2023: Igbo presidency Non – negotiable – Ezeife

We have at least 11 Igbo presidential candidates warming up

Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, former governor of Anambra State and special adviser to former President Olusegun Obasanjo, speaks with Demola Abimboye and Ben Obemudia on burning national issues. Excerpts:

As an elder statesman and someone who has seen it all, at independence you were about 21 years old. How would you describe the state of Nigeria? What it was like those years and what it is now?

The truth is that nobody who saw Nigeria at independence could imagine that Nigeria can be like this today. As you know, there were countries with which we were at par, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brazil and many others, we were even ahead of some of them but today we are very far behind each and every one of them. We have not made progress.

Remember the World Bank made a very important statement, that parts of Nigeria, were growing far faster than the rest of the world; that was before the coup. Today, what are we hearing?

That Nigeria is the poverty capital of the world. Therefore, we have taken giant steps backwards instead of forward.

I don’t believe it is somebody to blame, I don’t believe that it is Buhari or the people working with him that should be blamed. I believe this is God’s own way of making His greatness accepted.

What I am expecting is that since God does not make mistakes and that God gave abundant resources to Nigeria, with the purpose that Nigeria should grow into a superpower and raise the respect and dignity of all blacks on earth, the worst may be over soon. The God of infinite powers is going to unveil to us a new Nigeria, a new Nigeria that will make the black man proud and make all of us, our children proud.

The end of insecurity, the end of poverty, the end of all manners of unacceptable conditions are in sight. So, let all of us Nigerians kneel down, pray to our almighty God, ask Him to arise, resurrect conscience in Nigeria, with that, drive away the comprehensive corruption we have.

God does not make mistakes and that God gave abundant resources to Nigeria, with the purpose that Nigeria should grow into a super power

One critical issue rocking the nation today is restructuring. The Chairman of Nigeria Governors Forum, Dr Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti, spoke of his colleague’s decision that the country should be restructured; what is your position on this vexed issue?

It shouldn’t be a vexed issue. Restructuring is misunderstood. We said at a point, the World Bank said parts of Nigeria were growing faster than parts of the World, that was before the coup and what we had then as the structure for our country was a federal system through federalism with regions as federating units.

In those days, no head of state, governor or premier will just collect money and spend it, without thinking about the local people, because all the money being spent that time was our efforts.

Today nobody is caring about you, they get money and go to buy houses in America and Dubai, all parts of the world and ignore the development of Nigeria. So when we say restructuring. What should make it a vexed issue, except misunderstanding? We are talking about going back to the structure that worked and will work.

Regional system helped proper federalism, but what happened? There was a coup and there was a war coming and the federal government wanted to win the war, and for that purpose they said it was best to remove from Ojukwu all non- Igbo parts of the East so that Ojukwu’s command will be only relevant to the Igbos and in the process they created 12 states, isolating the Igbos from the rest of the East as a strategy of winning the war.

At the end of the war, nothing happened, no change to go back to the structure that worked. Instead the northern leaders of Nigeria kept creating states, local governments and created by far more in the North than in the South. That was how Kano has 44 local governments and Lagos with far more population has 20. So really it is not wrong to say that the military, who ruled Nigeria, ruined Nigeria, no doubt. Also the military, because they wanted us to put our eyes off what they were doing, from the stealing that was going on, they introduced religion and ethnicity. So today even those who have no political ideas are now talking about restructuring because it is the only way to avoid disintegration. If we don’t restructure, bye to Nigeria.

 

If it is so critical, why do you think some northerners are against it, even when the Northern Elders’ Forum spokesman, Hakeem Baba Ahmed, said his organisation was in support of restructuring?

Anybody who understands will support restructuring, but there are not many people who understand. For example, many people in the North make a basic mistake, they take restructuring as resource control, they take restructuring as all those who have oil, take over your oil. So after restructuring, no oil flows to Kano and other northern states.

That is a wrong approach, politics is not done that way. The restructuring we are talking about generally includes resource control, but before you do resource control you have to ensure that internally generated revenue is enough for the local governments, state governments. If I were in power now, I will nationalise oil wells and we will still be sharing money to all the parts of Nigeria, but those who have it get more.

There is no question of stopping money flow to other parts of the country, so if you remove that one, what else will anybody have to talk about? Is it that the zonal government is bad? What is bad about it? People will grow according to their own pace and we will stop being the poverty capital of the world.

Jonathan will not accept to run again because he knows he’s been used to cheat the people who supported him

There is this belief that if Nigeria restructures, that some parts will become so powerful to threaten the federation, would that be true?

Now tell me, how? Lagos is the superpower of Nigeria, tell me how if we restructure, Lagos will threaten the federation.

 

There are these talks that regional governments, such as Western Nigeria, and South-Eastern Nigeria, that such parts will become so powerful to threaten the federation…

Those parts were there from the beginning, they had their constitutions, West, East. In what way did any of them threaten one Nigeria?

In no way did any region threaten the existence of one Nigeria.

 

Do you think restructuring will solve this persistent complaint of marginalisation by the South Easterners, even under this government?

Never has there been any such humiliation of the South East, never has there been, only this government started it in the worst way possible. We were excluded from many things.

Excluded from appointments, we were excluded from anything. Eventually, the South East and Middle Belt Forum went to court, to sue the federal government, for violating federal character. Federal character is provided in the constitution.

Our National Assembly is not asking questions, so my brother I think there is no doubt about the situation in this country, it is as if the federal government is working for the disintegration of the country.

 

Some of the people in government have pointed at critical infrastructure being built in the South East, such as the second Niger Bridge which they said is 46% completed, that the railways being revived cut across the SouthEast states.?

There is no railway line in the East, they are now talking about it, possibility of introducing, but there was railing from the West, to the North, even to Niger. But none to the East

 

There is one from Port Harcourt, to Enu- gu, down to Makurdi That was the old line, and nothing had been added to it.

You talk about Niger Bridge? You should take a trip, go and see the progress and it was Jona- than’s project.

Nigerians must think about other people, if you don’t think about other people, you are not a progressive. A progressive will say, oh oh these people are being cheated, how do we help them?

So I don’t know, South East, people like me who are always talking about one Nigeria, understand why our young ones are talking about IPOB, about MASSOB. You can’t beat somebody and say don’t cry, it is just that they are crying because people are beaten, people are killed like rats. When they took bibles to do a memorial service, they were wiped out. Recently, in Emene, 21 were killed. We believe God will arise and do something, otherwise there should be no hope for us.

If the Igbos take over they will lead to explosive economic growth

Sir, the other critical issue in the national political space is the battle to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari in 2023. We haven’t seen the big wigs in the South East come out, why is this so?

Big wigs?

Yes

What do you mean by big wigs? Coming out in the campaigning…

Political bigwigs coming out to at least show interest in the position!

You are not being fair to the South Eastern people. Why should the political bigwigs start now to fight? Don’t you hear me, all people are talking about it, so many organisations are talking about it, Yoruba, South-South, Eastern, Kano and many organisations are saying enough is enough, we must give it to the East. Some people are saying, let’s give it back to Jonathan, let him stay four years and go and we take it back to the North. Jonathan will not accept because he knows that he is being used to cheat the people who supported him.

The South-South has told Jonathan the North has dominated the Presidency, South West, Obasanjo eight years as civilian and three years as military. The South East, you can mention Ironsi and then remember how he was killed. So when it is a matter of fairness, equity and justice, everybody must give it to the South East. It is the only major tribe that has not held the elected presidency of Nigeria. But anybody who knows Nigeria well should not base giving it to the South East on the grounds of equity and justice.

Anybody who knows Nigeria very well knows that the South Eastern people have voted with their feet for one Nigeria and they implement their principle, the principle that where you live, you develop. Which makes it that more than 50 per cent of modern buildings in Nigeria belong to the South East. South-East people are successful in everything they put their hands on and they do not do it in the hidden but in the open. In the process other tribes are imbibing the culture of development.

We in the South-East want everybody to be in a position to take care of his welfare and the welfare of his family. We have no place for urban Talakawa. The urban talakawa will wake up in the morning looking for where to have breakfast. With an Igbo man as President, give him a few years, everybody will eat his own food in his own house.

Even Jonathan, who is not Igbo started with Almajiri’s schools. So if the Igbos take over they will lead to explosive economic growth and development and everybody – Fulani, Hausa, Yoruba will be happy with the Igbo as a President. The Igbo of course will be happy. South-South, North East, will all be happy because there will be progress.

Indeed, for as long as Nigeria pulls the Igbos down, keep them down, for so long will the economy of Nige- ria remain down. It is not a boast; anybody who says he doesn’t know it is telling a lie. We helped Nigeria look like a nation, because anywhere you go, remove the indigenes, the next large group you see is Igbos. So we make Nigeria look like a nation and we enjoy it.

You have told us about so many organisations saying it should be the turn of the Igbos, but some politicians have argued that power is not served a la carte; you go and slug it out with others… Don’t worry, we are going out now. Last night I was in my house with some friends when some Northern people came and one of them said ‘we identify with you; we know what we are saying, we are not doing Igbo any favour by telling them to become President, we are trying to get Nigeria up.’

So we are working, friends are working and it is a matter of wisdom. Other Nigerians are wise; they know that Igbo becoming President is something good for everybody. I was in Jos, we went to an ECWA church for prayers and it was as if the Holy Ghost was flowing about everything and eventually, everybody whether Hausa, Fulani whatever you are said a new Nigeria is coming and it appears to be the turn of the Igbo man to usher in a new Nigeria.

 

Sir, in this battle, as an elder statesman who is enjoying his retirement so to say, do you have anybody in mind, anybody you are grooming for the top job?

There are many qualified people and you should know it. The other time, somebody in the villa said that merit should be the order of the day. If it is merit, it means after one Igbo the next will be Igbo and the next Igbo and Yoruba.

 

Recently there was this event in Anam- bra, organised by one Global Movement for Igbo Presidency in 2023. How come it was an Edo man, Kennedy Iyare that was the initiator, when we have prominent Igbos everywhere?

When God has approved something, you get support from everywhere. God in heaven has approved Igbo President after Buhari. It is not negotiable, otherwise Nigeria may disintegrate.

 

What of the Iyare issue?

Iyare came here and invited me. When we got there, we saw Nigerians who live in the US, UK, Europe. We also saw two Americans who came with him and he said the issue of Igbo President must no longer be seen as a Nigerian issue; that it is a global issue.

I hope you know our sons and daughters are making waves at the frontiers of technology in foreign lands, but they won’t be able to come back here because when they come nothing for them. There is an Igbo village in Virginia. America decided to honour four groups in the world, as the groups who helped build Ameri- ca, they gave one position to Igbo.

The issue is Nigeria must wake up, exploit what they have and become a Super power and raise the dignity and power of the black people. Black lives matter is a definition of failure of Nigeria. Because if we didn’t fail, there would be no need for black people be- ing killed like rats and then we will begin to say black lives matter. If we are doing well, all lives will be respected. Nigeria of today is not the Nigeria created by the British with federalism. So we want that original Nigeria to continue and it has to continue.

 

In the event that the APC and PDP do not zone their presidential ticket to the South East, what will be the plan B?

I am happy to tell you that, that event will never happen. Even right now that you are talking to me there is a presidential candidate already for APC who is Igbo. We don’t want to say anything is fixed; things can change anytime but as of now the thinking is exactly what you have in mind.

The Yoruba man who is working on this project with us has identified 11 Igbo presidential candidates. We have narrowed the list to three. One for APC, PDP and another party.