The Northern Elders Forum (NEF), has said the country cannot afford another civil war just to keep Igbos in the country.
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The forum said the people of the South-east should be allowed to secede from Nigeria if it is what they want.
The proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) are campaigning for the secession of the south-east from Nigeria.
Speaking with journalists after a closed-door meeting held in Abuja on Monday, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, spokesman of the forum, noted that the agitation by the Igbo for secession has become widespread, adding that the leaders in the state appear to support the decision.
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He warned that standing in their way may worsen the insecurity in the region and the country as a whole.
“This nation has had to fight a terrible war to preserve the country. The north had paid its dues in that war, as indeed it did in many ways throughout the history of the country. Under our current circumstances, no Nigerian should welcome another war to keep the country together”, he said.
“The forum has arrived at the difficult conclusion that if support for secession among the Igbo is as widespread as it is being made to look, and Igbo leadership appears to be in support of it, then the country should be advised not to stand in its way.
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“It will not be the best choice for the Igbo or Nigerians to leave a country we have all toiled to build and a country we all have the responsibility to fix, but it will not help a country already burdened with failures on its knees to fight another war to keep the Igbo in Nigeria”.
The forum, however, warned Igbos that attacks on public infrastructure in their region, as well as killing of police officers must stop.
The northern elders also noted that until the Igbo decide whether it wants to secede or remain in Nigeria, the law applies to it, saying the federal and state governments have a responsibility to enforce the law and protect citizens.
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