For any significant success, there must be careful planning, effort, and alignment of opportunity. Nothing of value is ever achieved through chaos, complaints, or victimhood. As the Igbo, we cannot sit idly by, mourning our path to leadership. If we are not ready, we cannot expect to attain what we want.
If Igbo political leaders had spent the last six years forging alliances, uniting hearts, and creating a political climate conducive to leadership, the right environment would have been set for the Southeast to assume the presidency in 2023. Sadly, the mood today is clear: the Igbo are not ready for leadership despite being worthy of it.
I met with some of these political figures years ago and expressed my concerns about the self-sabotage of the Igbo in national politics. I proposed ways to create momentum towards the elusive goal of the Igbo presidency. Sadly, I was discouraged. Their interest seemed to center around personal survival rather than the progress of the Igbo people.
These same individuals cry about the marginalization of the Igbo and accuse Buhari of “Fulanizing” Nigeria, yet they’re ready to support another Fulani candidate in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for president. The truth is, if any political party were to grant the presidency to the Southeast, these same Igbo leaders would still hesitate and negotiate with a northern candidate. This survivalist mentality undermines the collective interests of the Igbo people.
How Did the PDP Earn the Loyalty of the Igbo?
The next pressing question is: how did the PDP earn the unwavering loyalty of the Igbo? For 16 years, the PDP ruled Nigeria, yet the Igbo people have little to show for their blind loyalty. I challenge anyone to name a single significant infrastructural achievement the PDP government made in the Southeast during its reign.
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While many have pointed to the revamp of the Enugu Airport under the PDP as an achievement, the truth is the renovations were cosmetic. What was marketed as a world-class upgrade was nothing more than an overhaul of a parking lot into a makeshift terminal. The Buhari administration was forced to shut down the airport for repairs due to poor runway conditions. Similarly, the much-hyped Second Niger Bridge, which was only on paper under the PDP, is nearing completion today under an APC government one that many Igbo people criticize.
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The Onitsha-Enugu expressway and other federal projects in the region are also approaching completion under the current government. Yet, the Igbo elites continue to support the PDP as though nothing has changed.
How, then, did the PDP earn the loyalty of the Igbo?
The Igbo’s Unwavering Support for the PDP
It’s baffling how the Igbo have continued their blind loyalty to the PDP. Some Igbo leaders are now clamoring for inland ports in the Southeast, yet they were in power for years and did nothing to advance the region’s interests. The much-decried dry port in Kaduna, implemented by the Buhari administration, was met with fierce criticism from these same individuals yet they were silent when it mattered.
In 2003, the Igbo voted overwhelmingly for Olusegun Obasanjo of the PDP over their own leader, the late Odumegwu Ojukwu, in the presidential elections. Despite Ojukwu’s presence as a prominent Igbo figure, the Southeast cast a majority vote for Obasanjo. This loyalty continued in 2007 when Ojukwu’s second attempt at the presidency also failed.
In every state of the Southeast, Obasanjo trounced Ojukwu by wide margins. In Abia, for example, Obasanjo won with 51.7% of the vote while Ojukwu secured just 34.9%. In Ebonyi, Obasanjo took 94.5%, while Ojukwu barely managed 2.6%. Even in Ojukwu’s home state of Anambra, Obasanjo won 54% of the vote.
The Southeast Deserves More: A New Political Direction
The Igbo people must now look beyond blind allegiance to any single political party. To reclaim our rightful place in the nation, we need to be strategic, forging new alliances and building a more robust political future. It’s time for the Southeast to free itself from the grip of the PDP and create a new political and social accord.
The future of the Igbo people lies in forging new relationships, not perpetuating old alliances that no longer serve our best interests. If we are ever to reclaim the leadership we deserve, we must move away from survivalist politics and focus on the collective good of the Igbo nation.
The question remains: how did the PDP earn the loyalty of the Igbo? The answer is still unclear, but it is time for the Southeast to demand more.
Igbo must go
ReplyDeleteWe are Nigeria we north west help East for life
ReplyDeleteWe love Nigeria but Nigeria hate us Igbo must go
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