By Ruth Oginyi
Ohanaeze Ndigbo Council, Wednesday condemned the murder of Dr Chike Akunyili, husband of former information minister, Professor Dora Akunyili by suspected gunmen.
The Igbo apex social cultural organisation noted that the five southeastern states in the country were under siege following series of killings going on in the land.
According to the group, the killings in Anambra state in the last couple of days, called for retrospection and pause.
Amb Okey Emuche, secretary general of the organisation stated this in Abakaliki, Ebonyi state capital during prayer summit organised by Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), southeast chapter to mark World Igbo Day.
Emuche, who represented president general of the organisation, Professor George Obiozor, during the summit, called on Biafra agitators to pause their agitations and understand the issues confronting the Igbo nation.
“We need to seek the face of God. We need to think about today; the Igbo nation is under siege with killings.
“The killings in the last couple of days in Anambra call retrospection; call for a pause. We are under siege; the southeast states are under siege. We plead with the men of God gathered here. The CAN president is here. There are mothers in this hall; there are fathers in this hall.
“Something needs to be done, something urgent needs to be done. This is the message of the president general of Ohanaeze. He has asked IPOB and other groups to stop these killings because if you kill everybody, who will be there?
“We need to take a pause as a people and understand what is confronting us. Beyond sit-at-home, these killings that have started going around from one state to the other,” he said.
In a homily, the chairman of South East Christian Association of Nigeria, Rev. Fr. Abraham Nwali, said the killing of Dr Chike Akunyili showed that the Igbo had not come out of the civil war of 1967 in which he said over three million Igbo were killed.
He called for calm, peace, and unity in the south and expressed fear that the enemies of the zone may take advantage of the situation in the region and overwhelm the people.
Nwali further called on the people of the zone to begin now to protect themselves.
“We should begin now to protect ourselves. It is who that owns his house that protects himself. Let the Igbo begin to protect themselves because no other person can do this for them,” he stated.