Nationwide protest: Why Ndigbo stayed away – Investigation

With the benefit of hindsight, it has been established that Ndigbo escaped from what would have been a clear case of genocide almost perfected against them by those who never meant well to the South Easterners.

The just concluded #EndBadGovernance Protest, according to Business Hallmark investigation, was never planned or put together by the Igbo. However, all efforts were made to make it appear as if it was an Igbo affair.

A political scientist, Sir Enuka Ibeakalam, explained why some state actors tried in vain to drag the Igbo nation into the protest affair. He said, “Those in charge of national affairs know that Ndigbo is hated, rightly or wrongly.

“Therefore, the oligarchy’s first strategy was to tag the nationwide protest an Igbo project. The idea was to paint it in an Igbo colour in order to make it less attractive – for the other zones and regions to look at it as an Igbo scheme and ultimately dismiss it. But it never worked out because the Nigerian masses knew that it was cheap propaganda against Ndigbo and by extension against the protest”.

A commentator on national issues, Shuyi Ayodele applauded South Eastern leaders and the people in general for being “wise” not to have been involved in the protest, thereby escaping a planned genocide.

He said, “Ndigbo proved to be the wisest of all ‘protesters’ in all! Rather than hit the streets and be slaughtered as happened in the 1966 pogrom in the North, the Ndigbo hit their homes. They borrowed the debased cliché of Senator Godswill Akpabio, our Senate President, who said that while those who wanted to protest could go ahead, he and other warped minds would be in their homes making merriment!

“The sons and daughters of Ndigbo did what those waiting in the wings for them did not expect. They stayed indoors, drinking and winning. One of them, a friend, even had the temerity to send me a video of him eating an African delicacy, ugba, and fish and washing it down with fresh juice. Ka bu ndu, (is this life?) was my response”!

Ayodele added, “Even in their five states of Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo, there was peace. Rather than making themselves available for the security agents kitted with deadly arsenals to ‘curtail’ the ‘protest’ in the East, the Ndigbo locked up their shops and imposed on themselves “sit-at-home”!

“In frustration, and somewhere in Lagos, when the ‘waiting-in-the-wings’ state thugs stationed to “deal” with the Igbo boys and girls that would come out to protest, they mistook a Yoruba lady, one Olufunmilayo for an Igbo. I watched the video of the encounter, and I shook my head. Does hunger separate tribes? What if Olufunmilayo had turned out to be an Ibo lady? That is the question I have not been able to answer”.

Almost giving a clean health bill to Ndigbo, the analyst passed a vote of confidence on Ndigbo. According to him, “Granted, we have so many Ndigbo guys that are bad. I have encountered a lot of them. But the Ndigbo are in good company as other tribes of the nation also have their fair share of the bad and the ugly. We also equally have so many fantastic ones too that through them, you would wish to be an Ndigbo. Every tribe has such two categories. Even the North has so many other fellows that are more rational in thinking than many educated southerners.

“So, why should we prepare the slaughter slabs for an ethnic group over a ‘nationwide protest’ because our man is in power? What is the difference between the proponents of the “Ndigbo must go” campaign and the Kano boys who went to a library and looted brooms and dustbins leaving books behind”?

Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State was the one who did everything humanly possible to convince Ndigbo to back out of the last nationwide protest. He insisted that the protest was “ill-timed and potentially dangerous”, calling on the South East region not to participate.

“Democracy is about the opinion of the people and the protest is allowed in a democratic setting. Every protest must be reasonably conceived to be able to make political sense.

“I think it’s too early at this time in the life of this government for anybody to come out to say he wants to protest. First of all, there has not been any engagement where those who are sponsoring the protest were able to tell us the reasons for the protests.

“Secondly, given the global situation today and the insecurity in the country, we have a very fragile political environment that if not managed and protected very well, may collapse the entire country.

“So, those who are going to protest, what is the reason for the protests? And if they have no reason for the protests, I think I’ll advise well-meaning citizens of this country who are making sacrifices to shun the protest. Some of us have paid the supreme price for the existence of this country. We should guide our country very jealously.

” I think it is a wrong time for anybody to do any protest, because the implication of doing that, if care is not taken, is that it may be hijacked like the EndSARS, where criminals hijacked an innocently conceived agitation by young Nigerians.

“So, I think we are not in support of the protest. We are not going to support any protest that has no programmes, that is not discussed, that nobody knows what the problem is. Okay, if you are protesting, what do you want the government to do? Because the reason for protests is that they want an issue to be addressed. What are the issues?

“In my view, I think there is no need to overheat the polity and put our people in a position where the hardship that is occasioned by economic recession all over the world is further worsened. I advise against the protest”, he enthused.

Also,the apex Igbo sociocultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, advised its people particularly, the South-East states to disregard the nationwide protests which lasted between August 1 and 10, 2024.

The secretary general of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro, in a statement made available to newsmen, stated the dangers that would confront Ndigbo if they joined forces with the organizers of the protest.

“Reflecting on the poignant history of the Igbo people in Nigeria, particularly in the aftermath of significant riots and protests… It is evident that Igbos have often been unfairly treated as sacrificial lambs amidst the turmoil,” the Ohanaeze bigwig observed.

Ishiguzo gave instances of how Ndigbo had been made the scapegoat in precious protests like the Ali Must Go protest of 1978, the 1989 anti-SAP riots, the 1993 June 12 protests, the 2012 Occupy Nigeria protests, and the 2020 END SARS protests. He said Ndigbo suffered significant losses of life and property in those nationwide protests for unjustifiable reasons.

“First and foremost, the prevailing security challenges in the Southeast region pose insurmountable obstacles to the safe conduct of protests and riots. In recognition of this reality, any nationwide protest scheduled within the Southeast is hereby revoked, with a clear directive that Igbos will not partake.

“Enforcing such protests risks exacerbating the existing security dilemmas in the South-East, creating opportunities for criminal elements and external Igbo detractors to exploit the situation and instigate further chaos. Thus, it is in the best interest of all concerned parties to refrain from organizing any protests within the region.

“Secondly, the fear of Igbos once again being perceived as sacrificial lambs in the forthcoming nationwide protests is a legitimate concern. In this regard, Ohanaeze Ndigbo calls upon Igbo residents in the 19 northern states and southern Western regions to boycott the looming protests for their safety and security”, Ishiguzo noted.

He then urged Ndigbo wherever they were to be guided by wisdom during the protest period. As he put it, “Demonstrating restraint and prudence by avoiding involvement in the protests is imperative to safeguard Ndigbo’s well-being during this period”.

Eventually, Ndigbo heeded to the clarion call by their leaders. They stayed off the streets during the nationwide protest. They rather observed sit-at-home. That way what would have been a calamity on Ndigbo was averted.

A clear indication that there was indeed an orchestrated plot to heap the protest blame on Ndigbo was Peter Obi’s rebuttal that he identified with the protesters. He made that clarification following insinuations even from the presidency that he and the Labour Party, LP, were the masterminds of the protest. While one presidential spokesperson called Peter Obi and LP “enemy of democracy”, an APC governor labeled them ” Sore losers”.

That made Obi to respond accordingly. He posted thus: “I have noticed some deliberate and well-orchestrated efforts by some persons to blackmail me into conforming to some of their nefarious agendas. Their dubious moves have led to the false circulation of a video from my recent keynote speech at the installation of Rotarian Professor A. U. Nnonyelu in Anambra State.

“They have twisted the video to suit their motive to suggest that I declared war on Northerners when, in fact, I spoke about declaring war on economic stagnation, insecurity, and corruption.

“Another video circulating online, supposedly showing me leading a protest in Abuja, is also false. The video was taken during my visit to the Labour Party HQ, where I mediated a clash between the Labour Party and the NLC.

“The video was conveniently edited to create a false narrative, and those responsible have been paid to spread this misinformation. This kind of misinformation has no place in our democracy, where truth and honesty should prevail.

“This misrepresentation is part of a larger narrative of blackmail, aimed at fitting me into their malicious agenda. I remain committed to a new Nigeria where justice, equity, and caring for the citizens will prevail over the greed of a few.

“Similarly, and deeply disturbing, I have read genocidal threats on X against the Igbo tribe, calling for their relocation. Let me pointedly warn that such rhetoric threatens our unity and is fundamentally opposed to our Constitution, which guarantees every Nigerian the right to live and work freely anywhere in the country. Those in authority must show leadership and urgently speak out against such divisive rhetoric”.

Obi then called for a thorough investigation into the mess against him and LP. According to him, “Immediate action should be taken to investigate, arrest, and prosecute those behind this heinous agenda, serving as a deterrent to others who might consider pursuing similar paths that threaten our national security and unity.

I urge all Nigerians to stand united against this divisive rhetoric and to champion unity, tolerance, and understanding. Our future depends on our ability to live and work together harmoniously.

“The government and security agencies must act swiftly to protect this fundamental principle and ensure that every Nigerian can live free from fear of discrimination or persecution. We must not allow our present challenges to drive wedges among us. We can only overcome our national challenges if we act together as one people united under God”.

Meanwhile, Hon Uche Onyeagocha, a former member of the House of Representatives who represented Owerri Federal Constituency, observed that Ndigbo had been protesting from the colonial era to 1966 -70. He said the South East as a zone has been protesting against the leadership of Nigeria – civilian or military – from 1970 till date.

He maintained that Ndigbo had been observing the sit-at-home order for about two years now which is a clear form of protests. Onyeagocha recalled that Ndigbo had been protesting against marginalization, exclusion, and acute negligence of the South East by the rest of the federation. Thus, it was the other parts of the country that suddenly woke up from their slumber to join the South East in its perennial protests against bad governance.