I make this note strictly in response to my brother Kelechi Eme's post on his wall alleging bandwagon driven condemnation of the repeated "deportation" of some Nigerians from Lagos State to Anambra State. What caught my interest was his opening lines which I wish to repeat in his words:

"I hate joining the bandwagon without interrogating issues. I have read so many things about the reported "deportation" of Nigerians into Anambra state. I decided to hold my peace until I hear the other side. Now this is what Senator Ngige wrote to Aka Ijenga:"-Kelechi Jeff Eme

My primary issue with that opening paragraph is that it suggests that whatever Ngige said is to be believed without further review and Ngige is more credible than Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State who wrote a formal petition to the President on this unhealthy development.

Ordinarily I would have preferred to avoid a public review of Senator Ngige's stance, utterances, actions and inactions because of a personal reason.

Two days after this story broke online, I made a post at Igboville (a closed Igbo group) demanding that Senator Ngige speak up on this issue. My call was premised principally on the fact that the Fashola led Lagos State Government is of ACN and Senator Ngige is the only Igbo/Anambra State born Senator of CAN. For all intents and purposes, he is also the most high profile Igbo man in that party. One will therefore expect that with his high profile presence and contributions to the party he should have a say one way or another when an issue like this is to be decided. After all, we are being wooed to vote ACN because "our son Ngige" whom we love is a member.

Whenever ACN leaders show up in the East, they showcase Ngige as one of us who is one of them.

From what I now know, I wasn't the only person who wanted Ngige to speak up. An Igbo group, Aka Ikenga, must have been thinking in same direction, independently, and also requested Ngige to speak up. The message posted by Kelechi represents Ngige's response to Aka Ikenga and possibly also to lesser mortals like me. Since the Senator's response is now very public, I hope I to also review it publicly.

I will try and restrict myself to the content of Ngige's response vis-à-vis Fashola's defence and Governor Obi's petition. This is not an enquiry on the character of Ngige or the number of legislation he sponsored as a senator. It is not even a journey into his pattern of voting at the national assembly, to determine how many votes he has cast in support of any Igbo/Anambra issue vis-à-vis the votes he has cast in support of ACN positions and agenda. Let those who voted him as Senator carry out such reviews as expected. As far as I am concerned, it also matters little that he has ambition to govern Anambra (not Lagos State) from next year. Anambra people decided in 2010 that Peter Obi was more credible than Chris Ngige and voted to reflect that. If they decide in November that among the current aspirants that includes the number one son of Igboland, Chukwuma Soludo, he is the best for them, I won't argue.

Permit me to itemize my review of the situation to enable us see things in "high definition".

1. Every Nigerian has a constitutionally guaranteed right to live anywhere in Federal Nigeria. It doesn't matter if he is well, sick, destitute, poor or mad.

2. States, including Lagos state, receive revenue from the Federal Government purse on the basis of how many Nigerians that live in their state. Not on the basis of how many Nigerians are from their state. I know for a fact that during the last census exercise Lagos state Government mounted a serious media campaign tinged with blackmail to demand that non-indigenes, especially Ndigbo, do not leave for their state of origin to be counted. They were even threatened with loss of properties and social services if they travel to their states to be counted. No exception was made for "destitute, street traders, beggars etc". I challenge anyone here or in Lagos state government to come out openly and state that Lagos state government asked destitute etc to return to their "families" or "state of origin" then. Let me also know if Obi and other SE governors received letters then from Fashola to come and retrieve their "destitute" to be counted in the east.

3. To date, NPC and the federal government blatantly refused to include state of origin in the census data form. The excuse continues to be that any Nigerian based anywhere in Nigeria should/will receive equal and non-discriminatory treatment with others. Our policy makers believe that an Anambra man in Sokoto will receive social services from Sokoto as long as he is a Nigerian citizen. But from the feelers emerging from Lagos, we were all living in deceit. If an Igbo man dies in Lagos, Fashola will deport his dead body to the east for burial to free up space at the cemetery for "real Lagosians" to be buried. (This should be an eye opener for those ala wu otu Igbos who will happily tell you "I am omo eko, though my parents said they are from Anambra". If you are declared destitute by Fashola, you will be deported to your parent's state. And if you die in Lagos, your dead body will return. Ntooooo!)

4. The huge money allocated to Lagos state from the Federal purse on the basis of population assume that the state have more people (including "destitute, beggars, mad people etc" to take care of. I challenge Lagos state government to dispute this fact. After all, apart from it's high population, Lagos won't have any basis to receive more revenue than Anambra or Kaduna. The other allocation sub-heads like VAT and derivation are strictly on the basis of "earn as you contribute". Lagos does not produce one liter of crude oil as at today. Forget the politics of "newly discovered oil in Lagos". It sounds same as newly discovered oil in "Sokoto and Lake Chad basin". All na voice mail to our GDP as at today.

5. I am not aware of destitutes of Ogun, Ondo, Oyo and Osun origin that were "deported" back to their "families and state of origin". Are we now saying that those states don't have "beggars, destitute and rehabilitated citizens" in Lagos? Praise the Lord if so. But like Obasanjo said, I dey laff oooooooooooooooo.

6. We were told that among the 67 deportees only 14 were from Anambra State. At least Senator Ngige said so. If that is true, permit me to ask, what is the basis of dumping all 67 in Anambra? Is that where their families are? Or is Anambra now the capital of Igbo land? Isn't the message clearly that of "they are your people, take care of them"? Doesn't that sound like ethnic cleansing to my brother Kelechi and our erudite Senator Ngige? So Fashola wrote Obi and told him he was sending all "Igbo destitute" from Imo, Anambra, Abia, Ebonyi and Enugu to him to take care since they have blood relationship with him? Or don't those states have governors that can be written or even compelled to receive their deportees? Am I the only one reading tribal sentiments into this whole rubbish? And yet Onwa Chris Ngige saw nothing wrong? Odikwa egwu o.

7. We all know that the first deportation happened in September. Do we have records of those affected being happily reunited with their families for "further rehabilitation" as stated by Onwa Ngige and Fashola? Who will give account of their whereabouts? Some of my people are already suspecting they were among the bodies that floated out of Ezu River. Who will should we ask? Fashola, Ngige or their phantom families? Unu nakwa echeki o!

8. Senator Ngige told Aka Ikenga members that "the Lagos State Governor disclosed that contrary to claims, the issue in question has nothing to do with deportation, but a Social Welfare Intervention, involving several homeless destitutes and other psychiatric cases roaming the streets and some living under the bridges in Lagos. These people were taken in and treated and cared for by the Lagos State Government free of charge and thereafter needed to be reintegrated with their families. After this rehabilitation the affected people disclosed their true identities and the disclosure revealed that 14 of them were from Anambra State. For the purpose of reintegration with their kith and kin back home( most of them had nobody in Lagos) and for further social support and care".

The Lagos state commisoner of Police whose men carried out this ilegal deportation and deposited the victims at Onitsha head bridge by 3am in the morning also corroborated the official lines when he said that the state govt “revived and reformed them, they indicated their interest of going back to their home town to be resettled. That was what happened. There was not any deportation.”

9. My question is to ask who are the family members that received the reformed people? Is Onitsha head bridge anyone's home town? Has Senator Ngige performed his duty of care to his people by simply identifying and visiting the deportees to check their state of health and welfare? What "further social support and care" did Senator Ngige provide for his people?

Why was it convinient for Ngige to accept what he was told by the govt of Lagos state without further verification even when his state governor is complaining about the implication of the actions? Does he see himself as Senator representing Lagos or Anambra?

10. What if Anambra decides to retaliate, as is being rumored? Will anyone remember that Lagos provoked the retaliation? Will any South West senator defend Anambra's right to deport "homeless destitute and psychiatric patients" from Lagos and the South West and dumping them at Lagos toll gate in the middle of the night? Will it be accepted by same people defending Fashola?

11. Who amongst us here will defend UK's right to deport all Nigerians who have no job or home in UK? If you won't defend it, why are you defending the rubbish from Lagos?

12. I personally do not live in my state of origin. I pay taxes, including personal income tax, to the govt of my host state. If I become a "destitute" tomorrow, will it be right for me to be deported and made the burden of my home state that I have never paid kobo to in taxes? Or will my current host state refund all the taxes I paid to them to my home state? Better still, will I be wrong to now channel my personal income tax to my home state knowing that in Fashola/Ngige's Nigeria I belong to my state of origin who have primary responsibilities for my welfare?

13. When I demanded for a response from Ngige, I expected a political response from him knowing that the actions of Lagos State placed him in a bad position and made his continued membership of ACN and it's successor party unreasonable. In his shoes, I will probably grant an interview to say "I condemn the deportation, if true, please give me time to verify what happened" That "time" might take months to allow tempers simmer. Defending a policy that not only hurts his constituents but also sets a terrible precedence that undermines their future welfare is irrational and indefensible. I repeat again, no South West Senator will defend a reciprocal policy from the PDP govt of Enugu or Ebonyi state.

14. Just imagine for a moment that Rochas decides that beggars in Owerri should be sent back to their families for "further social care". From what I know, more than 80% of those at Ama Awusa in Owerri will have to be dumped at Kaduna. Will any northern senator defend that policy? Will any of my friends on this wall defend it? Answer for yourself please.

15. Are beggars and destitute not protected by our laws? Are they second class citizens subject to different laws? Who exactly made them destitute? Whose job is it to provide shelter for our citizens "living under the bridge"? The money Fashola collected monthly in the name of those he now refers to as "destitute and homeless citizen" from our federal allocation committee where is it? Can he and his wealthy supporters tell us how much of Lagos astonishing wealth has been used to improve the lot of the poor? Is it not unemployment arising from the wickedness of people in power that is turning Nigerians to "destitute and psychiatric" cases? After all prominent citizens of same Lagos who are wealthy drug users are not psychiatric cases. Should I name them?

16. How did Ngige arrive at his "25% of Lagos population are Igbo"? Did he carry out any census with state of origin data collected? Given that Lagos state government previously said that more than 45% of the landed properties in Lagos belongs to people of South East origin, were those properties acquired through destitution? And even if for the sake of argument we accept only 45% of the properties in Lagos belong to Igbos, does that not suggest that Igbo population in Lagos is more than 25% of the population? UNPFA have a formular for using houses to measure population. I suggest Ngige reviews that before throwing population figures about.

17. Let us note that this is a repeat action by Lagos state govt. Same pattern, same target.

Ethnic cleansing according to the UN is "the process or policy of eliminating unwanted ethnic or religious groups by deportation, forcible displacement, mass murder, or by threats of such acts, with the intent of creating a territory inhabited by people of a homogeneous or pure ethnicity, religion, culture, and history".

It usually starts with testing the waters with "homeless destitute and other psychiatric cases roaming the streets and some living under the bridges". At least Hitler started that way and we all know how it ended. Usually, the initiating regimes are "popular" governments backed by a supporting or silent elites.

Are we on the road to Siberia? My brother Kelechi is a great student of history and must know about the 1942 expulsion of Polish and Jewish population from Nazi Germany. It started like this. The elites in Germany clapped and defended the policy because of political interests or a feeling of "it doesn't concern me".

No wonder a famous German pastor, Martin Niemöller (1892–1984) wrote these lines:

"First they came for the communists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a communist.

Then they came for the socialists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a socialist.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a trade unionist.

Then they came for me,
and there was no one left to speak for me."

As you defend this seemingly innocuous policy think of Germany and the above lines.

A bundle of convincing points made by the critic.

It is very easy to set a dry field ablaze and thats what people like Obi do very well.
This is the same 1diot who campaigned by alleging that the Pope endorsed him.

Anytime he is found wanting outside Igbo land, he resorts to tribalism.
This is the same thing he did when El-Rufai gave a damning assessment of his administration.

Obi has taken Anambra aback 20yrs.
@Oliandre, Have u been to Anambra of late ?
Compare Anambra to all its neighboring states.(Enugu, Imo and Delta) Anambra is the worst in terms of development.

That wasn't the case when Ngige was governor.
Obi on record to be the longest serving Goveror in Anambra atate (And this includes the Old Anambra State)
What legacy has this guy going to leave behind ?
How many Anambrains/ Igbos (including yourself) have bothered to call the guy to book.

All of a sudden 14 lunatics sent to Anambra is now your biggest problem.

If Anambrains are fools (which I strongly think they are)
Let them be deceived to vote once more on Tribal or Catholic lines
The concequences are there for everyone to see

Oliandre:
5. I am not aware of destitutes of Ogun, Ondo, Oyo and Osun origin that were "deported" back to their "families and state of origin". Are we now saying that those states don't have "beggars, destitute and rehabilitated citizens" in Lagos? Praise the Lord if so. But like Obasanjo said, I dey laff oooooooooooooooo.

There you are wrong again, beggars have been deported to almost all SW states.
You see how easily you have been deceived ?

@ bushwailo
Am not talking about the governors ineptitude here, am talking about the point the writer ( john ) made. My own inquiry is what is this Nigeria that our fathers fought to keep one? The plan of one Nigeria seems loaded with promise. I personally love the idea of a vast and energetic multi- tribal nation interfusing all the zones in our nation. I feel. Nigerians outght to have the right to exist in any fraction of the country inrrespective of their condition.

wow!!! nice read. Any rejoinder from the west?

Nobody has right to deport a bagger. In fact, state governments in Nigeria have no jurisdiction in deportation process talk less of deporting a citizen of Nigeria. State government may deny employment based on state of origin but has no right to relocate a bagger from one state of the federation to another.

The action of Lagos State government led Babatunde Fashola has no constitutional ground to deport baggers and is humanitarianly irresponsible.

States, including Lagos state, receive revenue from the Federal Government purse on the basis of how many Nigerians that live in their state. Not on the basis of how many Nigerians are from their state. I know for a fact that during the last census exercise Lagos state Government mounted a serious media campaign tinged with blackmail to demand that non-indigenes, especially Ndigbo, do not leave for their state of origin to be counted. They were even threatened with loss of properties and social services if they travel to their states to be counted. No exception was made for "destitute, street traders, beggars etc". I challenge anyone here or in Lagos state government to come out openly and state that Lagos state government asked destitute etc to return to their "families" or "state of origin" then. Let me also know if Obi and other SE governors received letters then from Fashola to come and retrieve their "destitute" to be counted in the east.

We were told that among the 67 deportees only 14 were from Anambra State. At least Senator Ngige said so. If that is true, permit me to ask, what is the basis of dumping all 67 in Anambra? Is that where their families are? Or is Anambra now the capital of Igbo land? Isn't the message clearly that of "they are your people, take care of them"? Doesn't that sound like ethnic cleansing to my brother Kelechi and our erudite Senator Ngige? So Fashola wrote Obi and told him he was sending all "Igbo destitute" from Imo, Anambra, Abia, Ebonyi and Enugu to him to take care since they have blood relationship with him? Or don't those states have governors that can be written or even compelled to receive their deportees? Am I the only one reading tribal sentiments into this whole rubbish? And yet Onwa Chris Ngige saw nothing wrong? Odikwa egwu o.

A simple apology can end all these but everyone is allowing ego and sentiments create more cracks in our relationships.

Nonsensical article! Poor and un-researched! Was it not the ibos that were happiest when Northerners were taken back to the north? Same thing when Yorubas were re-integrated back with their families? Is that thread not on NL because it is! Well, here is the simple 123: Lagos has laws that do not respect people, even it's own people for those laws were made by the generality of the people! If you don't obey our laws, you will be punished even if you were just roaming the streets without anything to do! It might not be a crime to be a beggar, but we need to increase the quality of our environment, orderliness and so you have to be removed back to where you came from! Now if the people in this case think its because of their tribe, my question is why hasn't everyone in your tribe been removed? If we wanted you to leave we will announce it, Ghana must go anyone??

If Ngige will bring Anambra to a Lagos and SW progressive state that makes you troop there in millions and you reject him at the polls, why should the progressive people in Lagos or the SW care? Who will suffer? It is obvious that one of the reasons people will not go to a part of the world is economic and racism/tribalism!

Russia is one of the most racist countries in the world, most people will probably move to the US where you will more likely not be attacked by skinheads in the bus in broad daylight. Tribalism and racism are the same concepts, the Russia of Nigeria, east of Europe is Iboland, also East and most non-SE people would rather move to the SW or even north.

PHIPEX:





A simple apology can end all these but everyone is allowing ego and sentiments create more cracks in our relationships.

No relationship for a disrespectful guest. If you cannot live by our laws and leadership that we trust, please go quickly and never come back!

CyberG:

No relationship for a disrespectful guest. If you cannot live by our laws and leadership that we trust, please go quickly and never come back!

So you mean to tell me that the laws of a state supersedes the laws of the federal republic of Nigeria?

CyberG:

No relationship for a disrespectful guest. If you cannot live by our laws and leadership that we trust, please go quickly and never come back!

If you followed my comments you will realsie that my major issue is the manner they were dumped but you are still talking on sentiments because fashola is yet to tell us the laws that were broken by those kidnapped and dumped like waste products. Even if they broke a law what are the modalities in place for punishing law breakers? Mind you, every law in the country must be subject to the constitution so I don't think that should be an issue. Let's all find a solution to the deed already done rather than playing these blame games.

Igbo are playing with fire.

Inciting the Yoruba will not end well.

The Senator; Chris Ngige is representing his pocket.

Oil soup people dey look for trouble you people will receive it soon

CyberG: Nonsensical article! Poor and un-researched! Was it not the ibos that were happiest when Northerners were taken back to the north? Same thing when Yorubas were re-integrated back with their families? Is that thread not on NL because it is! Well, here is the simple 123: Lagos has laws that do not respect people, even it's own people for those laws were made by the generality of the people! If you don't obey our laws, you will be punished even if you were just roaming the streets without anything to do! It might not be a crime to be a beggar, but we need to increase the quality of our environment, orderliness and so you have to be removed back to where you came from! Now if the people in this case think its because of their tribe, my question is why hasn't everyone in your tribe been removed? If we wanted you to leave we will announce it, Ghana must go anyone??

If Ngige will bring Anambra to a Lagos and SW progressive state that makes you troop there in millions and you reject him at the polls, why should the progressive people in Lagos or the SW care? Who will suffer? It is obvious that one of the reasons people will not go to a part of the world is economic and racism/tribalism!

Russia is one of the most racist countries in the world, most people will probably move to the US where you will more likely not be attacked by skinheads in the bus in broad daylight. Tribalism and racism are the same concepts, the Russia of Nigeria, east of Europe is Iboland, also East and most non-SE people would rather move to the SW or even north.

Very true. They keep preaching hate and division (Biafra) and expect to get special treatment on top of that.

They need to learn that everyone is equal in Nigeria, if you don't follow the law, you will be punished. If you are Igbo, Yoruba, Ijaw, Hausa, etc, doesn't matter. The SW has been moving forward, while the east has been stagnating, and the north has been going in reverse. If they think ACN will be bad for them, that is there own problem.

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." - Albert Einstein

Keep voting PDP and you will keep getting mediocre development and tribal politics!

bobthebuilder99: Igbo are playing with fire.

Inciting the Yoruba will not end well.

I would rather you respond to the claims/allegations/points raised by the writer than making careless statements.
To tell you the truth, Ndigbo are not afraid of you. The worst you can do is seize the over 45% properties of Ndigbo in Lagos, we have been there before and we shall still rise from the dead like we did after the war. Dont let jealousy rule your life, dont covet your neighbours properties the Bible commands against it.

themaskedman: I would rather you respond to the claims/allegations/points raised by the writer than making careless statements.
To tell you the truth, Ndigbo are not afraid of you. The worst you can do is seize the over 45% properties of Ndigbo in Lagos, we have been there before and we shall still rise from the dead like we did after the war. Dont let jealousy rule your life, dont covet your neighbours properties the Bible commands against it.

The fact that you honestly think you are 45% of the population is part of the problem. You come into someone else's house, claim that you built it, and then say the owner is jealous of the nice house you built. How crazy does that sound?

Ngige is serving himself, funny enof none of u people saw it till now. And I heard someone talk in anoda thread that they want him to win Anambra. Ngige will lose his state, the only way he wins is if the election is not free and fair.

bushwailo: It is very easy to set a dry field ablaze and thats what people like Obi do very well.
This is the same 1diot who campaigned by alleging that the Pope endorsed him.

Anytime he is found wanting outside Igbo land, he resorts to tribalism.
This is the same thing he did when El-Rufai gave a damning assessment of his administration.

Obi has taken Anambra aback 20yrs.
@Oliandre, Have u been to Anambra of late ?
Compare Anambra to all its neighboring states.(Enugu, Imo and Delta) Anambra is the worst in terms of development.

That wasn't the case when Ngige was governor.
Obi on record to be the longest serving Goveror in Anambra atate (And this includes the Old Anambra State)
What legacy has this guy going to leave behind ?
How many Anambrains/ Igbos (including yourself) have bothered to call the guy to book.

All of a sudden 14 lunatics sent to Anambra is now your biggest problem.

If Anambrains are fools (which I strongly think they are)
Let them be deceived to vote once more on Tribal or Catholic lines
The concequences are there for everyone to see

TAA!!! KPUCHIA ONU GI....
This is the period in the history of Anambra, we are witnessing rapid development, new businesses, real estate, commercial building mostly private sector driven, not to talk of public administration courtesy of Peter Obi. The influx of businesses in Awka is like never before with the increase in population, indigenious contractors are the ones that handle greater percent of the contracts in the state, this the reason why money is readily available for our people to carry on this ever-increasing development in Anambra.
O KWA N'AWKA IKA ANYI NO??

Unfortunately, Ngige represents my senatorial zone in the Senate. I can't tell you how much that pisses me off.

if you all (ibos) feel aggrieved about the matter, you can all seek redress at a law court and lets see who will win the case instead of nagging around the whole of NL

bennyraz: if you all (ibos) feel aggrieved about the matter, you can all seek redress at a law court and lets see who will win the case instead of nagging around the whole of NL

funny u thought that would work in a country like naija

Ibos,,,,,
Stop shouting online....

DO YOUR WORST....

I DON'T CARE IF YOU ELECT NGIGE OR A GOAT AS YOUR NEXT GOVERNOR...

very legitimate question

who is Ngige representing at the Senate?

drnoel:
funny u thought that would work in a country like naija

my friend.. it would work! they should try and let us see the outcome