Ohanaeze Mourns Nda-Isaiah, Condemns Allegations Of Killing Of Northerners In S/East

The Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Monday, described the death of Mr Sam Nda-Isaiah, publisher of the Leadership, as one too many. In a statement signed by its president general, Chief Nnia Nwodo, Ohanaeze said the late media icon ‘aptly captured his person when he wrote that he is “a leading pro-good governance advocate and a consistent voice on contemporary and domestic policy issues’”.

According to Nwodo, “That Mr Isaiah contested the presidency under the APC in 2015 showed he had interest in uplifting the life of the downtrodden. Unfortunately, this can no longer be. We, therefore, mourn his loss and exhort the leadership of the newspaper and his family to accept his departure as an act of God and absorb it with equanimity.”

In another development, the Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide has reacted to the insinuations by the South East Muslim Organization of Nigeria (SEMON) and the Igbo Muslim Forum, alleging killings of Igbo Muslims in Igbo land.

A release by Chief Emeka Attama, the media adviser to the president general of the socio-cultural group, said, “Ohanaeze Ndigbo finds ceaseless insinuations that the Igbo are against Muslims or the North very worrisome because of their grave socio-cultural and religious implications for the nation. First, it was Northern Elders Forum (NEF) in their unguarded and spurious gaffe which happily has been debunked by a majority of northern leaders as an unbecoming and untrue statement. This time, SEMON is saying that Muslims and mosques were deliberately targeted by the Independent People of Biafra (IPOB), especially during the #ENDSARS protest.

“The statement, jointly signed by one Suleiman Afikpo and Muhammad Amachi, alleged that there was a deliberate attempt to hound Muslims from the Southeast into silence while Ohanaeze Ndigbo and the Southeast governors look the other way.”

Ohanaeze regretted the misinformation, adding that, “There has never been any report of even harassment let alone killing of any Muslim made to any group or government. No such report has ever been received. The Igbo are law abiding and recognize and respect the freedom of religion enshrined in the Nigerian constitution. It is interesting that in the very words of the claimants, ‘Islam has existed in Igbo land since the early 19th century. It has peacefully been propagated and boasts of occupying the second largest and widely accepted religion in the present Ala-Igbo. From inception till date, Islam and Muslims of Ala-Igbo have maintained peaceful co-existence, and its presence has not endangered the well being of Ndigbo’.”

On the alleged destruction of mosques at Nsukka during the #EndSARS protest, Ohanaeze said, “The allegation of two mosques being destroyed at Nsukka is another bundle of lies. There was an altercation, not religious intolerance or aggression which has since been resolved. The rapidity at which these baseless and unfounded allegations about the Igbo hating the North are becoming is suggestive of a clandestine gang-up to discredit the Igbo and make them unacceptable to the North in the buildup to the 2023 presidential election.

“This situation is unfortunate considering the sacrifices Ndigbo have made and are still making for the development and unity of the country. Ndigbo cannot antagonize anybody from any part of the country knowing full well that they settle in all parts of the country than any other ethnic group.”

The group regretted that the North, which had ‘always been a political ally of the East is being used to fan this ember of hatred for Ndigbo’, adding that, “Just like the first smear campaign by the Prof Ango Abdullahi group backfired, the current one will also be unmasked as an empty ploy to sabotage the interest of the Igbo.”