Leadership reports that Ozobu said this during the weekend in Enugu in a bid to salvage the situation in the region. The continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu has escalated the protests in the region with the latest being a protest held in Onitsha, Anambra state that resulted in the death of two police officers and some protesters.
Igbo leaders under the aegis of Ohaneze resolved to step into the matter in order to manage the situation. The leadership crises in the Igbo group however has affected the moves as there is an Ohanaeze faction under Igariwey while there is also an Ohanaeze Caretaker Committee, whose chairman is Chief Ralph Obioha,
In a bid to handle the leadership crises and also curd the protests, some Igbo leaders under the umbrella of ‘Ndigbo’ resolved to meet this week.
Ozobu said neither of the two Ohaneze factions could speak on behalf of Igbo people and so a neutral non-contentious platform was needed to discuss the speedy release of Kanu and also put an end to the protests.
“There must be a platform on which the restlessness going on among the young ones in Igbo nation should be addressed. The present problem must be solved, and solved quickly.
“The problem cannot be solved by Ohanaeze because its tenure, I believe, has expired. And those who currently address themselves as caretaker committee of Ohanaeze, lack the legitimacy to speak for Ndigbo because of the way and manner they appointed themselves as members of Ohanaeze Caretaker Committee.”
He disclosed that a meeting chaired by retired justice, Gabriel Ononiba would be held this week and would include 500 Igbo leaders drawn from the clergy, traditional and political institutions, the professionals, various market groups and stakeholders in Igboland.
He said that the meeting would also be used as an avenue to educate the youths on the defunct Biafra state.
He said: “About 99.9 per cent of the restive youths who are protesting on the streets, were born after the civil war, and I am sure that they don’t know the history of Biafra.
“When they use the word Biafra, they don’t know what the Biafra conflict was all about, and we will use that forum to educate them on what brought about the conflict.
“It is the responsibility of “Ndigbo” to consider what is on the ground, and to reconcile all persons that need to be reconciled. The restive youths will be invited to listen to the history of Biafra, and to know certain things they didn’t know before, so that they would be properly guided.
“We will look at the growing unemployment which has affected these youths today. We have to look at the problems affecting the entire Igboland. We must find out the causes of this protest, and if it is unemployment, lack of opportunities for the youths, we will be able to articulate those things, and offer advice.”
Meanwhile, the former governor of Abia state, Orji Uzor Kalu, in reaction to the ongoing Biafra protests in parts of the country, was quoted to have said that if he was the commander-in-chief, and one of his soldiers was killed, he would kill everybody.
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