Multiple award winning author, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, has queried the Igbo against talking about secession when they have failed to unite around a common cause like the presidency for Igbo in 2023.
Chimamanda made the remark during an interview with a television personality, Ebuka Obi-Uchendu.
According to the author of the best seller, Half of a Yellow Sun, Igbo must first show unity on a common cause like fighting against marginalization and fixing the “terrible leadership in the southeast” before even talking of secession.
The 43-year-old Chimamanda Adichie, said she fears her people won’t be able to unite politically should it come to selecting an Igbo president.
According to her, the Igbo people need to rethink how they strategise politically before talking about secession.
“There is no Biafra. There are new movements but, for me, it’s a question of being practical. Where would the border be? What is propelling these movements is a sense of marginalisation, which I think is completely valid,” she said.
“But this idea that the answer is independence is what I’m not convinced of. Nobody has made a logical case for me. Quite frankly, I’ve observed the terrible leadership that we have in the southeast (scoffs).
“Igbo people cannot unite if, for example, we say we want an Igbo president. And then we’re talking about Biafra. There is a lot of political work we need to do in the southeast.
“We need to do a lot of rethinking on how we strategise politically before we can talk about Biafra.”
