By Tony Oji
Since the inception of democracy in Nigeria, the issues and problems of Ndigbo have never been touched or seems forgotten by past and present administration, said political analysts in the area.
Igbo in the old Eastern Region is said to have contributed immensely towards Nigeria’s independence, economic growth, infrastructural development, politics, education, sports, commerce, industry and has been neglected and marginalised over the years which apparently led to increased agitation for Biafran Republic.
Abandoned roads in the area include Enugu-Onitsha, Nsukka-Benue, Umunze-Okigwe, Nnewi-Uga, Ohofia-Arochukwu and many others. The issue of second Niger bridge has been the high point of every administration hence it serves as a campaign agenda that would never see the light of the day.
South- East senators appear to have risen to the challenges, taking steps to meet the incumbent president Muhammadu Buhari where they insisted on Igbo’s inclusion into the important national offices and seek his intervention in the collapse of infrastructure in the region.
They also reminded the President on the need to address the violent clampdown on the indigenous people of Biafra and the unlawful detention of their leader Nnamdi Kanu, who incidentally is also the Director of Radio Biafra and have used the medium to propagate the intention and interest of the people of South-East and South-South who seek their freedom, possibly through a referendum, of which the federal Government refused vehemently.
The leader of the South- East senators, Ike Ekweremadu has this to say, “for us from the south- East, we believe that dialogue is better than any form of engagement. So, we decided to visit the president and present to him some of our concerns like the roads, Airport, general infrastructure, the rail, second Niger bridge and so many other things.
“We also discussed the issue of security with him and of course, the issue of IPOB. We had a good conversation and he promised to look into the issues,” Ekweremmadu said.
The Chairman of the south -east Senate Caucus, Enyinnaya Abaribe, explained that the south- east zone has been the most short-changed region in the country and must engage meaningfully with the federal Government on the situation.
He said that the south- east Caucus in the senate visited President because of the issue in the south east, adding that, “we had a fruitful discussion with the President. He has promised us that he is going to look into the problems of the South East.
“We know that there are problems everywhere but we also believe that the south east is the zone that is far much short-changed at this time than other zones. We also talked about the issue of appointments from the South East, especially with respect to the National Security Council.
On the IPOB and security problem in the South-East, the delegation was said to have requested for a way forward for the release of Nnamdi Kanu and enhanced security arrangement to deal with the issue of kidnapping in the zone.
They also raised the issue of herdsmen ravaging the parts of the zone and appealed to the President to address the matter promptly.