I’d rather die peacefully fighting a noble course than die regrettably fighting for a man or a people who do not know the cost of loyal...
I’d rather die peacefully
fighting a noble course than die regrettably fighting for a man or a people who
do not know the cost of loyalty. Loyalty demands firm stand and a tenacious
grip in defense of one’s belief, ideology or philosophy with respect to who or
what at any particular time. It is highly treasured by every super- sensitive
global bound individual and should not be thrown to the pigs!
We often say that every son who does not prosecute an unfinished
battle of his father is not a worthy son. But Prophet Chukwuemeka Odumegwu
Ojukwu didn’t ask us to finish up anything. He completed the battle, delivered
his message and transcended. You only get an Ojukwu once every century; Gen.
Gowon can tell the story better and he has not lived out his life, so you can’t
find another one soon. We are not going to fight wars again. No Igbo youth
should take up arms anymore under any guise. If this nation is doomed to
disintegrate, watch; it shall come from the other ethnic groups. We have a huge
stake in this country and we are articulating on getting involved again.
The stale fairy tale of Igbo’s secession is being peddled
by left over politicians who have lost all political values with infinitesimal
following. They want to coax us away from milk and honey so that we will perish
in the wilderness under their incurable self-centered approach to life. Unlike prophet
Chuwkuemeka Odumegwu who was not driven by any itching urge to go to war
neither was he power drunk as most people who would not even defend their own
siblings let alone nation would cajole him. Chuwkuemeka was moved by sheer
dislike for injustice and to prevent an impending genocide against his people.
Now, I expected Nnamdi Kalu, my own blood to approach this struggle from
another dimension. Let us not duplicate without necessities. I expected him to identify
those perceived injustices against our people ndi Igbo and force the
federal government to address them instead of pushing for outright separation.
I understand that you cannot
kill activism in any man born with it. Thankfully, you have not gone the way of
your predecessors. I salute you for that. But I doubt the belief, conviction
and commitment of your lieutenants. Please, Nnamdi don’t die for any man who
would not do the same for you if the reverse becomes the case. Who do you want
to die for? A people who would sell the spaces meant for their brothers and
sisters and turn to accuse others of not adhering to federal character
arrangement? I never paid more than N12,700
at University of Benin while my siblings at University of Nigeria, Nsukka and
Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka paid over N30,000 as school fees respectively.
Prof. Ozumba C. Benjamin, the present vice chancellor of UNN just recruited
about 6,000 workers out of which 2,000 of them are his kinsmen, from Anambra
State. That is not the Biafra Ojukwu fought for. We put stumbling blocks on our
paths and stunt our growth. In this same country, a professor is deputizing a
journalist as minister of Education for state while the latter is minister of Education,
that is the beauty of life. What mere fraternizing as mundane as possessing the
same language or bearing a familiar name could solve in other ethnic groups, if
you swore by your Chi’s name to your brother in Igbo land you won’t get it. I
have lost count of the number of highly placed Igbo men assassinated at home-in
Igbo land including security officers by their own people. We have become that
proverbial dangerous snake that delights in swallowing its own. That is what
the war has done to us. The so called pan-Igbo cultural organization Ohaneze ndi Igbo has turned itself into a
non registered political party in Nigeria. In each election year, they would
collect money from political parties and candidates and say that my people-
highly sensitive republican Igbos have spoken!
We have so lost our self esteem that our Igbo men and women
in exalted positions would have to please people from the other zones to secure
their future. Gen. Aguiyi Ironsi made the same mistake. He wanted to be a hero,
so he entrusted his life to the ‘outsiders’. He didn’t want to be accused of
running an exclusive government and he paid with his life. Azikiwe relished the
self imposed Zik of Africa to his name so he cried for one Nigeria and cost us
the war.
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It is time to move on, although it has been alleged of an
agreement immediately after the war that no Igbo man would be Nigeria’s
president until after 100years of the war. But remember, my people that someone
equally lied that PDP would rule Nigeria for 60years. We are like the
Israelites, you may not like us because of God’s grace upon us but we would
never allow you to poke your hand in our eyes.
It is a thing of joy that
the world is beginning to accept the saying that anyone who does not support
injustice anywhere is a Biafran. We are all ‘Jews’ because we never allowed the
Palestinians and Hittler to wipe the Israelites out of the surface of the earth
in the holocaust.
This is why what evangelist Elliot Okoh said of Gen. Ojukwu
that he regretted the last years of his life cannot stand. According to him,
Ojukwu lamented that we never appreciated that he laid down his life for us.
To our “saviour” I say: if we didn’t love you, we wouldn’t have granted your last wishes; APGA would not have won Anambra convincingly. If Nigerians didn’t share in your ideology would you have won in F.C.T when you contested for the presidential election? You didn’t die in vain! It is our collective prayer that you become for us what Jesus Christ became to the Jews and the world. 2,016 years after his death.
EZE CHUKWUDI JOHNCATO
A Social Crusader and the Leader Ndi Nsukka Asadu Ideke Alumona Leadership Forum writes in FCT, Abuja.
E-Mail: ejohncato@gmail.com
Facebook: Johncato Chukwudi Eze
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