The President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, John Nnia Nwodo, has asked his fellow Igbo people to put less emphasis on the Ibgo Presidency and concentrate on thr restructuring of Nigeria.
Nwodo who spoke at a dinner organized in his honour by Old Sigmites, Lagos chapter, a club founded in 1950 at the University of Ibadan, insisted that the agitation for Igbo Presidency is not an issue.
“The agitation for Igbo presidency in 2019 is a non-issue as far as I am concerned. As the president of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, I am apolitical, I am not a member of any political party.
“This is an issue for political parties; it has nothing to do with me. The issue of power rotation among regions is not new, it is somehow aligned with the doctrine of federal character which is in our constitution.
“No party has called for nomination. I don’t think agitation for Igbo presidency is important now; what Nigerians are asking for is restructuring of the country to be a true federation. It cannot continue to be a federation in name, the political lexicography for federation is an independent federal unit.
“The moment you have independent federal unit, being state or regions and they have control over the resources they produce, they will contribute on agreed proportion to the Federation. The question of who is president and where he comes from will die down. It is going to be a matter of who is competent.
“MASSOB and IPOB organisations, no matter how divided they appear in public, are basically motivated by the same sense of outrage and bitterness. Our young men and women can no longer tolerate a second class status in their own country,” he said. [myad]
