Buhari does not owe Igbos anything, Junaid to Ezeife

Firstclass newsline gathered that the Convener of the Coalition of
Northern Politicians, Academics, Professionals and Businessmen, Dr.
Junaid Mohammed, has dismissed the sentiments shared by a former
Governor of Anambra State that the Igbo have not been treated fairly
in the governance of Nigeria.
Ezeife had argued that President Muhammadu Buhari's appointment of Dr.
Ibe Kachikwu, who hails from the Igbo-speaking part of Delta State, to
head the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, was not enough to
satisfy the South-East.
But in an interview with a source on Friday, Mohammed criticised
Ezeife, insisting that people of the Igbo nation have enjoyed
favourable treatment.
He added it was wrong to reward the Igbo simply on the basis of the
Nigerian Civil War, which lasted between 1967 and 1970.
Mohammed said, "If it is about Buhari making the appointments based on
merit, I have no problems with it. I don't believe Buhari or Nigeria
owes any Igbo anything. I don't care what Ezeife says; if they had
seceded, there would have been no Nigeria today. As people who acted
outside the interest of Nigeria as a country, to expect compensation
is a very odd logic.
"If the Igbo don't like it, they can attempt secession again. If they
do, they must be prepared to live with the consequences. Nobody owes
them anything and nobody is out to compensate them for anything."
The doctor-turned-politician also condemned claims that Buhari's
appointment of northerners into key positions in government was done
out of ethnic sentiment.
He said, "They (critics) should tell us which ethnic groups have been
favoured by Buhari in the course of making his appointments in
parastatals and agencies. Those who are making those allegations,
particularly the Igbo, have not told us exactly which parastatals.
"For example, an Igbo man has just been appointed as the head of the
NNPC, one of the most important government agencies in Nigeria. And
over 50 per cent of those appointed before him were also Igbos. So, if
people decide to be mischievous, there is nothing anybody can do about
it. As far as I am concerned, those appointed have been good and
credible persons."
On reports that Buhari may head the petroleum ministry for the next 18
months, the northern leader stated that there was no living Nigerian
at that public level who knew as much about the ministry as Buhari.
According to Mohammed, there is full justification for Buhari to be
petroleum minister for as long as he desires.
He added, "Moreover, the consequences of what happens in the oil
ministry are so dire. When one looks at the track record of the past
minister, one can see what we have to deal with as a country as a
result of her being made a minister.
"In fact, I encourage him to retain the defence ministry because we
are in a state of war and he is a distinguished retired general who
has headed every single division of the Nigerian Army during his
service. If he decides to be the defence minister, I would be more
than glad.
Firstclassnewsline.net