Bundes360 Journal
Rub minds with Frank
IDEAL IGBO AGENDA IN AND ON NIGERIA
If Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, The Right Honorable Nigerian Patriarch and worthy father of the nation looks on from the great beyond now, he should be stunned where his native Igbos have been pushed to-regarding the indices of actual political power in the federal republic. Zik himself being an Igbo of Onitsha extraction, not that he loved the Igbo less but Nigeria more, For the Union Jack to be lowered and the Green-White-Green Nigerian flag hoisted in October 1960, he Zik stooped low (After all his daunting and at times dangerously fearless pen-fight against the British dominion) for Abubakar Tafawa Balewa to take actual power from the present Queen of England.
The 1967-1970 fierce Ojukwu’s war came from Ojukwu’s perceived and well calculated determination to remove all ill-investments on the Igbo from Zik’s abstract “Nigerianness”, a situation that made quite a lot of Ibos to bemoan and believe that Zik may not have been a true Ibo son, but that is not so!!
The problem with Zik was his larger-than-life Africanness not even Nigerianenss of which Nelson Mandela, Jomo Kenyetta and Julius Nyerere all attested to Mandela once mentioned that Zik was amongst if not the main person that enlightened him to embark upon his gargantuan anti-apartheid struggle.
Julius Nyerere once said that he got disenchanted with Nigeria when after all Zik did in the struggle against British dominion and colonialism, he could not emerge the first De facto Nigeria Helmsman.
Jomo Kenyatta also took a sense from Zik’s RENASCRENT AFRICA ideology to wrest Kenya from Great Britain. Really the British colonialism and dominion allowed the Ibos to spring up both politically and academically not forgetting economically since the British had no place for tribalism nor nepotism.
This British policy warranted the emergence of Zik himself, Mbonu Ojike. K.O Mbadiwe, Sam Ikoku, M.I Okpara and others. All these heavyweights came to lime-light during that era.
The first indigenous Vice Chancellor of The Premier Nigeria University was an Ibo man-Kenneth Dike from Awka. In terms of the nation’s economy, from inception Ibo controlled and still controls more than seventy-five percent of Nigerian materialism with Emeka Ojukwu’s father (Louis Philip) emerging the first notable Millionaire of the nation. Zik was prompted to declare in 1949, at the forefront of Nigeria’s independence struggle and movement that,
“It does do appear that the God of Africa has specially anointed the Ibo
to librate the children of Africa from the bandage of the ages. He continued:
“The prowess of the Ibo Nation has singled them out as preservers.” Therefore, as I opined, before the 2014 confab occasioned by President Goodluck Jonathan; the ideal Igbo agenda should paint a picture safeguarding and maintaining a NIGERIA as Zik envisioned:
A Country where, though tribe and tongue differs, true brotherhood must reign supreme. A country where the “Rule of Law” must be religiously and jealously championed, and freedom unhampered of domiciling anywhere by any and all Nigerians evident in Nigerian’s “Holy Book”. The Ibos as can be doubted by no one has propelled Nigeria a lot by sustaining a business life of no mean repute. Throughout the all and sundry of the Nigerian nation, filling all gaps that no alien con over manipulate.
As a bedrock of Igbo Agenda in Nigeria must be the torch light. On the face of the Abysmal neglect of Igboland since and after the hostilities of 1967-70. Continuously harping on the painful truism of non-federal presence as regards industries and general infrastructure.
The Igbo should not be obvious of the fact that with the current political realities on the ground, it would be something more than a miracle for Nigerian of Igbo extraction to emerge Helmsman of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Therefore, a special arrangement should be canvassed if not lobbied for maybe rotational or some other system to make the phenomenon of Ibo Presidency something of a visible possibility.
Not only the Ibo but for other tribes and zones to make phenomenon of the Nigerian Presidency. My suggestion is that Nigeria would fare better to jettison the one man winner take all present system and try what’s called-RULLERSHIP IN COUNCIL.
In this dispensational agreement, there will be a presiding member of each of the zone’s stationary inside the Presidency. That presidency will have a six years tenure.
Whereby the first amongst equals will yearly be charged so that all the zone’s would have occupied the hot seat before their six years tenure elapses.
During the years to come, the Federal Government must institute a value awareness campaign throughout the nooks and crannies of the nation- In all vernaculars, this is to coach people of Nigeria on tenets of true democracy to emerge.
This will prepare Nigeria and Nigerians for that democracy that the British colonial masters were telling Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, Obafemi Awolowo, Sir Tafawa Balewa and Sir Ahmadu Bello that the country was not ready for in the late fifties.
Author: Frank U. Ezimora.
