Ndigbo and judgement of history
ORJI UZOR KALU
I
am greatly delighted to welcome you all to this important
occasion of the South-East Caucus. I welcome you, great sons and daughters of
Igboland, Ojeremba ka mba, isi bu Igbo, to Abia State, God’s Own State, the home
of the legendary Michael Okpara, Jaja Nwachuku, and Aguiyi-Ironsi.
By coming here today you have demonstrated in unmistakable
terms a deep desire to re-write the chequered history of Igboland.
We have come here with a burning desire and a strong
commitment to chart a new course for the survival of our people in a
multi-ethnic nation as ours.
Over the years our people have fought tirelessly to make a
mark on the way the country is run. Several people, including our founding
fathers, did their best to ensure a safer future for generations of Igbo yet
unborn. Their vision was to see the emergence of a strong, united and
progressive race. They knew our ancestry. They knew that we were descendants of
Zion.
No matter what anybody might say, our forefathers did their
best to leave behind for us a race that prides itself in industry, honesty,
courage, and resilience. Even though some of them had their individual failings,
they exhibited an unprecedented sense of patriotism and candour.
Can we possibly forget the immeasurable contributions of the
Great Zik of Africa, Akanu Ibiam, Michael Okpara, and other great patriots to
the socio-political development of Nigeria? These men traversed the nook and
cranny of this vast nation like giants and left their footprints on the sands of
time.
But since the end of the unfortunate civil war our people are
yet to find their feet in every theatre of the life of our nation. Today, we are
called all kinds of derogatory names. Those who derogate us say we are ruled by
the god of ego, kwudi, kala, owo.
Wherever we go we still carry the stigma of the civil war, 34
years after the cessation of the war. We prove the war alibi as the cause of our
continual marginalisation. But I stand before you today to say that we do not
have any justification whatsoever to remain backward.
It cannot be disputed that Ndigbo remain the single largest
ethnic group in Nigeria with a staggering population of 48 million people. We
are a rich, proud, enterprising, and honest people who have contributed
significantly to global economy and politics.
Time may not allow me, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, to
recount all the ground-breaking feats achieved by our sons and daughters across
the globe. But one thing I wish to place on record, without sounding immodest,
is that the works of creation would have been incomplete without Ndigbo. We are
like the salt of the earth inhabiting every portion of the universe. From east
to west, north to south, and even the farthest ends of the earth you find an
Igbo man or woman.
Is it, therefore, not an irony that a people with so much
international clout should cry of marginalisation in its own nation?
I have in the numerous papers I presented at different Igbo
fora charted a roadmap for Ndigbo. I tried in each paper to identify some of the
factors militating against our collective effort to reposition our race in the
nation’s social, political and economic life. Of all the factors, I have
identified selfishness and greed as the deadliest. 90 per cent of all our
problems as a people take their root in this twin-scourge.
I think we have bemoaned our fate for too long. It is high
time we took our destiny in our own hands and face squarely the task of
reintegrating ourselves fully into Nigeria’s political system. We have whatever
it will take to achieve it.
It is not by sheer fate that we found ourselves where we are
today. Rather it was by the design of God, the Master-architect, who located
each group where it is in Nigeria. Of the three tribes that make up the tripod,
Ndigbo remains the only one that is yet to rule Nigeria for more than six
months. By 2007, the South-West will have ruled Nigeria for twelve and half
years, the north thirty-four and half years. Let us not forget that Zik was a
ceremonial president.
The logic of the tripod, which forms the basis of the
Nigerian state, makes it imperative for power to rotate to ensure balance and
fair play. Despite this arrangement, some persons still feel that Ndigbo should
be excluded from the central governance of the nation just because of the war.
Those who hold this view are surely not God and they are in the minority.
I know that we are a populous people, but our number alone
cannot make us President. We need to cooperate with other groups to be able to
accomplish this objective. I believe that others can work with us if we show
sufficient seriousness and divest ourselves of selfish tendencies. Surely, we
have what it takes, but can we do what it takes?
As the Jews, we must face the consequences of our origin as a
people with courage and unrelenting vigour. The Jews faced, and still face, all
kinds of persecution yet they are not cowed.
There is nowhere in the whole world where power is won on a
platter. We cannot produce the president of this nation if there is no unity,
determination, and consultation.
We came closest to producing a Nigerian president of Igbo
extraction in 2003. The failure of that project was due primarily to disunity
and sabotage. Prominent Igbo sons and daughters, who were expected to speak up
in support of the campaign, openly opposed it either for fear of losing their
jobs or, better still, for material gains.
The most unfortunate thing is that some mischief-makers said
that I was championing the Igbo presidency project at the time for personal
gains. I was cajoled, harassed and called all sorts of names but I refused to be
intimidated. But latter events have since vindicated me.
It is not contestable that we have the human and material
resources to actualise the Igbo Presidency project, but what we lack, however,
is unity and the political will to do so.
Nevertheless, I am happy that today there is more vibrancy to
the agitation for Ndigbo to produce the president now than ever before. This is
the first time, indeed, in the history of Nigeria that Ndigbo are showing a
genuine commitment to the project. But how far we can go depends on us.
Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, one mistake we made in
the past in the pursuit of the presidency project was the personalisation of the
project. The presidency of Igbo extraction project is neither an Ekwueme nor
Wabara project. Neither is it for Ojukwu nor Okorie, Iwuanyanwu nor Anyim,
Udenwa nor Nnamani, Egwu nor Ngige, Orji Kalu nor Ozichukwu, Ogbulafor nor
Nzeribe. It is a collective project that will guarantee greater freedom for our
people and the security of the future generations of our people.
It is, therefore criminal and, indeed, a taboo for any
full-blooded Igboman or woman, to rise up against the collective interest of our
people. Some of us had shamelessly presided over meetings where decisions were
taken on how to destroy our race, and yet we did nothing.
For us to make any good showing this time around, we must
first forget whatever differences we might have with one another and embrace the
spirit of tolerance and forgiveness.
It is a pity that a lot of wicked insinuations are being made
about our preparedness to assume the leadership of this country. It is either
they say the South-East governors are quarrelling or that Ndigbo are not united.
As far as I am concerned, these allegations are mere propaganda designed to
deride us and create the impression that we are not ready. My brother-governors
are here and can attest that we are one united family. We might have had our
individual difficulties. After all, it is normal for people to agree and to
disagree. Even husband and wife do quarrel. But what is important is the ability
to make up after it all. Other ethnic groups in Nigeria quarrel continually and
yet nobody makes any fuss about it.
I wish to state with every sense of responsibility that the
greatest step we can take towards actualising our target of producing a Nigerian
President of Igbo extraction is to begin now to reconcile with one another.
Peace and unity are inseparable in our march towards self-rediscovery.
I know that many of us are in enmity with one another, to
such a level that we cannot even see eyeball to eyeball. But when you ask what
causes the quarrel the answer you get borders on either envy or greed. The hour
has come for us to make peace. The first step is to resolve today to forgive and
forget the past. Even Our Lord Jesus Christ charges us to love one another and
carry one another’s burden in prayer. Love heals all wounds, while peace creates
progress and stability.
I have spent the greater part of my stewardship in Abia State
to work for peace. Today Abia State ranks as the safest state in Nigeria without
a single political killing since 1999. I demonstrated in practical terms the new
spirit. I wish to see among Ndigbo by standing behind my deputy throughout his
impeachment ordeal. I was the first to forgive the deputy governor and worked
behind the scene to check the impeachment when I saw sufficient reasons to do
so. The overriding factor in what I did was the deep desire to promote peace and
brotherhood among our people. I am happy that the matter has been resolved
amicably to the surprise of our detractors. To God be the glory!
Of the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria the South-East has
the least number of states and the least number of senators and representatives.
This issue should be critically examined by this meeting in order to find a way
out of it, because it forms the basis for the reintegration of Ndigbo into the
mainstream politics of Nigeria.
This assembly has the capacity to make a strong
representation for Ndigbo. It also has the ability to actualise the age-long
vision of our people producing a Nigerian President.
We have everything going for us at the moment: History is on
our side, destiny is on our side, and above all, God is with us. But the
question is: who are we for? Are we for the emancipation of our people from
internal oppression and suppression, or are we agents for the perpetual
subjugation of our people? This is a question each of us here must answer as we
collectively discuss the way forward for Ndigbo.
Ladies and gentlemen, I am done.
Thank you.
•An address by His Excellency, Gov. Orji Uzor Kalu at the
South-East Caucus in Umuahia on September 10, 2004.
