The
pan-northern socio-political group, Arewa Consultative Forum, has told Igbo
leaders to warn their youths agitating for secession, saying that the issue
that led to the nation’s 30-month Civil War had been settled since 1970.
The
ACF also cautioned the Federal Government against negotiating with the Boko
Haram sect.
The
group asked the Buhari administration to
shelve any plan, if any, to dialogue
with the Boko Haram insurgents because such attempts in the past had failed.
The
ACF Chairman, Alhaji Ibrahim Coomasie, said this at a news conference in Kaduna
on Tuesday.
Coomassie
said, “The agitators for this unholy division are in their safe abode outside
Nigeria and the most painful aspect of this agitation by the young Ndigbo elements
is the silence from the elders who experienced the bitter pill of the
succession attempt, the 30-month Civil War and who knew the consequences of
such a futile agitation.
“As
you will recall, the issue of Biafra was settled in 1970 after the war. It is
therefore sad and unfortunate that 45 years after, when Nigerians are now
united in a democratic system of governance, that some elements are now busy
drumming up support for another war and secession through ‘Radio Biafra’ and
MASSOB activities.
“Only
just over a week ago, an elder statesman from the South-East celebrated his
birthday in Abuja with the launching of his two books. A good number of leaders
from the South-East attended the event and as the activities progressed, it was
nothing but Biafra with inciting and provocative speeches by one speaker after
another.”
“ACF
expects Ndigbo leaders to come out openly and condemn such agitations in the
present day Nigeria, just as it and others condemned and berated the Boko Haram
insurgency in the North-East.
“We
cannot afford to transit from one insurgency into another.”
On
the calls in some quarters that the Federal Government should negotiate with
the Boko Haram sect, Coomasie such call should be discountenanced by the
Federal Government.
He
said, “So far, so good, things are going on as they should and very soon, we
will finish off Boko Haram. If you recall, the Federal Government in the past
proposed a dialogue and even set up a mediation group but the so-called
dialogue collapsed.”