Ndigbo Lagos decries attack on Nwodo’s home, calls for proper investigation, renegotiation of Nigeria

By Daniel Kanu

The umbrella organisation for all Igbo living in Lagos State, Ndigbo Lagos Foundation, has bemoaned what it called the “disintegrating security and social situations in the country,” which it says “calls for a serious reflection.”

The group made the observation in a press statement dated May 1, 2018, but which was sent to The Niche by its Administrative Secretary, Mr. Kalu Onuma, on Wednesday.

Ndigbo Lagos Foundation in the strongly worded statement condemned without reservations the recent attack on the home of the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Nnia Nwodo and the attempt to blame Igbo youths for the attack.

Nwodo’s country home at Ukehe, Nsukka in Enugu State, was rocked on Sunday, April 29, by a bomb blast, which destroyed part of his building and left the the ceiling and windows of the house shattered.

The Enugu State Police said the blast emanated from an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), which was thrown into the compound by unknown persons from outside.

Some people have since then blamed some Igbo youths for the attack even when the security agencies were yet to conclude their investigations.

Ndigbo Lagos said such hurried and unsubstantiated claim was not only unfortunate but also misleading, given the fact that “Igbo youths are not violence-driven and are amongst the most serious minded and hardworking people,” in Nigeria and elsewhere.

The group, therefore urged the “appropriate organs of government to once and for all, step in to deal with this as well as many other similar security challenges facing the country.”

The group also warned that the foundations upon which Nigeria “was built were on shaky grounds and the conflicts, mismanagement and corruption buffeting it, would surely bring it down, if we do not rein them in.”

Below is the full statement:

The state of the Igbo Nation in the light of the disintegrating security and social situations in the country calls for a serious reflection.

It is in the light of these that Ndigbo Lagos Foundation, having considered the facts of these situations, wish to make the following Statements:

1. We condemn the appalling attack carried out at the home of the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Nnia Nwodo. We also wish to state for the records that, this act, plus several other security issues in the South East over the past few months must be dealt with by the relevant authorities.
2. We do not agree and we consider it rather hurried and unsubstantiated, the various claims by certain people, and also commentaries on the pages of the newspapers, that Igbo youths or even groups are responsible for the attack. That, in our opinion is an allegation too many, done without proper investigation to warrant such deduction or conclusion by the authorities. We call on the appropriate organs of government to once and for all, step in to deal with this as well as many other similar security challenges facing the country.
3. Igbo youths are not violence-driven and are amongst the most serious minded and hardworking people. We acknowledge that there may be, like everywhere, some amongst them who might be errant, but making and delivering the kind of bomb, reported by the press is unlikely to be true. It is cynical at most for anyone without proper and thorough investigations to accuse our Youths or anyone for this heinous crime.
4. As we approach the 2019 elections, activities of government appear to be giving way to the exigencies of politics. Ndigbo Lagos Foundation finds this quite disturbing, and advises the leadership to identify people in governance who have political ambitions and cease them off their portfolios immediately. Not doing so at this moment will have grave consequences and may lead the country further down the road to anarchy.
5. Without being repititious of what we have said over and over again, the foundations upon which this country was built, is on shaky grounds and the conflicts, mismanagement and corruption buffeting it, would surely bring it down, if we do not rein them in. We call for a review of the whole foundational tenets. A country where its citizens no longer feels safe cannot guarantee the so called dividends of democracy.
6. We join every other progressive voice that has called for a renegotiation of this country, to demand that the various representatives of the groups in Nigeria should urgently seat down and start the process of salvaging what is left of our sanity before we lose it completely.

Signed

Ndigbo Lagos Foundation

1^st May 2018