without the slightest provocation and yet not one of them had been arrested.
It is very clear now to the whole world and Arewa North must accept the fact that hate and violence are embedded in their DNA, check out the Boko Haramists and Fulani Herdsmen, are they not their brothers and sisters? These violence tendencies of Arewa youths have defiled all logically and medical explanations and it is now only divine intervention that can quench their thirst for bloodletting violence. But nobody has the monopoly of violence.
Secondly, it is also a historical fact that Arewa North was the first federating unit in Nigeria to threaten to pull out of the federation, not Ndigbo. It is no longer a secret that after they were advised against making each a move by the British because of Niger Delta Oil, they jettison the idea.
Today Arewa North owned and controlled over 80% oil blocks in the Niger Delta Region which they appropriated for their elites and political leaders, leaving the Almajiris and the Talakawas to wallop in abject poverty and at the same time, manipulating their psyche towards hatred of the Igbos as the cause of their problems.
According to Arewa youths “it is important to note that the Igbos eventually capitulated and conceded defeat in an unconditional manner not armistice on January 15th 1970 which renders any talk about Biafra at any time, a repudiation of the terms of surrender signed by Philip Effiong et al” If that was the case, why are they now championing cause of the self-determination of Igbo people all of a sudden. Would that not be a repudiation of the terms of surrenders? So Arewa North knew about Article 12 of United Nations Charter since the end of World War II in 1945, yet they fought a war of attrition to stop the self-determination of the people of Eastern Region.
Another mischief in their letter, probably to weep up the sentiments of the Yorubas for support, was that the Igbos has gone extraordinary length to ensure that in their domain… “Northerners and Westerners are disenfranchising from owing any businesses, whereas in Kano alone they owned not less than 100,00o stores…” This is another fallacy that needs to be put in the proper perspective. First of all an Hausa/Fulani man will live in Alaigbo for many years without learning how to speak come in Igbo which is free of charge, instead he would prefer you to speak to him in Hausa. How do they want to establish such businesses in an environment that predominantly speaks Igbo?
Secondly, the Igbos are the largest consumers of Nama meat (Cow meat) and Hausa/Fulani people have the monopoly of this business in the whole of Southeast and make billions of Naira from the business in Southeast alone. If they choose not to invest their profits in Igbo land why Nidgbo should be held responsible. However, for the Igboman who went to the North, the reverse is the case. On arrival, he would first of all learn Hausa, the little profit he made at the early stage of his business he reinvest in the North, as he progresses, he will buy land to build a home not a house for his family. Please my people who among these two categories want one Nigeria in a practical sense? Your guess is as good as mine.
As for the Igbos disenfranchising the Yorubas from owning businesses in Alaigbo, this I laughable. An English adage says you do not carry coal to new Castle. Why should a Yoruba man, an importer, industrialist or a manufacturer choose southeast to set up his business? Is it because Southeast has the best network of roads, infrastructure, access to sea port etc? The Yorubas are not fools; they knew that they have far better comparative advantages to set up their businesses in Yoruba land than Alaigbo. It is simply called pure business sense. This same advantage Yorubas have was what Igbos saw that made them migrate to the Yoruba land especially Lagos, Ogun axis to do business.
The Igbo people has an adage which says “ Okuko rapuru mma gburuya otugobaru ite onu”. The meaning is that the Arewa foot soldiers were venting their anger and frustrations about the turn of events in Nigeria on the wrong people and in the wrong direction. Instead of holding their elites and leaders who have controlled the reins of power in Nigeria for more than 80% since her independence, without impacting positively on the majority of average Northerner except in producing more Almajiris accountable, they were dissipating their energy in gearing to fight people who are not the cause of their problems.
What most Nigerians especially the foot soldiers of Arewa didn’t know is that once Igbos leave Nigeria, there won’t be any Nigeria again because the Igbos, in a very uncanny way, are the common denominator that bind the rest of Nigerians together, take them out, the centripetal force that bind together the country will collapse. Many people may find it difficult to understand, but it’s true. Again, it must be drawn into the skull of Arewa foot soldiers that the current demand for Biafra was accentuated by inequity and structural imbalance in the configuration of the present day Nigeria, which was carried out by the successive military leaders from Arewa North to their advantage and as long as this injustice persists the call for Biafra can never abate. The change mantra of the ruling party cannot just end because they have taken over power, it must be holistic.
Finally, if truth must be told without fear nor favour, what Nigeria needs more that Biafra exit now, in order to find a lasting solution to wanton bloodletting ethnic violence and hate is Arewa exit. Gideon Okar realized this far back, when in his aborted coup broadcast excised the five core Arewa States from the rest of the federation because they are the bane of unity in Nigeria. Gideon Okar was not an Igbo man but a Tiv man. Though he paid the ultimate price with his life, but he told Nigerians the truth, and remember that many Nigerians, celebrated his coup for the short while it lasted, before they were crushed by the Arewa North dominated military. I suggest to Arewa foot soldiers to attach that Okar coup broadcast speech as a reference to subsequent open letter to the Acting President.
Ebue Callistus
Former State Secretary ( NUJ Enugu State Council )
