Diaspora Groups Fault Umahi’s Claim on Igbo No Longer Marginalised

Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Enugu

The Minister of Works, Chief David Umahi, has come under blistering condemnation by diaspora Igbo groups for claiming that President Bola Tinubu has put an end to the perceived marginalisation of Ndigbo in Nigeria.

Umahi reportedly urged the Igbo to forget Biafra agitation, as, according to him, the federal government had addressed all the challenges of Ndigbo.

But the diaspora groups -the American Veterans of Igbo Descent (AVID), Ambassadors for Self Determination, and the Rising Sun, in a joint statement at the weekend, countered the Works Minister on his “unguarded statement,” saying that he “doesn’t have the mandate to speak for Ndigbo.

“He (Umahi) should not allocate to himself the powers he does not have. Since he said he does not believe in Biafra, Biafrans also do not believe in traitors like him.

“Nobody is coercing him to join the struggles, but he lacks the powers to either speak for the people or stop the movement,” the groups said in the statement signed by AVID President, Dr Sylvester Onyia; Ben Nwankwo for Ambassadors for Self Determination; and Maxwell Dede, for the Rising Sun.

The groups noted that they have seen “serial betrayers” of the Igbo’s cause who are now living in regret after being used and dumped by their slave masters, adding that Umahi might not be any different.

They reminded the public that the former governor of Ebonyi State “does not speak for Alaigbo. He does not speak for Biafraland. He speaks only for himself — and not even for everyone in Ebonyi State.”

The groups regarded it as “an insult on the sensibility of Ndigbo for Umahi to claim that Ndigbo are no longer marginalised,” and challenged him to substantiate his claims with concrete evidence.

They queried the minister to point out what “the federal government or Tinubu’s government (has) done for Alaigbo since Tinubu became the president,” adding that Umahi should show the world what Ndigbo have gained under Tinubu’s administration.

“Why is the Umuahia -Enugu railway still moribund when Lagos – Kano and Katsina – Niger Republic tracks are functional? Why does the Southeast still have only five ministers, with two of them junior ministers, while one state in the Southwest has four ministers?

“Is Umahi not aware that there’s no seaport in the Southeast while our people are the highest importers in the country? Do we have any functional cargo airport in Igbo land? Do we have major federal industries or maritime projects?” they asked.

The Igbo diaspora groups said that Umahi could not claim ignorance that “other regions in Nigeria have these things (infrastructure), Alaigbo does not.

“So, when someone like Umahi tries to speak for Ndigbo, we must ask: what exactly is he defending?”

The groups further threw more posers at Umahi, asking him to provide answers to the questions so that his claims of no more Igbo marginalisation could be meaningful.

“Why is Mazi Nnamdi Kanu jailed for life when the real terrorists and mass murderers are freely roaming around and treated with levity?

“Kanu was jailed with the support of Britain and a few Nigerian politicians like Umahi, who have chosen personal comfort over justice.

“That is why the people are angry. That is why the people feel betrayed. Anyone who helps to keep Mazi Nnamdi Kanu in detention is working against the Igbo people. Umahi should realise that saboteurs will always be on the wrong side of history,” they said.

The Igbo diaspora groups recalled that during the persecution of the Jews in Europe, some Jews denied being Jews to protect themselves, adding that such denials “did not stop the suffering. And it did not stop the creation of Israel in 1948.

“So, when Umahi denies Biafra today, it is not new. Betrayal by local people has happened before. It has never stopped history,” the statement said.

Alluding to the agitation for the sovereign state of Biafra has come to stay and cannot be diminished by Igbo politicians striving to be politically correct, the groups noted that “Biafra is Bigger than Umahi.”

“The Biafra struggle is not about Umahi. It is not about appointments. It is not about pleasing Abuja. It is about justice, dignity, and self-respect. People may try to sabotage it. They will fail,” they said.

The groups called for the release of Nnamdi Kanu, saying that: “It is a simple and clear demand,” which must be met if the federal authorities are sincere about giving Ndigbo a true sense of belonging.

“Anything else is deception. Umahi should not give us reason to suspect he is one of those frustrating Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s release,” the groups said.