At the risk of being tagged once again as anti-Igbo by rabid, commissioned slave traders who see Ndigbo as easy wares to be marketed to their political masters, I write this open letter to my people.

At the huge risk of being called names by my brothers and sisters, I boldly write this piece to my people. I have been called names in the past for speaking out and I may be wrong but please forgive me. I write because I know that a story that must be told never forgives silence. I write despite all odds because I know that when a writer is silent he or she is lying. I write because I want things to be done differently, because I know that the greatest part of hell will be reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of great moral crisis. I write knowing fully well that I am not the best God ever created and therefore mine cannot be the last word. Two incidents involving Mrs. Stella Oduah, who was removed as a Minister for corruption, and General Ihejirika, who just retired from the Nigerian Army necessitated this open letter.


Sacked aviation minister Stella Oduah and former COAS General Ihejirika
Mrs. Stella Oduah was removed as a Minister of Aviation for issues bordering on corruption. She was accused of financial recklessness.

When the lid was blown open, our people went to town to defend Mrs Stella Oduah. All Igbo organizations went to town with the chorus "LEAVE STELLA ODUAH ALONE". The shouts came from our people all over the world and it was loud enough and at best, deafening. When Mrs. Stella Oduah was eventually eased out by the presidency, one thought our people will learn the lesson but not Igbo. Our leaders went to town with a project to honour Mrs. Stella Oduah and others with awards in Lagos. In preparation for the ceremony one of the leaders spoke to the press. Hear him “we are honouring our own Mrs. Stella Oduah to show the world that even when Nigeria mocks our brightest and best for doing a good job at the Aviation Industry, we must tell the world that we love and celebrate our own.” She was given an instant title of Ada Igbo. As I write this, billboards are at strategic locations in Igboland, celebrating her as ADA IGBO.

Now enter General Ihejirika, the former Chief of Army Staff.

General Ihejirika just retired from the Army after serving for more than three decades. General Ihejirika is now eyeing the governorship seat in Abia State on the platform of PDP just few months after pulling out of the Nigerian Army.

But just recently an Australian peace negotiator, Stephen Davis, who was allegedly contracted by the federal government and who spent four months in Nigeria negotiating with Boko Haram to get the kidnapped Chibok girls out, told the world that the former Governor of Borno State Ali Modu Sheriff and Ihejirika have hands in sponsoring Boko Haram. The moment Stephen Davis' statement hit the Nigerian public space, hell was let loose once again. Our people went to town with the usual mantra: "LEAVE IHEJIRIKA ALONE". Almost all the Igbo organizations have issued press statements suggesting that General Ihejirika is now being persecuted for staking his life to fight Boko Haram for Nigeria. Again the noise was so loud and deafening.

According to our people Ihejirika is being persecuted because he is Igbo. Even Igbo World Assembly (IWA) in far away United States was not left out in the drama. In the social media it is Igbo and other Nigerians.

Now the questions are: do we need to defend Mrs. Stella Oduah and General Ihejirika? Are they not old enough or competent enough to defend themselves? Were our people with them when they were serving? Can we swear we know them very well to continue this noise? Do we really know the character of these persons? Why this prebendal politics? If we continue to defend our tribes only, who will then defend Nigeria? Who is working for Nigeria if I may ask? Is it not bad behaviour for Igbo to continue to defend what they know nothing about? Are we not making ourselves objects of ridicule in the eyes of other Nigerians? When we pour invectives on other Nigerians or people who are different from us are we not endangering the lives and businesses of Ndigbo scattered all over Nigerians?

Have we forgotten that our people are the most mobile in Nigeria? Do we know how other Nigerians rate us in this predictable primitive defense? Do we consider the feelings of other Nigerians? What signals are we sending out with this improper behaviour? Don’t we have men and women who will say enough is enough in this madness of defending the indefensible?

We know Igbo history, philosophy and sociology, when did it tolerate blind and unquestionable defence of someone who might have compromised his or herself while in office? When has Igbo become so ethically compromised that they do must defend even thieves from Igboland? Are these Igbo not aware that such fight, like in the case of Stella Oduah not only ridicules the Igbo but belittles them before others? What happens to the sanctimonious resolve of our fore fathers never to get involved in war of blame?

When Professor Grace Grange, IG Tafa Balogun, and Speaker Patricia Etteh, were removed for corruption, did the Yoruba resort to this kind of blackmail? What is the North saying about Ali Modu Sherrif, the former Governor of Borno State implicated in Boko Haram insurgency with Ihejirika? These are just few cases I wanted to mention for emphasis.

To the best of my knowledge I do not think our people are playing better politics in Nigeria now. I do not think the way we are going now will help us politically. I do not think other Nigerians will trust us if we continue this way. I have slim hope that other Nigerians will take serious in matters of Nigerian politics. I am not led to believe that we are getting it right, rather I think we are going the wrong way.

For emphasis, Ihejirika may be guilty or not but it is his to prove. I am not saying he is guilty for I do not know the details. He doesn’t need all the cahoots of persuaders now striving to show their support for him to do so. In every sane society, security is a complicated issue and every person within that society, even the president, is a suspect until proven otherwise. The best for Ihejirika is to step out and put a solid defence and shame his accusers. If he believes he will get the mob to extricate him, he is making a mistake and getting himself indicted by history and that is far more dangerous for him.

I suggest that Igbo should stop creating enemies for itself in Nigeria. I suggest that Igbo should rise above ethnic preoccupation to help move Nigeria forward. If we are still one Nigeria, Igbo should consider the feelings of other Nigerians. This defeatism attitude must give way to politics of ideas. This persecution complex must stop. This leadership complex must seize to exist.

Joe Igbokwe.
Lagos

Oga joe mr saboteur plz if you have nothing to say kindly go home and attend to your wife. Tell hausa s to stop defending buhari and ciroma who said they will make nigeria ungovernable and instigated violence after loosing elections. For my advice remains to your tent oh isreal.
Ka chineke mezie okwu

The Igbo posters above me will still not learn. An "Nwa ofor" warned you people about not playing "politics correctly" but you still aren't listening and this is why you (Ndigbo) will never attain much political prominence in Nigeria.
If and when Jonathan gets a 2nd term, and paved way for an Igbo president to succeed him, who will vote him in? Themselves and their forced South-south family?
Ndigbo weghi amamihe.

Dr. Amina Abdul-One Muhammed , Engr. Chinedu Okpalanma and EMMANUEL IKECHUKWU OMEJE (ESQ.)Faces of Nigerians behind #BringBackGoodluck2015 They are YOUNG Nigerians asking for 30%

Animals in human skin.

It saddens my heart.as a and still a young man i read books by great igbo intellectual especially ones on the sociology and psychology of the igbo people of old. stories on the geatness of biafra nation,,how they manufacture the almighty ogbunigbwe,how they built high tech machines ,how the likes of azikwe contributes to national issues based on intellectual postulations and not ethnically jaundiced views ignoramus such as the asslicking pdp fowls are perfecting without care for the igbo nation...unfortunately most ndigo are buying into these..itpains.....igbos e te ti sile ki e la eti yin............pdp,apga,t.orji,peter obi,fani kayode,asari dokubo,insincer nigerian,phockphockman et al including the newly nairaland TAN members who have just join nl to force jona daft gospel throuhh our throats...all these people have no interest in you...they are only manipulating you along ethnic line for srlf gain...drop the garment of hate and move on......liberate yourself.....ndigbo is tired of bad govt and ethnic jingoist.......liberate yourself

Tundeajani: It saddens my heart.as a and still a young man i read books by great igbo intellectual especially ones on the sociology and psychology of the igbo people of old. stories on the geatness of biafra nation,,how they manufacture the almighty ogbunigbwe,how they built high tech machines ,how the likes of azikwe contributes to national issues based on intellectual postulations and not ethnically jaundiced views ignoramus such as the asslicking pdp fowls are perfecting without care for the igbo nation...unfortunately most ndigo are buying into these..itpains.....igbos e te ti sile ki e la eti yin............pdp,apga,t.orji,peter obi,fani kayode,asari dokubo,insincer nigerian,phockphockman et al including the newly nairaland TAN members who have just join nl to force jona daft gospel throuhh our throats...all these people have no interest in you...they are only manipulating you along ethnic line for srlf gain...drop the garment of hate and move on......liberate yourself.....ndigbo is tired of bad govt and ethnic jingoist.......liberate yourself

That's why I don't like free education, the type Okorocha is deceiving Imo people with. I just quoted a beneficiary of half hearted free education from Awolowo.
So unfortunate.

Rubbish talk.

Nonybb: Igbokwe is only working to earn his living from Lagos Coffer pilfered by the gang of Asiwaju's kleptomanaics. This write-up was not bore out of sheer patrotism but a partisan mined fellow working assiduously to safisfy his pay masters. We all know how corrupt and reprobate this people could be. He was a sell-out to the outside and used aptly to ridicule the collective sensibilities of Igbo Nation

Forget who he is working for or not and deal with the content of his message, igbos should really stop playing this victim mentality, the civil war ended more than forty years ago, move on folks, some of obasanjo harshest critics were from the south west, so was buhari when he was military head of state, you would hardly find the people of ghee south east doing same, one igbo man does not represent the whole tribe, stop defending them just because, the people you defend so much don't even care about you. Lastly it would do you all no good politicaly

Vote GEJ 2015.

The Op is right ... Simply put nigerians judgement is always n will continue to be clouded with ethnical n tribalistic interest hence we can't ever be one nigeria as preached by some. Left to me how I wish we disintegrate peacefully. So help us God

Mr Joe Igbokwe,so this is the only problem you feel the Igbo nation has in relation to Nigerian politics? Now let me ask u....when Senator Adolphus Wabara was shamefully demoted from d post of the senate president after a financial scandal that rubbished his political career,how many of ur 'leave wabara alone did u hear?'. When Prof Maurice Iwu wz relieved of his duty as the INEC chairman,after conducting elections acclaimed as the worst in terms of freeness and fairness,though he was doing the bidding of his then "oga at the top",did the Imo state government of dt time hold a feast in his honour?? When Mr Festus Odumegwu was rubbished in both the Nigerian Breweries and the Population Commisssion for making some startling revelations with regard to population figure falsification by a particular ethnicity in Nigeria,did the PDP of Imo state give him automatic ticket for the gubernatorial race? Pls Mr Joe,do not try to affect a particular stance just to score cheap political points. Our Igbo elders are not fools;so,when they take a stand on something that has to do with the politics of Nigeria,get ur facts right before u resort to †̥ђis kind of cheap analysis and assertions. Remain blessed.