Opinion: The fire
burned and Nnamdi Kanu disappeared by Buchi Obichie
Nnamdi Kanu's agitation for an independent Biafra state
has seen an upsurge in thee support for secession but he seems to have gone
mute since some northern youths gave a 90 day ultimatum to Igbos in the north
to vacate. In this opinion by Buchi Obichie, she describes Kanu as the kind of
persons who stirs trouble but if yet to be found when disaster sets in. We all
have that one friend or family member who always ‘stirs the pot’. You know,
that one who whispers things into people’s ears, but is usually nowhere to be
found or just flat-out denies stuff when “ish gets real”. For me, that person
was my cousin. When we were younger, a certain cousin of mine always had things
to say about someone else. She knew what someone else had said about you, or
what someone else had done in secret. In any case, if you got mad that someone
else was talking about you, and confronted that someone else and then let it
slip that the information was passed to you by so-and-so (my cousin), you would
quickly find that my cousin suddenly developed a case of juvenile amnesia. She
either would not recollect ever telling you about someone else, or she would
flat-out tell you that she didn’t put the information that way. No, she merely
made a light-hearted statement, and it was you who ‘embellished’ it! In any
case, for all intents and purposes, we were often caught in my cousin’s trap,
and quickly found that when the fight came, we were on our own!
My cousin reminds me of a certain Nnamdi Kanu; that radio
broadcaster turned activist/ ‘Jewish’ spiritual leader and ‘healer’. Now, I
would say firstly, that I do believe the Igbos have genuine reasons to feel
marginalized. It’s pretty obvious that Igbo people have been cheated quite a
bit in this polity called Nigeria. I believe that the government has a
responsibility to listen to the agitation of the Igbos, and then, a duty to
rightfully and realistically address these agitations with concrete solutions.
There is no reason why an Igbo man should not be president, or occupy a
top-tier position in the affairs of the nation. There is no reason why
Igbo-land should be so underdeveloped and its citizens treated like third class
citizens in their own country, even though their business savvy has done a lot
for the economic growth of the country. Since the British arrived, the Igbos
have had a genuine reason to be angry, and their concerns must be addressed.
But I do not believe that secession is the answer (personally, as a Deltan, I
do not identify as Biafran, even though I am of Ibo descent) nor do I believe
that Nnamdi Kanu is the messiah Igbos seek.
Recently, some errant, cantankerous, mischief-making
northern youths gave a very foolish and inflammatory order, evicting the Igbos
out of the north. That particular action has set off a chain reaction; effects
of which are still being felt at the present moment. Let me say here, that even
though two northern youth leaders have admitted that the action was wrong and
appealed for calm, I am appalled that none of the culprits have yet been
arrested despite Governor El-Rufai’s order. People should not be able to
publicly make such statements of anarchy, and allowed to roam about scot-free.
They should be put in jail! Now, back to Nnamdi Kanu. For a man who is not at
all shy about speaking out ‘in very colorful terms’ against the government in
its treatment of Igbos, and inciting his followers to action, I am quite amazed
that in this latest episode, he has remained silent- just like my cousin!
One
of the most telling attributes of a true leader is his/her willingness to walk
through the fire with their people. Well, the fire has started burning and so
far, Kanu has maintained a safe distance from the blaze. One may argue that he
does not want to be seen to be violating the terms of his bail, but you only have
to read about the actions he has taken since his release to see that violations
have already occurred on quite a few occasions. The foolish northern youths
made a terrible decision by their proclamation, but it was based on what they
perceived to be erratic and spiteful actions of the Igbos agitating for Biafra;
an agitation that in recent times has grown more frequent, louder, often
violent, and an agitation principally spear-headed by Kanu.
But in the heat of
the moment, Kanu seems to have recoiled into some shell. Not even a word of
encouragement to affected Igbos has been given by him…at least something to let
them know they are not alone. Is he afraid? I didn’t know he succumbs to the
emotion of fear!Igbos need to be wise. Nnamdi Kanu, in my opinion, is an
‘accidental phenomenon’ whose burst of fame came as a result of the federal
government’s poor choices. A man who never really expected to be locked up- or
locked up for so long- has become a ‘god’! What an irony! But he is no leader.
..certainly not one the Igbos need in their struggle. Like I have said before,
I do not think secession is the answer; but I do believe whole-heartedly, that
Igbos have legitimate grievances. If the Igbo nation would rally together and
come up with a realistic course of action, a way to reasonably and seriously
tackle things with the government- not the tout-like activities of those who
keep on causing mayhem under the cover of all too frequent sit-at-home orders
which do not really have any serious effect on the government- then they may
begin to see the sun.
What do you think about this person’s opinion? Is Nnamdi
Kanu a Leader or a pretender. Its up to
you leaders!!!
This article was Culled from Naij.com.
Comments
Post a Comment