Indeed, Right Time For Igbo Presidency

By Bolaji Tunji

One Tuesday, former President Olusegun Obasanjo made a case for the South east to also be given a chance to produce the next president of Nigeria. In canvassing this view which he said was personal to him, he noted that most of the other zones in the country- the North, South West and even the minority south South had all produced the nation’s president at one point or the other and it would only be fair if the south east was also allowed to produce Nigeria’s president in the not too distant future.

Indeed, the iconic former president seems to have spoken the mind of most of us who still believe in fairness, justice and equity as way of stemming the agitation from that part of the country.

Within a few days of the ex-president’s statement, there have been reactions from some Nigerians,though mostly of the South east extraction. While some are in support of the former president’s statement, a few remain skeptical believing that Obasanjo’s statement came because he saw that the agitation of South east ethnic nationalities such as Movement for the Actualization of  the Sovereign State of Biafra, (MASSOB) and the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) have grown more strident. Notwithstanding the messenger, the question is whether there is any substance in the message and whether it is or should be a reality worth pursuing?

For someone who has always believed in fairness, equity, Obasanjo’s message resonates with me. If Nigerians have not been thinking in this direction, it is time to start looking that way.

It is not in doubt that the South east has contributed immensely, like any other zone to the development of this country. One would even believe an average South easterner to be more nationalistic than any other, among the different zones in the country. And why would I say this? It is only an Igboman who feels comfortable in any and every part of Nigeria. There is hardly a state or town in Nigeria today where you would not find an Igboman. He  either has a business running or is found offering different services to the host community. He builds his house in that community and feels comfortable there. He sees himself as part of the community. There is a saying in the Southwest, especially among the Oyo-speaking Yoruba that if you got to a town and you could not locate an Ogbomoso person, it would be better for you to run from the place. The implication being that the inhabitants are inhospitable. Ogbomoso people in those days are traders who ply their trade in far-flung places, far from their home.

I think the same applies to the Igbo race. If you ventured into any town or village and you could not locate an Igboman, you would do yourself a world of good by running away from the place. The Igbo is an irrepressible race. Prior to the civil war period, they were everywhere in the country. They were the railway engineers and great merchants while majority were also seen as intellectual giants. With the civil war, majority went back home. But less than five decades after the war, they are every where in Nigeria, trading and contributing to the economy of the host community. If that is not a good example in nationalism, I wonder what is. Their attitude is the trait of a race that still believes in the oneness of the country, despite what some people would say to the contrary.