The Ohanaeze Youth Wing, the youth arm of the
foremost socio-political body in Igboland,
Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has said it is not happy with
President Goodluck Jonathan and all Igbo
working with him.
The youth wing, made up of all youth
organisations in the South-East, accused
Jonathan of failing to fulfil numerous promises
he made to the Igbo in the build up to the 2011
presidential election, which they said prompted
Ndigbo to give him about 98 per cent of their
votes in the polls.
The OYW made its feelings known in a
communiqué it issued after an emergency
meeting on the 2015 elections in Enugu.
The communiqué, a copy of which was made
available to our correspondent on Tuesday in
Enugu, was captioned, “A stitch in time saves
nine.”
In the communiqué, jointly signed by Mazi Arthur
Obiora and Obinna Adibe, deputy national
president and national publicity secretary
respectively, the Ohanaeze youths warned that it
would seek an “alternative” if Jonathan did not
address outstanding issues in his relationship
with the Igbo.
It expressed anger at the President’s failure to
keep his promise of revamping the coal industry
in Enugu as well as constructing the Second
Niger Bridge through a public/private partnership
arrangement.
The Igbo youths noted that Jonathan had no
intention of completing the bridge by 2019
“assuming he is re-elected this year” since the
completion period has been extended by 48
months (four years).
The communiqué partly read, “The Ohanaeze
Ndigbo Youth Wing (Ohanaeze Youth Council)
wishes to express her displeasure with President
Goodluck Jonathan; the Secretary to the
Government of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim,
who was nominated by Ohanaeze into the office
and all Igbo working with Mr. President on the
shabby and insincere way he has handled issues
affecting Ndigbo.
“In 2011, it was our structures that were
mobilised to ensure that he scored 98 per cent of
South-East votes and also got substantial votes
in other parts of Nigeria.
“Yet, our genuine demands, including the
revitalisation of the Enugu Colliery/ construction
of a coal fired power plant, construction of the
Azumini seaport, acceleration of the dredging/
expansion of the Port Harcourt and Calabar
seaports, the exploration of the oil deposits of
the Orashi and Anambra River Basins, etc have
been ignored.
“After having audience with youths from other
parts of the country who did less for him, Mr.
President snubbed Igbo youths despite several
efforts to reach him, preferring rather to hobnob
with some Igbo elders, most of who may never
appear at the polling station on the D-Day!
“The issue of ravaging unemployment which has
hung most dangerously on Igbo youths has not
been addressed till date, yet hundreds of billions
of naira has been spent to empower Ijaw youths
through the amnesty programme and other
Federal Government jobs and initiatives.
“What have Igbo youths done wrong to be so
neglected?”
It added, “The Akanu Ibiam International airport,
Enugu, the only significant project the President
executed in the South-East after over five years
is only international in name, not in practice
since it is yet to get to international standards in
terms of runway length and other critical
infrastructure.
“Hence, major international airlines in the world
have shunned it.
“The Second Niger Bridge has become enmeshed
in controversy – it is the only Federal
Government bridge that will have a toll gate,
whereas President Obasanjo kindly abolished toll
gates about 10 years ago.
“So far, only N10bn, i.e. 7.6 per cent of the total
contract sum of N130bn, has been purportedly
released.
“Also, the cost of the bridge has increased by
over 300 per cent while the completion date has
been shifted from 18 months to 48 months (four
years)!
“This implies that he does not even intend
completing the bridge by 2019, when he will be
leaving office, assuming he is re-elected this
year.”
The body also said it was angered by the
Federal Government’s refusal to include Igbo
youths in the amnesty programme. www.punchng.com/news/were-not-happy-with-president-igbo-youths/

All I see today is young Nigerians arguing without facts, disconnected from the nations history, having NO knowledge of the past, with defeated hope of the future. No ability to construct proper synonyms, but making analysis based on absence of adequate knowledge. The Egyptians knew what they wanted and held the nation to ransom, also in Hong Kong, cos they had adequate information on the issues at hand. But at the moment, we don't have an intelligent society. We don't read yet we proffer solutions. How can you proffer solutions to something you know nothing about. Wake up Nigerians from your slumber. We only make analysis based on what another says, we lack information, brain power, we posses knowledge gap, yet we make analysis. How sad. Someone who knows nothing about nothing demands change. What is change if I may ask? We really don't have an idea. Change doesn't always mean a positive upward movement, it can also mean a downward trend, backward motion. And before you ask for it, you analyse situations on ground, in the past, with facts and figures and not just sentiments, and then you try to (based on this terms) predict the future. Now if the future shows a decline with the progress from the past and a detach from the present, then you have all full rights to demand change. But when you have no information about nothing but drawn from social media, TV screens, newspapers ad we keep shouting change, then we might be riding on the winds which is without substance and is therefor a journey to no where. Lots of people who are guilty of cheating in schools want change, people who jump queues want change, people who cannot keep to a route on the road but shunt want change, people who are guilty of forging results want change, people who chat on their girl/boy friends want want change, adulterers want change, people guilty of murders and extortion, corruption and oppression want change and the list goes on. Nobody want to change personally to effect the change but we build hypocritical structures that cannot stand the test of time. Its time Nigerians wake up and put in proper perspective where we need to be. Its time for Nigerians to stop looking at TV screens and start using mirrors (TV screens shows others, mirrors show you. Its time for Nigerians to start developing leaders who have a history of making upward strides at the grass roots, touching lives at the base levels. Its time for Nigerians to understand that a downward trend people cannot choose an upward leader, they will choose for themselves a downward trend leaders. Its time for Nigerians to build a lifestyle of integrity. Before you ask for change, change yourself first. Make changes in that little space around you (I mean upward trend changes). We also have to realize that the Presidential seat is not solely responsible for the happenings in the country, that is why he deepens his rule through the governors, Local Government chairmen and Councillors. We also have representatives of the people like the Legislature (in our case the House of Representatives and the Senate). Its time to get really knowledgeable about these things. There is so much to know. Don't stop at knowing until you are sure you really know. What we need in Nigeria is not a partisan change but a structural change; we need a vision, a dream, a plan, a road map and we drive in the direction of that plan. Its not a war to kill people, but a war to kill our wrong mentalities. We have been slaves to our past and therefore have related with our future with the same mindset. Its time we begin to think properly and build a Nigeria that will stand the test of time through generations. Our children will not forgive us if we don't succeed in doing this. This is the time for a revolution, but not partisan (because the person who you are supporting in the APC may soon decamp to PDP and vice versa, so what becomes of you?). Please if you believe in this, then pass this around, lets create an awakening, a revolution, not partisan but a dream, instilled in every Nigeria. We have today the American dream, we can have the Nigerian Dream too. We don't have to begin to individually tackle all areas of the Nation like education, agriculture, research, and the likes,no, a Dream can take us there. A Dream is a holistic picture of the future which once imbibed, direction becomes an easy decision to make. Its not GMB thing or GEJ thing, it is a Nigeria thing, It is called the Nigerian Dream. Politicians only succeed in manipulating you to think like them therefore getting what they have longed for, but we can go beyond them and build a Nigeria that works regardless of what party is in power. I SALUTE THE NIGERIAN NATION, I SALUTE THE NIGERIAN DREAM. PLEASE PASS THIS ON, ITS TIME TO BE PROUD OF YOUR COUNTRY NIGERIA.

@OYM, we are with you. Leave those Abuja throttling elders who are right now having their share of the 21billion naira telling us they endorse that clueless one. Good one