By Valentine Amanze, Online Editor
Ndigbo in the United States of America (U.S.) have condemned the rising wave of insecurity in Nigeria, while commending the formation of Eastern Security Network (ESN).
The group, on the platform of the Igbo Union, also carpeted the Federal Government’s disposition in addressing the challenges.
The group, which is an umbrella organization of Igbo communities and Cultural Association in America, said that the federal government was lackadaisical in its handling of challenges of banditry, terrorism, kidnapping and killings in the country and in Igbo land in particular.
They lamented that South-East Governors were not rising to the occasion of protecting the lives and property of the people.
The group in a statement signed by the Coordinator in the US, Chief Ike Orji, Secretary-General, Mr Matthew Ohanele and others, bemoaned the South-East Governors’ Forum on its ineptitude to the letter the association purportedly wrote in June and August 2020 on the need for a secure network to protect the South-East geo-political zone against killing, raping, illegal land occupation, property destruction allegedly perpetrated by Fulani herdsmen who were always seen armed with AK-47 in and around Igbo.
“To date, the governors neither responded to the letter nor did anything to guarantee the security and safety of Igbo lives and property but curiously, a few weeks ago, came up with a phoney trojan horse code named Ebube Agu.
“While the federal government of Nigeria paid ransoms, busy negotiating with terrorists, Igbo men and women who lost their lives, crops, property, raped and sexually assaulted were left to cater for themselves. Such a lame and naive approach only embolden the murderers and killers.
“We, the Igbo Union, an umbrella organization of Igbo Communities and Cultural Association in the United States, frowns at and condemns in totality any invitation of or use of the Nigerian Military force by any governor in the South East. The grassroots Ndigbo are in total and complete support of the creation and establishment of the Eastern Security Network (ESN) to protect Igbo lives. We, therefore, urge the governors not to sabotage the security outfit in the zone.
“The world is also watching Governor Umahi of Ebonyi State who is crying and biting his fingers regrettably. We can only hope that he learns from his miscalculations so as to avoid a repeat of the same mistake and unmask the perpetrator of the heinous crime in his state since he told the whole world that he had information on their identities.
“We enjoin the federal government not to make one tribe or ethnic group superior to the other. If Mayetti Allah’s leader could be seen riding in a convoy in Abuja and allow the establishment of Amotekum security outfit; what reason can anyone give or contemplate against Ndigbo creating and establishing ESN to curtail the ongoing atrocities in the land? “We, therefore, challenge the federal government to use the same military force and might on unarmed civilians and ESN creation, to stamp out the menace of Boko Haram and terrorism in the country and until that is seen to be done, all other actions and inactions could be said to mean leap services to the citizenry.”