The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, has reiterated its call for restructuring of the country and the creation of additional states in the South-East.
The President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, who made the call during the Ohanaeze Ndigbo retreat on Wednesday in Enugu, lamented that South-East had lost trillions as a result of disparities in state and local government creations that were done by military fiat.
Calling for a total restructuring of the country to give each region the liberty to develop at its pace, Iwuanyanwu said that Ohanaeze was not happy with the 1999 Constitution as amended.
According to him, if Nigeria is restructured, power would be devolved from federal to state with a reasonable autonomy to develop at their own pace without any hindrance from the federal government.
“It will enable us to build our own seaports, railways and other infrastructure to develop the zone,” he said.
On the imbalance in state creation, the Igbo leader threatened to take legal action against the federal government if it failed to give the region an additional state equivalent to other zones in the country, saying “We are assembling Igbo lawyers to pursue it”.
He added that they would allow the state anywhere it was created in Igboland.
The Igbo leader also kicked against merging of Project Development Institute (PRODA) with another science Institute, stressing that the institute was borne out of the experience of the Nigeria Civil War.
“Ohanaeze is in full support of the implementation of the Oronsaye report, but will request all Igbo anywhere to ensure that PRODA is not merged with any other institutions,” he said.
In a paper presentation titled “Education: Technical Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Igboland” the Vice Chancellor, Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Nnenna Oti, called for new hope, equal opportunities, technological and entrepreneurial development in Igboland.
She called on the Igbos to identify who they were and pursue their dreams for greater exploits.
Earlier in a welcome address, the chairperson of the event, Allison Madueke, a retired rear admiral, said it was time for Igbos to step out and make a move for the betterment of the region.
“When you move without wisdom, you get injured,” Mr Madueke said, stressing that it was time for Igbos to ask themselves questions about where they went wrong and make amends.
Some Igbo leaders at the Ohanaeze Ndigbo retreat held in Enugu on Wednesday
While commending Mr Iwuanyanwu for organising the programme, Mr Madueke said “We need to change our tactics and approaches with the wisdom given to us”.
