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Last Updated: Monday, November 15th, 2004 HOME | Previous Page
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Anambra crisis, plot against Igbo �Chukwumerije
By Chukwudi Achife (Enugu)
Chris Agbambu (Abuja) and
Uche Nwosu (Umuahia)
Senator Uche Chukwumerije at the weekend joined those who point accusing fingers at President Olusegun Obasanjo
over the conflict in Anambra State, which assumed frightening proportions last week with the orgy of destruction
of lives and government property.
The latest round of lawlessness began last Tuesday and it became so dangerous Governor Chris Ngige had to stay
back in Abuja following escalation of hostilities.
He and some others, corporate and individuals, believe that, regardless of who is stoking the conflict, the aim
is to declare emergency rule in the state, thereby getting their own back at the governor who has been on their
sights since he survived an abduction attempt on July 10, 2003.
Ngige has not directly said Obasanjo masterminds the troubles, but the President has been accused by Afenifere
and indigenes of Anambra State living in America.
This view was shared by indigenes of neighbouring Abia State who spoke in interviews in Enugu at the weekend.
And Chukwumerije aligned himself with the thinking when he stated that Obasanjo cannot exonerate himself from culpability
in the crisis unless he takes a decisive action against the sponsors and perpetrators.
Abia State Governor Orji Uzor Kalu, in his own view, described the deteriorating situation as �too risky� for Nigeria�s
democracy. He made the point in Minna during a visit to former military President Ibrahim Babangida to canvass
support for his Presidential ambition in 2007.
But such a desire by someone of Igbo extraction is what Chukwumerije says the conflict in Anambra State is being
fuelled to scuttle.
He said in a statement in Enugu that the logjam was another attempt to weaken the case for an Igbo Presidency in
2007 by using it �to show that Ndi Igbo cannot rule themselves talk less of leading the nation�.
All Nigerians must agree that the events in the state is a threat to the fledgling democracy, he insisted, and
that �the Federal Government must take full responsibility for whatever evil befalls the country on account of
its attempts at weakening the country�s democratic foundations�.
Abuja, according to him, should also pay for all the damage done in the state during the crisis because its police
have failed in their constitutional duties to protect lives and properties.
The survival of democracy in the country, in his view, depends on how the political class handles the Anambra crisis
and other attempts to truncate the system.
Angry reactions over the troubles came from indigenes of Abia State living in Enugu. Most of those interviewed
accused the President of being part of the problem.
A civil servant, Chukwudi Ekenna, said Obasanjo should be held responsible for the lives and properties that were
lost.
To another public servant, Kalu Ezeiyi, this latest lawlessness has justified Chinua Achebe�s reason for rejecting
the Nigerian national award, stressing that Achebe�s claims that his state was hijacked by renegades and hoodlums
backed by the Federal Government is no longer in doubt.
The police have risen to their own defence in the conflict. Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) in charge
of zone 9, Abdulsam Mamman Yusuf, said in Umuahia that it is a political problem because �all the people involved
are politicians and it will be resolved through political settlement�.
The police high command has also denied being indicted by the State Security Service (SSS) in the conflict, stressing
that both security outfits are sister services that enjoy a cordial and healthy relationship.
Force Public Relations Officer Chris Olakpe, who was refuting the allegations on Sunday, said the SSS in Anambra
State and its headquarters in Abuja confirmed that neither granted an interview to any newspaper indicting the
police over the matter.
However, Ohaneze Ndigbo condemned the wanton destruction in a statement issued after its emergency meeting in Enugu
at the weekend, and blamed it on the failure of the law enforcement agencies to live up to their constitutional
responsibility.
The statement, signed by Ohaneze President General Joe Irukwu and Secretary General Joe Achuzia, called on the
federal authorities and the law enforcement agencies to live up to their constitutional and civic responsibilities
to protect lives and property of the citizens, especially in Anambra State.
It also appealed to Igbos to remain calm, saying Ohaneze would do everything possible to ensure that the matter
does not deteriorate any further.
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Copyright? 2004. All Rights Reserved.
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