The President-General of the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Professor George Obiozor has said that the dream of actualisation of Biafra is beyond the capacity of young men like Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra IPOB.
He further warned him to desist from making comments that will pitch Igbo against the Nigerian nation as secessionists, maintaining that Igbo is not at war with Nigeria.
Speaking at the grand reception in his honour by Ndigbo in Lagos, Obiozor, former Nigerian ambassador to the United States, urged Nnamdi Kanu to learn to listen to elders as a true son of Igbo land.
He said the Ndigbo would continue to seek justice, peace, and fairness in all their dealings with everybody in Nigeria.
He said, “The greatest affliction of man is insecurity. With insecurity, nothing happens that is positive. Among Igbo, one of the challenges we are faced with is security threats both within the Igbo zone and within the country as a whole.
“The Igbo nation is not at war with Nigeria and we are not intending to go into war or demand a separate existence from Nigeria. So Igbo are not secessionists.
“Concerning the problems and the fingers pointed at Igbo because of Nnamdi Kanu, Nnamdi is our son and he must listen to us! The future of Biafra is well beyond the capacity of young men.
“Everybody should stop utterances or actions that will or have the tendencies to put Ndigbo in present and immediate danger. That is what my message is in this matter.
“Biafra requires mature and experience handling and not a child’s play. Children should stop playing with fire and children shouldn’t play with fire. Nnamdi Kanu is one of us. He is our son and he must listen to some of us because he’s one of us.”
Obiozor, however, urged the Igbo to pursue restructuring with pride and dignity, saying that Nigeria must be restructured in order to reduce hostile tension among ethnic nationalities and move the country forward.
He added that restructuring would address the issue of hostile contacts among Nigerians and reduce tensions.
On his part, Ndigbo Lagos President General, Major General Obi Umahi (retd.), described the event as a homecoming for Obiozor.
