‘Igbos are not ready to leave Nigeria,’ Enugu Bishop says

Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Enugu, Rt. Rev. Emmanuel Chukwuma has said that the Igbo nation has no interest in the recent Biafra agitation.

He made the comments while addressing journalists in Enugu on Thursday, January 14, 2016, Punch reports.

“The People of the South-East have invested so much in Nigeria to want to pull out now. The Igbo nation is not ready for any secession now because most of us have invested so much in Nigeria as a whole and we cannot abandon our investments,” Chukwuma said.

“We in the South-East don’t want any war. We are not pushing for secession, we are not asking for sovereignty at all. I am not in support of the agitation for Biafra – the pro-Biafra agitation is misguided.

“Those who were marching for Biafra are mostly youths who have been frustrated, so many of them have been used and dumped by politicians. They are misdirected youths who felt that was the only way to express their frustrations.

“They were not given proper representation by those they elected – constituency offices are non-existent. The agitation for Biafra is just a camouflage, it is a protest against bad leadership. “The Federal Government should not see the agitation as a rebellion – we (Ndigbo) are for one Nigeria.

“We are committed to the unity of an undivided Nigeria, but all we ask for is equity and justice. Equity, fairness and justice should prevail. Inasmuch as they are saying that we did not vote for him (Buhari), that is a sentimental thing but we have embraced him now.

“The President should try as much as possible to understand that Igbos support his administration. We support his anti-corruption campaign. The Federal Government should try not to be vindictive,” he added.

The renewed Biafra protests are believed to have been caused by the arrest and detention of Radio Biafra boss, Nnamdi Kanu.

President Muhammadu Buhari has however said that Kanu will remain in detention because he travelled to Nigeria without a passport among other offences.