From time immemorial till this change of bravery by the ibos, iboes are the most bravery and courageous people. They are never knew to be puppets or bow before anyone except their chi (God).
History made us to understand that, in the precolonial ibo, an ibo man born today or yesterday has no restriction to the meeting of the older ones. They are free to associates with anyone on traditional basis because, the societies they live in purely promoted an egalitarian nature. Once you are born a man, you are a man and that is their beliefs.
The young male folks could wine and dine with his father without been castigated and so, a father could shake hands with the little ones and said “CHUKWUDI, my friend, you are well-done”.
History also has it that every family in the pre-colonial ibo societies was represented in their chiefs palace with a title – meaning every family has a title holder who is empowered to attend a meeting called by village chiefs.
It was so until the Advent of British colonisation of Africa. Even with that, the indirect rule that was introduced by Lord luggard could partially or not at all succeeded in ibo land even though it recorded some amount of success in the northern and partially in the western part of Nigeria.
Ibo men were dogged, rugged and radical resisting every form of colonisation of their people by the whites.
Aba women riot in 1929 was also a testament to that facts. These were just women resisting direct taxation and introduction of new local courts and warrant chiefs to aid and make easier for the British to be able to collect taxes on everything they own. This strength to resist the taxation policies of the whites was not just on their own. It was drawn from their men.
So were the ibos of those days and not iboes of today.
It baffles to hear that a governor of a state will admit to the fact that he invited Nigeria armies to kill his people in the Nigeria of today where some part of the country are glorifying banditry and killing by the herders.
It is also shocking to hear that a former governor of eastern state and a current senator from east would pledge about #100 million to build fulani properties that were burnt down during a crises.
And I ask, “who will build his people properties that was destroyed?
While the governor is busy fighting his predecessor in the state, he is busy using the money he took from his brother who is his predecessor to settle the foreigners in his land.
WHY?
- Because he Believe that if he does that, the northerner would like him
- because, he want to criple his brother politically so that he would become the demigod that everyone to worship in ibo land
We have all seen the empowerment of bandits and killer herders in the name of negotiation in the northe.
All the northern governor’s have rising up in defense of killer herders. They say the herders are free to live anywhere and that calling them bandits or killer herders is a figurative expression.
This a part of a country where the president come from. The Senate president, the chief of army staff, minister of defense even inspector general of police comes from and all of them have rising in defense of the so-called terrorists but the eastern governor’s sees nothing wrong in that but keep pursuing issues that are not relevant to governance and pledging allegiance to them.
The Yoruba are speaking in one voice too. We all saw how they eulogized Sunday ighobo to high heaven when he confronted the killer herders. Those who couldn’t say anything because of their affiliation with the ruling party and fear of been undo politically by northern hegemony kept mute while those in the opposition do the talking.
Their silence was also a sound to the federal government. It means they supported their brothers against the herders but they could come out and say it openly. They have amoteken.
What local security network does ibo people have now that can fight the herders should they confront them aside, Eastern Security Network that the federal government have deployed all the arsenal to fight them courtesy of a governor who is bent on satisfying those who put him there as governor?
In as much as I hate to say this, ibo political elites should rise up in one voice to find a common ground for this reason.
You cannot be pampering terrorists while you send armies against those who are defending their territory against the killer herders.
They should forget about trying to please any part of the country against their own part all in the name of a unreliazable presidential ambition that never comes.
They should tell the federal government to redirect their military to katsina state, niger state, borno state and other northern State where they are negotiating with the herders and bandits and not Orlu, Imo State where people are doing their peaceful agitation.
God bless Nigeria.
Ralphomale
