By Oguchi Nkwocha, MD.
Quote:
“South-East marginalization
All governments in Nigeria marginalized the Igbo since the civil war. Marginalization is on the ground that they participated in the civil war, so many years after the civil war that ought to have been forgotten.
The abandonment of zoning is one of the things that will perpetually marginalize South-East because with this zoning system, any part of Nigeria can hope to present a president. The South-East, which has never produced a president, will never produce a president without zoning system. You know that there won’t be stability if a section of the country can be so neglected.
The civil war ended and since the so- called surrender, has anything come from the South-East to assure Nigerians that the civil war problem will not repeat itself? Since they surrendered, they have integrated themselves into Nigeria. The leaders of the country are refusing to integrate them. Until the days of late Yar’ adua, the South-East was not part of the security system in the country. They did not have their own share of the leadership in every part of Nigeria. What they relied on in the past is trading. They are not relevant except in spare parts business. They still have grievances and that grievances should be looked into.” –Balarebe Musa. Daily Sun Friday June 10 3911[sic]
End quote
It speaks to the adequacy and beauty of language that an issue so profound and potent can be articulated in such a compact narrative, but credit goes to him or her who can use that medium to convey the ominous which such honesty, simplicity and efficiency as Alhaji Musa has done above.
If the Igbo were awake, they should be nervous and anxious that someone else is making their own case. The Igbo are making sounds and noises, alright, but, much like the snoring and the discordant guttural notes of one in deep slumber, such do not add any meaning to the charged conversation going on in Nigeria; rather, only cause annoyance and minor irritation.
Once proud, all-rounder Igbo is now routinely labeled with the derogatory, “petty trader” or “parts trader” by Nigeria(ns) and no one—least of all, the Igbo—is challenging that. The Igbo are gratuitously put down by Nigeria and by Nigerians everywhere in Nigeria and in the media by other tribes, and yet, the Igbo do nothing about it. A common statement is that the Igbo are their own worst enemy. Or, the Igbo brought this on themselves. Or the Igbo are not disciplined (because they won’t all submit to one view or one king-figure). One description even compared the Igbo to the Yoruba, asserting that the Igbo act before they think things through, as opposed to the Yoruba who are always circumspect. (?) Really!? Whatever.
Nigeria and Nigerians best hear what Alhaji Musa has summarized for them:
1. Nigeria and their leaders are refusing to integrate the Igbo into Nigeria even though the Igbo have integrated themselves into Nigeria following the war.
2. The Igbo are not part of (are not represented in) the security system in Nigeria.
3. The Igbo do not have their own share of the leadership in every aspect of Nigeria.
4. The Igbo still have grievances that should be looked into by Nigeria.
He could have asked Nigerians to review the so-called “civil war” to see that it was in fact not civil; and it was not a civil-war at all, for that matter; that it was an unprovoked war that thoroughly victimized the Igbo; that it was in fact a war of self-defense for the Igbo and resulted in genocide against the Igbo. For any number of reasons, we did not read this from him. Nor would Nigerians, completely comfortable in their denial of these horrendous crimes against the Igbo by Nigeria, listen, learn and react appropriately.
Good thing, because it is not necessarily in his place so to do, except of course to clear his conscience and or maintain his characteristic candor. But he chose not to mention that the ethnic cleansing against the Igbo in 1966 which swelled into the bloody tide of war took place heavily in his own state, Kano. Yes, it is in fact the Igbo’s business to make these points, insist on them, live by them and expose these facts to Nigeria to remind Nigerians of what Nigeria has chosen to bury under the carpet. This should be left up to the Igbo, so the Igbo can awaken, prove that they have regained consciousness, and, act accordingly.
Brief as his paragraph is, yet somewhere in there, Alhaji Musa manages to point out a hidden and ignored ticking time-bomb: “You know that there won’t be stability if a section of the country can be so neglected.” Don’t count the Igbo out, he is telling Nigeria—if Nigeria will hear.
As is said, “Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.” That there is no “evidence of life” in the Igbo in Nigeria today does not mean that there is no life in the Igbo in Nigeria. In fact, the preponderance of objective signs is consistent with the fact that the Igbo are very much alive, even if asleep. Nigeria and Nigerians can relegate the Igbo to mere “petty traders”—ha—but look at who dominate the academia in Nigeria today. Who contribute most to NYSC? Look at who are more of the real professionals today in Nigeria. Look at who provide at least 70% of the services to all of Nigeria today. Do you know who remit almost US$6 Billion annually to their people at home in Nigeria, never mind that almost $1 Billion of that will be extorted from their home people by the Nigeria Police in broad daylight? Who, as a group own almost 70% of the property in Abuja today? Or even Lagos? Set up any merit-based system where know-how, ability, capability, productivity, diligence, reliability, responsibility, responsiveness, accountability and entrepreneurship are the criteria—in any field of human endeavor—: see who dominate.
The Igbo may play dumb—very, very dumb indeed—and comatose; and allow themselves to be labeled as such. But, because they are naturally endowed, they hold the trump-card and control the outcome of this game—when they come out to play and when they play at all. They will.
Of course, the Igbo will awaken—Nigeria’s guaranteed instability aside. On that day, the Igbo will know to exercise, and will have exercised, their Self Determination rights. Everyone, even Igbo detractors and bashers, knows very well that the Destiny of the Igbo is not in Nigeria or with Nigeria. The Igbo’s destiny is their own separate, independent, sovereign country which will compete in the same class as the best the world has to offer by way of true and successful nations. This is precisely what Nigerian leaders are afraid of, are envious of, and have sworn not to see happen. Happen it will. Like with Egypt’s Pharaoh, hardening the heart of Nigeria’s rulers means that Biafra is definitely on for the Igbo.
Oguchi Nkwocha, MD
Nwa Biafra
A Biafran Citizen
oguchi@comcast.net
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