By Our Correspondent
A former governor of Abia state, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu, has said the agitation for secession by the Independent People of Biafra (IPOB) is not feasible within the Nigerian context. He said rather than the agitation, the people should channel their energy for somebody of Igbo extraction to become the President of the country. Kalu said this in Lokoja, Kogi state at the weekend while delivering a lecture titled: “Mainstreaming Igbo in Nigeria Politics” at an Igbo gathering for the inauguration of Igbo Support Group for Governor Yahaya Bello. Kalu said rather than dissipate energy for secession the agitators should restrategise and play politics of inclusion which could earn the Igbo the nation’s president. “We must fi x Nigeria to work for all inclusive of all aspiration of all. We (Igbo) have made progress but it is not yet Uhuru for us.
Th is is not the time to pop champagne but a time for conscious refl ection on the road we have passed, where we are and where we intend to be in the years ahead. “As Igbos, we must stop listening to people who say Biafra is possible. If we want Biafra we must fi rst ensure that Referendum is included in the constitutional review. “Nigeria should be thinking of annexing other African country rather than dividing it. China is two billion and not talking about secession, but Nigeria with less than 200 million people is talking secession.” On the recent quit notice given to Igbos by the Arewa youth, Kalu said, the leaders of the region were already talking and deliberating on the way forward. “Recently, we have witnessed a rise in ethnic activism. A lot of people have expressed fears that Nigeria may be coming to an end. Well in politics, you have to entertain all manner of fears while working on possibilities. However, because of that fear, we have seen a ‘quit notice’ order from some northern youth groups. “I will focus on the possibilities. And the fi rst is that a United Nigeria is an easier possibility than a balkanised country. I see a more united country rising from the ashes of hate and fear.
