Igbo group labels South-east govs saboteurs
From FRANCIS AWOWOLE-BROWNE, Abuja
Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Agitation for the South-east to produce the Speaker of the House of Representatives took a new turn yesterday when an Igbo socio political organisation, the South-east Revival Group, described the governors and representatives from the zone as prodigal for consenting to the retention of the present zoning arrangement of the principal officers of the National Assembly.

The governors were said to have concurred with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leadership at an enlarged national caucus meeting on the need to retain the current zoning formula where the North-central and South-west will still produce the Senate president and House of Representatives speaker respectively.
However, South-east Revival Group came hard on the governors of the South-east over their perceived indifferent attitude to the demand for the speakership for the zone, describing them as betrayers and saboteurs who were only interested in their pockets to the detriment of the collective Igbo interest.

Addressing newsmen yesterday, the Coordinator General of the group, who is also the Secretary General of Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP), Chief Willy Ezugwu, lambasted the governors and the representatives from the South-east for accepting for the zone to be relegated again in the allocation of offices in the next dispensation.
Said he: Representatives from South-east are saboteurs, the governors are betrayers, see the way they have all lined up in Ota to negotiate for themselves and not for the zone. We are not surprised, they are not popular and were not really elected by the people. 

“It is regrettable that the governors, Ohanaeze, Aka Ikenga, Ndigbo Lagos, Igbo Professionals and other interest groups prevailed on Ndigbo to vote massively for President Goodluck Jonathan only for them to be planning to relegate the same zone to the status of a super minority.
“The South-east Revival Group appeals to these groups and bodies in the zone to oppose the position of secretary to the government of the federation (SGF) being foisted on us.”

As we speak, the South-east people have not even be consulted to make inputs in the choice of who will fill the touted position of SGF, this further increase our suspicion that the ploy is to shortchange the zone.”
Ezugwu lamented that President Jonathan did not value the votes given him by the South-east voters.
According to him, the Igbo did not extract any undertaking from the president as a condition for giving him their votes because of the trust they have in him.

“The South-east have been loyal to the PDP, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo foisted Yar’Adua on us in 2007, we never complained, later it was doctrine of necessity to bring in Jonathan; we agreed. Again, they said it was Jonathan for 2011; we followed them. Now it’s our turn to be given our due, they have started singing a new tune. It will be the greatest injustice to send the speakership position back to the South-west.

“It is a historical fact that the South-east played and still plays pivotal role in the fortunes of the PDP. For the avoidance of doubt, in the most recent instance, President Goodluck Jonathan had his best outing in the just concluded elections in the South-east. The zone pulled the highest number of votes comparable only to Lagos, Kano and Kaduna. If the present zoning arrangement stays, the South-east will be reduced to nothingness as it will only leave the South-east with deputy Senate president and SGF, two offices that do not have enough clout in government.”

This is only the beginning of the backlash that the efulefu will see in Igboland.

There is no way they can justify anything to us.

EzeUche_:

This is only the beginning of the backlash that that the efulefu will see in Igboland.

There is no way they can justify anything to us.