President-General of the Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Prof. George Obiozor, has said that the status of Ndigbo in Nigeria will be determined largely by where the 2023 president emerges from.
“Wherever the country picks its president from in 2023 will send a strong message to Ndigbo,” Obiozor said in a statement he issued in Owerri on Monday.
He said to avoid the potholes of the past and to secure the future and preserve national unity the Nigerian political elites must avoid the prevailing political myopia and contrived amnesia surrounding Nigerian political history over the imperative of North-South rotation.
Obiozor said, “I understand clearly the dilemma faced by these leaders but Nigerian politics is at a point of no return where national destiny is at stake and where patriotism and political wisdom must supercede personal ambition.”
The Ohanaeze Ndigbo President-General, therefore pleaded with the nation’s political class to drop all fears and prejudices against Ndigbo and forge a common front to move the nation forward.
He noted that Ndigbo as an ethnic nationality is blessed with a large number of capable, Nigerian patriots and credible personalities who are eminently qualified to govern the country and meet the expectations of the citizenry through equity, justice and fairness.
“Indeed he or she will bring into the office, an amazing sense of peace and harmony to the country, ensure imperative of national unity and commitment to good governance with dedication, decency and decorum.”
He said that since 1960, Igbos have been campaigning for their rights to leadership in Nigeria, adding, “So anybody who says that we have not campaigned enough about the ‘2023 Igbo President’ is guilty of historical fallacy because many of us know how often those rights and opportunities have been denied or ignored with impunity.
“How can one be accused of making noise over marginalization or discrimination in critical areas of Nigerian Politics and at the same time accused of not making enough political campaign for the 2023 Presidency,” he asked.
Obiozor said Ndigbo have campaigned for any relevant National political office since the end of the war. Most Nigerians with conscience and patriotic as well as friends of Nigeria inside and outside the country know this to be the truth.
He pleaded with all Nigerian political elites to set aside all fears, prejudices against Ndigbo and forge a common front to heal the nation. Ndigbo needs justice, equity and fairness and not blame game.
