Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State has stated that the activities
of the Indigenous People of Biafra will affect the chances of Igbos to
produce Nigeria’s president.
According to him, the agitators have every right to complain about
marginalization but not to call for separation from the country.
He told newsmen on Thursday that IPOB was not good for the South
East, and it was not the best way for them to complain about
marginalisation to the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
He said,
“There are better ways; the IPOB way is too primitive. If
IPOB must do a thing like that it should have changed the name and
fought the way Ijaw youths fought, Arewa youths fought, and they would
have made more impact. For everything that comes from the Igbo man, we
love to go to the extreme.
“Now you want to separate yourself from Nigeria, meanwhile,
South-South will not go with you, Edo, Rivers will not go with you. If
you cut us off here now as South east, if I need to go to Rivers State, I
will go and ask for passport and visa, and we are keeping quiet to say
this.
“If there is a crisis now, there is no Hausa man in Igbo land who has
a duplex, there is no Yoruba man who has a room and parlour or a N20
million investment in Igbo land, but Igbo have trillions of naira
virtually everywhere.
“The same people are asking for secession. If Igbo are asked to go,
what happens? They would lose their property, and all of us are keeping
quiet, supporting IPOB! It was very childish, and those behind this
should stop, that is my advice.
“South-South has produced the president, South-West has produced a
president and Vice President, the north has produced many presidents, it
is hoping that one day in the next shift, by whatever arrangement, the
next people that should be considered is the South-East by Nigeria’s
sharing formula.
“So, where are we in our wisdom and the intelligence? That is my
position on IPOB; my advice is that Igbo should change their style and
condemn IPOB in a manner that should be done and let us flow with the
rest of Nigeria for now because we shall benefit more than anyone else.”