Ohaneze Ndigbo youth wing calls for Southeast development commission to be established

OHANEZE Ndigbo's youth wing has called on the federal government to adopt the same approach it used to resolve socio-economic problems in the Niger Delta in Igboland by establishing a Southeast Development Commission.

 

Former president Umaru Yar'Adua, nipped the growing militancy in Nigeria's oil-producing creeks in the bud by establishing a ministry of Niger Delta Affairs. It was responsible for disarming youths there and providing them with training opportunities as well as paying out a monthly stipend to all affected young people.

 

Since President Muhammadu Buhari assumed office on May 29, the southeast has been a hotbed of discontent with youths taking to the streets to protest marginalisation and economic disenfranchisement.  Their anger has been fuelled by the arrest of Radio Biafra director Nnamdi Kanu who has been under arrest since October and is facing treason charges.

 

Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro, the Ohaneze Ndigbo youth wing president, said Igboland needs a commission with a mandate similar to the Niger Delta Development Commission and the proposed North East Development Commission. He added that the lack of a federal government presence in the southeast geopolitical zone was the main reason for the current agitation for the creation of a separate country for the Igbo.

 

He added: “If there is a strong federal presence in the zone, our youths will not see Biafra as an alternative, while fortune and fame seekers will not capitalise on that to hoodwink our gullible youths.Talking about infrastructure, there is no federal presence in Igboland as there are no good roads there and there are no viable industries owned or situated in the zone by the federal government that can cater for the employment of the teeming youths."

 

"We believe in a united Nigeria anchored on justice and equity and we believe that all the problems and issues in Nigeria can be solved through dialogue and roundtable discussions. We are conscious of the poverty and youth unemployment ravaging the country and the southeast in particular and we are also aware of the infrastructural challenges and deficiencies in Igboland."

 

While appealing to the federal government for the release of Mr Kanu, he called on the Radio Biafra director to desist from continuing with hate or inciting broadcasts if released. Mazi Isiguzoro also called on governments at all levels to positively engage the youths who will not see Biafra as an alternative which can also be taken advantage of by fortune and fame seekers to cause chaos through gullible youths of the area.