Nigeria’s elder statesman and leader of the Ijaw Nation, Chief Edwin Clark, has accused former President Muhammadu Buhari of systematically marginalizing the Ndi-Igbo from the South-Eastern part of Nigeria, observing the former president churned out discriminatory policies that marginalized the region during his time in office.
In a letter to President Bola Tinubu, Clark highlighted discriminatory policies enacted during Buhari’s tenure that he believes subjugated the region.
“President Buhari did everything to subjugate the Igbos for reasons best known to him. Perhaps it may be necessary to cite some examples; the NNPC board which he constituted when he came into office had 9 members, 1 from the South-West, 1 from South-South, and no member from the South-East, even though 3 South-East states; Abia, Anambra and Imo are oil producing states; the remaining members including his Chief of State came from the North, a non-oil producing region.
“However, he later tried to amend it when he appointed Sen Ifeanyi Ararome as chairman of the second board; and he later replaced him with Margery Chuba-Okadigbo before he took office. He (Senator Ifeanyi Ararome) took the matter to court and won but the situation has not changed.
“Also, when President Buhari attempted to obtain loans from foreign financial institutions that exceeded 30% of the GDP which was not in the interest of the country; and the loan of $22.7 billion (USD), of which less than 1% of the amount was to be allocated to the South-East zone while other zones were allocated higher percentage for infrastructural projects, is a violation of the constitutional requirement to ensure a balanced economic development of Nigeria in accordance with President Buhari’s Oath of Office. In President Buhari’s 17-man security chiefs, 14 of them came from the North and only 3 from the South excluding the Igbos from the South East,” the letter read.
Clark pointed out that Buhari did not appoint anyone from the South-East to the Board of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, despite the region having three oil-producing states: Abia, Anambra, and Imo.
He also noted the allocation of less than 1% of a $22.7 billion loan to the South-East, while other zones received more, and the exclusion of Igbos from key security appointments.
Clark criticized the continued discrimination under Tinubu’s administration, noting the unequal ministerial appointments.
“Mr President, even in your administration, the discrimination and injustice against the Igbos has not abated. The old Eastern Region and the old Western Region, to which I belonged, were equal competitors and partners before and during the First and Second Republic but today, you have appointed 10 Yorubas as Ministers from the South-West, and only five (5) Ministers from the South-East, and you even failed to give them the ministerial appointment due to their region that would have made it six (6) Ministers. There is no justification for this grave omission and no effort has been made to correct it,” he added.
The elder statesman called on President Tinubu to restructure the country and implement the 600 recommendations of the 2014 National Conference Report. He also urged the Igbos to assert their rights legitimately and democratically.
“Now that the elections are over, we must face the restructuring of this country. I repeat the immediate restructuring of Nigeria must be carried out if this country is to remain one, and I appeal to Mr President to take immediate action to implement the historic 2014 National Conference Report which submitted 600 recommendations to the Presidency on how to restructure Nigeria in every aspect of our lives.
The Igbos of Southeast or wherever they are in Nigeria, must stand up and assert their rights legitimately, judiciously and in a democratic way, to benefit like any other Nigerian as it was before the civil war of 1967”.
