Emmanuel Ogodo, EMERALD NEWS special Reporter writes on the marginalisation of the Igbos in Nigeria. He traces the history, the systematic deprivation of the Igbos and the agitation for secession as the only perceived solution.
By Emmanuel Ogodo
The question of whether or not the Igbos, who are the predominant occupants of the South Eat region of Nigeria, are being marginalised in the country has remained topical and evergreen, especially since the beginning of the post-colonial era. Meanwhile, there is need to go a bit historical in order to better appreciate the discourse.
A military coup, a counter-coup, and anti-Igbo pogroms in Northern Nigeria led to the declaration of the then Eastern Nigeria as a sovereign state, under the name Republic of Biafra by the then military governor of the Eastern Region, Lieutenant-Colonel Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu on May 30, 1967. Ojukwu had accused the Nigerian federal military government led by General Yakubu Gowon of breaching the Aburi Accord.
The declaration by Ojukwu met equal and opposite reaction from Gowon’s federal military government, and this resonated into a full-blown war on July 6, 1967, which is today known at the Nigerian-Biafran War or Nigerian Civil war. The war led to the death of no fewer than 2 million easterners, majority of whom were children that died of starvation.
After the Biafran side surrendered on May 15, 1970, General Gowon made the pronouncement of ‘No Victor, No Vanquished’, that is to say that the war was not won or lost by either side. Thereafter, he introduced the 3Rs policy of Reconciliation, Reconstruction and Rehabilitation, to help soothe the enormous damage and harm caused by the war, especially to the Igbos.
The irony, however, was that the same government of Gowon which supposedly sought to reconcile, reconstruct and rehabilitate, allegedly froze the bank accounts of all Igbos, leaving them with only 20 pounds each. At the same time, many Igbos who had fled the conflict from other parts of the country returned to their properties but were unable to claim them back from the new occupants, after the war. This later birthed the Abandoned Property Act of 1979.
One may not be wrong to say that all forms of dissatisfaction being felt by Igbos today are as a result of long-existing open wounds, which are aftermaths of the Civil War.
In 2017, an economist and political scientist, Professor Ebere Onwundiwe, convened a conference with the theme “Memory and Nation Building: 50 Years after Biafra” in Abuja. It was sponsored by the Ford Foundation, Open Society Initiative for Africa (OSIWA) and the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Foundation, to mark the 50th anniversary of Biafra.
Speaking during the conference, Onwundiwe maintained that the mismanagement of the General Yakubu Gowon’s Reconciliation, Reconstruction and Rehabilitation (3Rs) policy, which the military government put in place to erase the scars of war, was the major reason for the resurgence of agitations among different Igbo groups today.
He said, “It was the failure of Nigeria to vigorously and successfully implement the 3 Rs policy that was partly responsible for the establishment of Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) and Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
“To keep Nigeria one is a task that must be done.” The military defeat of secession only achieved that goal in half. The other half is the war of re-integration, which I posit can only happen in the battlefields of policy making and implementation where the most effective weapons are the soft tools of reason, justice and fairness.”
On his part, the Governor of Ebonyi State and Chairman, South-East Governors’ Forum, Chief David Umahi said in an interview with Channels Television last year, that there are a lot misconceptions and misinformation about marginalisation of the region, maintaining that all regions in the country desire and demand for equity and fairness as well.
He, however, posited that there are certain issues in the South-East that needed to be addressed. He said, “There are certain things that happen in this country, which Mr. President, even the Ministers will not be aware of. Where in a particular ministry, someone from the South-East is due for promotion or due for a particular appointment is not appointed, how will Mr. President know about it?
“My position is that we should articulate all our grievances, and let the youths give us the opportunity and the chance to engage the centre… I cannot say that the South-East is not marginalised, but it cannot be in totality,” he said.
From all indications, the dimensions and indices of the marginalisation against Igbos may be said to be largely political. These range from political alliances to deny them elective positions, to exclusion from appointive positions.
In the words of Shehu Sani, former senator representing Kaduna Central, the Igbos have been systematically marginalised since the civil war. Speaking during a meeting organised by the Association of Eze-Ndigbo in Diaspora in 2021, Sani described the marginalisation as a “collective punishment”.
According to him, “There has been a systemic exclusion and marginalisation of your people (the Igbos), stemming from the historical Biafra war — this is a collective punishment.
“Each time we have a government, they give juicy positions to other tribes, excluding the Igbos. When you exclude an Igbo man from appointment, you are proving those who don’t believe in one Nigeria right.
“Since the end of the civil war, Igbos have been distrusted and regarded as unfaithful and unpatriotic Nigerians. The violence going on in the country is capable of thwarting the stability and peace of the country,” he said.
The words of Senator Sani lend credence to the claim that successive governments in Nigeria, including the current one led by President Muhammadu Buhari, have not been fair to the Igbos. This answers the question of who masterminds the marginalisation faced by Igbos; the government treats cases involving Igbos differently and unfairly. Take the cases of Kanu and Igboho for instance.
Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, leader of an Igbo secessionist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) was apprehended in Kenya on June 27, 2021, and later renditioned back to Nigeria, to face terrorism charges. However, a Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja discharged and acquitted him since October 13, 2022, but since then, he is still being held hostage, illegally, by the Nigerian government.
On the contrary, Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, a Yoruba Nation agitator (pioneer of Oduduwa Republic), after being declared wanted by the Nigerian government, was arrested in Cotonou, Benin Republic on July 19, 2021. However, on March 7, 2022, Igboho was released, after less than 8 months of dentention in the same Cotonou, where he was arrested.
Now, with the way the incoming administration has been structured, following the controversial 2023 general election and its recent antecedents, Igbos seem to be on their way to another 4 years, or even 8 years of renewed old agitations.
Igbos generally agree that the region is being marginalised. The disagreement, however, has remained what the way forward should be. Whereas most Igbo leaders advocate restructuring, majority of them hold the view that only disintegrating from Nigeria will ameliorate their sufferings. This disagreement might, as well, continue to linger the age-long hue and cry of Igbos.
Over 50 decades of agitation and still counting. When will the storm calm?
