From CHARLES ONYEKWERE
Major affiliate of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Njiko Igbo Forum, has demanded N100 trillion compensation from the federal government over what it described as decades of injustice against Igbo people since 1966.
The demand followed a revelation by former military president, General Ibrahim Babangida (rtd), who in his newly released autobiography, ‘A Journey in Service,’ debunked the long-held narrative that the 1966 coup was an “Igbo coup.”
In a statement released Tuesday, President of Njiko Igbo Forum, Okechukwu Obioha called on lawmakers from the South-East to push for a compensation bill in the National Assembly.
According to Obioha, the Igbos have endured decades of rejection, marginalisation and economic sabotage, all fuelled by what he said was a false historical narrative.
He emphasised that the tragic consequences of the Nigerian Civil War – economic losses, destruction of businesses and the seizure of properties— stemmed from misinformation about the coup’s masterminds.
Refuting the claim that the coup was led by the Igbos, Obioha listed its principal actors, which included military officers from diverse ethnic backgrounds – Kaduna Nzeogwu (Delta); Adewale Ademoyega (Yoruba); Capt. G. Adeleke (Yoruba); Lt. Fola Oyewole (Yoruba); Emmanuel Ifeajuna (Igbo); Lt. Tijani Katsina (Hausa); Capt. Gibson Jalo (Niger Delta), and Lt. O. Olafemiyan (Yoruba).
He claimed that the coup’s true objective was to free Chief Obafemi Awolowo from prison and install him as Prime Minister.
With what he described as “incontrovertible evidence” now in the open, Obioha insisted that the Nigerian government must offer a formal apology and pay adequate compensation to the Igbos for their suffering over the past 55 years.
“No amount of money can bring back the millions of lives lost or undo the decades of suppression suffered by the Igbos since January 15, 1970 when the war supposedly ended,” he stated.
Beyond compensation, the group also called on the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commissioner, INEC, Professor Mahmoud Yakubu, to publicly address concerns regarding the 2023 presidential election.
“We don’t want another memoir decades from now where Professor Yakubu or President Bola Tinubu finally admits — like they are doing now with MKO Abiola —that Peter Obi actually won the election. He should confess now,” the statement read.
Additionally, the group demanded the immediate and unconditional release of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, arguing that his agitation was a direct consequence of the civil war’s impact on Igbo people.
The forum urged the Nigerian government to correct decades of injustice by treating the Igbos as an integral part of the country rather than an isolated minority.
