₦airaland Forum

@ChinenyeN:In your over 2,000 posts, have you at any time advocated for Igbo unity. All your post is who hates Ngwa, why Ngwa is different, why we should not co exist with our other Igbo groups.
For christ sake, please stop it. It is not in me to insult Igbo people whom I so much adore and cherish.

Dwain Chambers, British athlete tried it with Rugby and it did not work out.

Odirionyenfe--Who has got an easy world.

Foremost secondary schools in Etiti (Ihitte/Uboma/Obowu).
Community secondary school Onicha Uboma.
Community secondary school Ikenanzizi
Uboma secondary school Ikperejere
Imo state senior science school, Madonna, Etiti.
Others are:
Nwaeruru Mbakwe comprehensive secondary school, Umuihi.
Amainyi high school.
Community secondary school Amainyinta.
Technical college Umuezegwu.
Madonna Boys high school, Amuzu, Amakohia.
Okenanlogho secondary school.
Avutu secondary school.
Umuariam community secondary school.
Acharanaogene community secondary school.
Ehunachi community secondary school.
Amanze community secondary school.
Okwuohia community secondary school.
Anita commercial secondary school.
Anglican convent secondary school, Umuariam.
Sainta Maria commercial secondary school.
ETC.

asha 80:
I thought i was the only person that found that nonsensical.awka north,awka south,nnewi north nnewi south nonsense that arose from money from centre and chop chop mentality of lgas.

There isnothing nonsensical about it.  How about Ibadan north, Ibadan south west, Ibadan south East, Ibadan north west, Ibadan north east.
The most important thing here is that those places maintained the parent name.
Unlike our own Etiti, instead of Etiti North and south, you have Ihitte-Uboma and Obowu. You know Obowu would have been Etiti South but last minute they opted for Obowu LGA.
Yet in Owerri, they have Owerri Urban , Owerri South and East. They did not go for Emekuku, Uratta etc. That Owerri identity was not lost.

german007:
Spot on. We all do, My Middle Name is a Yoruba Name, Surname is also a Yoruba Surname.

Another tribe that fascinates me are the Kwale's of Delta state, Theire names are Igbo names, but a lot of them can't speak Igbo, a few understand though.

What they speak in Kwale is Igbo of Ukwuani dialect. In Igboland, there are different variation of dialects and Ukwuani is one of them.

Middle belt is the melting point of Nigerian cultures.

Congrats prof Isaac Adewole.
Congrants to other contestants.
Now all hands must be on deck to restore the glory glory years of University of Ibadan.

UI: New VC, fresh expectations
MONDAY, 06 SEPTEMBER 2010 00:00 BY SUNDAY SAANU OPINION - COLUMNISTS


IN Nigeria, appointment of Vice-Chancellor, particularly in publicly owned universities is always as tempestuous as it is contentious, often, leading the parties involved to the court of law. Indeed, the process of a VC’s appointment could be described as a tug of war. Many universities in the country are still nursing the wounds incurred in an attempt to appoint a right candidate to lead. Contrary to this scenario, however, University of Ibadan (UI) in what appears to be living up to its ‘the first and the best’ sobriquet peacefully appointed its 13th Vice-Chancellor after “a rigorous, sober and painstaking exercise that lasted about seven months”.
At as Thursday September 2 when the Pro-chancellor and Chairman of Council, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN) addressed a press conference, attended by all council members, the out-going VC, Prof. Olufemi Bamiro and the Secretary to Council, Mrs Omotayo Ikotun, none of the 10 contestants who conceded victory to the winner threatened to go to court, neither did anyone protest. This is definitely, a sharp contrast to what is obtainable elsewhere. Deservedly, Council Chairman, soft spoken Olanipekun and all Council Members, as well as all the 10 contestants and their supporters should indeed be praised for their maturity and political tolerance in the overall interest of the University.
But then, who is this lucky winner? He is a renowned Obstetrician and Gynecologist. A former Provost of College of Medicine, and an erudite scholar of note, Prof. Isaac Folorunso Adewole. He will be taking over from the out-going VC whose glorious tenure ends November 30, 2010. Born on May 5, 1954, Prof Adewole, as the new UI VC; will be stepping in on December 1 with fresh ideas that are expected to, not only sustain the current transformation on campus but take UI to greater heights. Before he unfolds his own agenda, however, there are certainly, some challenges the handsome new VC must confront.
One of the challenges Prof. Adewole must quickly and genuinely overcome is the management of pre-appointment political bickering. No leader in history has ever emerged without some people feeling embittered and threatened. Now that he has emerged victorious, he must be magnanimous in victory by forgiving those who may have hurt him. He has no business becoming vindictive; rather, he should be strategizing towards success. Besides, he needs to extend his hand of fellowship to all his co-contestants. Prof. Adewole, surely, should be able to borrow some of the good ideas of his co-contestants for all the other candidates possess good ideas that can assist his administration.
On the other hand, those who conceded victory to the new VC should consolidate their maturity by embracing the winner in the overall interest of UI, more so that we cannot have two VCs at the same time. In America, Hillary Clinton contested her party’s nomination with Barack Obama in the Democratic Party’s primaries. Obama eventually won, but the interesting lesson is that Mrs. Clinton is serving in Obama’s government today as Secretary of State. Those who lost to Prof. Adewole should be able to contribute positively in his tenure for this is the spirit of politics without bitterness. Already, one of the contestants, Prof. Adigun Agbaje has started on a good note.
He was the first to announce the appointment of Prof. Adewole at the 10th anniversary of the Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies (CEPACS) last Thursday where he represented the VC. With the way Prof. Agbaje spoke, no one noticed any bitterness in him as he announced to Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola at that occasion that, ‘our new VC is Prof. Isaac Adewole from Osun state’. Indeed, Prof. Agbaje, who is also from Osun state, shared the victory of his brother joyfully. That is good and commendable, at least, becoming a VC is “not a do or die affair”.
Looking robust, ebullient and refreshed, Prof. Adewole should be ready to deplore his energy spiritedly for the job at hand is tasking. He must know that the people’s expectation of him is high. Undoubtedly, Prof. Bamiro has set a standard for his successor. The overwhelming achievement profile of the out-going VC has raised the bar. This is a challenge that must be overcome by the good looking 56-year old Adewole. He should be able to surpass Bamiro’s achievements. Yes, it is possible, but with a lot of hard work, perseverance, dedication, commitment and above all altruism. This is a job that does not give room for annual leave. Prof. Adewole, given his antecedents, can do it and he must do it because he cannot afford to disappoint us all.
If truth must be said, the new VC needs all of us to succeed. Having agreed that UI is a national patrimony that must be collectively supported and protected, all Nigerians must show interest in the development of the institution. By the way, where are the alumni? Yes, some UI alumni have been showing gratitude to the University that produced them, but others are still scattered all over the world. Really, this is the time to come back and support the new VC.
Prof. Adewole as new UI VC needs the support of corporate organizations, philanthropists and funding agencies for UI which has given so much to the society in terms of manpower development, requires more funds to survive. Government alone cannot do it. Alumni will be expected to come back and donate and build structures to commemorate and immortalize their fathers’ name. Prof. Adewole must succeed. It is important he succeeds because his failure cannot benefit anybody . The workers are used to getting their salary on time during the Bamiro era. They expect no less.
The free and fair process that culminated in the appointment of Prof. Adewole has taught Nigeria a lesson that democracy can survive. Council designed a comprehensive time-table which began on February 25 with the placement of advertisement in the national papers and terminated on September 2 with the consideration of the report of the Selection Board and announcement of the new VC. Nigeria and other Universities surely have lessons to learn from the Chief Wole Olanipekun-led council.
The council was thorough, transparent, logical and methodical. That is why it succeeded where many failed. Chief Olanipekun (SAN) and his members surely deserve kudos for a job well done. The lesson they may have learnt in this process will surely guide them better in future. As Prof. Adewole prepares to take over come December 1, it is advisable for him to eat well, sleep well, relax and reflect deeply. Once he takes over, there is no going back until 2015.UI must consolidate the current achievements, it must lead the African continent. UI must be among the best 20 universities in the world. It is possible, for if you can dream it, you can achieve it, go ahead and do so and let “crown enter each home” as your name implies!
Saanu is on the staff of the University of Ibadan.

http://www.guardiannewsngr.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=22247:ui-new-vc-fresh-expectations&catid=38:columnists&Itemid=615

ow11:
Fair enough! At least the people who make monkey noises in football stadiums also put their race first as well as the KKK and BNP sympathisers. So I know where you stand. The main theme I thought of this thread was to identify Igbo villages in Nigeria or at least villages were Igbo is spoken as a first language by the indigenes. I contributed to correct some false claims about migration to some of these villages and NOT to state whether they were or are NOT inhabited by Igbo speaking natives or if they are suitable to form farmlands and oil well locations in a new country.

It was however inevitable that the thread will end up in the ego massaging exercise of the make-up of Biafra whilst clearly following the same mistakes made by the British is making maps out of economic interests rather than a workable entity.

I insist that NO nation will succeed if nationhood isn't forged except you build an apartheid state like the US did or RSA used to do. You can't build a nation and claim I put my people first before others. Today you are saying it is Ijaws that you hate, Tomorrow it will be Ngwa or Owerri people. Bigotry and putting 'my people' first will NOT build a successful nation. Rather empowering the masses and giving opportunities to everyone will foster unity and remove the need to fight or whip up sentiments on differences as the reason for poverty. This you can't do if you feel the need to put your people first or like you wrote earlier chase some people into the sea.


I have extended family members who inhabited an empty house on Aggrey road. They did say immediately after the war, they moved into an empty house and some months afterwards, some people (the original owners) came back to claim the house. The case went to court for many years before the guys just gave up. Maybe they died or were threatened. I have no idea what happened but yes people did steal people's homes.

- The RVSG did offer to pay monies (which obviously wouldn't be enough) to former owners of properties taken over after the war. Whether the right people got their monies is another gist BUT you can't deny the RVSG tried to pacify aggrieved people. This was after Sam Mbakwe raised hell in the papers. Typical Nigerians don't do things unless they are pushed.

- Should the houses be returned to the owners? I should think so in an ideal situation. The current situation isn't ideal and I am afraid those houses are gone but since most of the takeovers were RVSG sanctioned, restitution to the original owners should be made. Of course in Cash! I however doubt the feasibility since the Amaechi govt is more interested in enriching themselves at the moment.

- Reasons the houses were taken? There is a popular story in many parts of old PH that when PH became a city in the 50s and 60s, the then Eastern Regional govt only gave allocations to people from present day SE Nigeria. This angered a lot of the Okrika and Kalabari people who felt they needed to have some clout in PH although they possibly couldn't afford to do so since many people from SE Nigeria were rich businessmen and would win any bidding battle. As soon as the war ended, looting of properties began in PH like it happens anywhere there's a war and opportunists began to claim empty homes and quite possibly some occupied homes.

- You can say they were saboteurs because they wanted to steal houses but I would imagine they were just opportunists and if there was no war, that wouldn't have happened.  It is really a sad experience for anyone involved in such a mess but I would imagine many Igbos lost houses in Kaduna, Jos, Kano, Lagos and even Calabar.

In answer to your question, NO it wasn't justifiable and was criminal for the RVSG to give credibility to those who occupied empty homes after the war. Houses that belonged to dead owners could have been taken if no owner surfaced but deed papers should have been respected when owners turned up. Another side to this argument was that many people came up with fraudulent papers but I think this could have been sorted out if the will was there.

My own solution is a revisit to the matter and any outstanding payment should be effected for everyone to bury the hatchet and move on. Many people have lost more than that since 1970 and have also moved on even without restitution so I would imagine something of that nature if the RVSG and BYSG can pay up for its mess.

You have done well. How I wish those Rivers state officials had your type of Igbo feeling.
It is not certain if people came up with fraudulent papers to reclaim what was theirs. My uncle-Ihediohanma bought his own piece of land from Ikwerre natives with his hard earned money. The piece of land they sold to him was in an uninhabited area then. My uncle was the first to erect a structure in that field.  All the documents to support his claims are there till date. Yet the house was lost. He fought so hard to regain the building but to no avail.
But they have moved on.

too bad.

@Ibime: a very good aspect of your post is the belief that Ikwerres are Igbos.

EzeUche22:
I only said I had one beef and that is with the Ijaws. Sorry, but the Ijaws are not friendly with any of their neighbors. I have a Itsekiri friend who hates them more than me.

Forgive them.

ow11:
The main theme of this thread has finally surfaced. . . .People like ezeagu and Richyblack have contributed their own to the real question asked whilst unashamed bigots like Ezeuche is running his mouth like a redneck hill-billy stuck in rural Alabama.

I am also disappointed in naijaking1's responses on this thread!

It's good you are back, the thread is now no longer about the true extent of Igboland, but about injustices and so on.
First, the abandoned property, probably you are a beneficiary, but am not very sure of that.
Is that action by your state govt or who knows justifiable?.

seanet03:
MENTOR, ITS BEEN A LONG TIME, MISS YOUR EDUCATING AND TRUTHFUL POSTS

Yes, truthful posts because he was there during the abduction and later death of Balewa. Has he said he is an eye-witness to those events?. Keep believing in distorted stories.

naijaking1:
It will be interesting to do a statistical analysis of who got what abandoned property in PH. While the government may not be favorably disposed to allowing such an excersie, I tell you that common street knowledge is that Ijaws got most of these properties, even Ijaws like some of the Clarks who didn't come from eastern Nigeria before the civil war rushed to PH to claim Igbo properties after the civil war.

I hate your comparison on seizing Ojukwus and other political leaders' properties with the stealing of common Igboman's properties like my father's. If you take Ojukwu's, Effiong's, Okpara's properties, it would have been easily understood as a war act, but when you steal the sweat and labor of people who toiled and built these houses from their meagre savings, then it shows how morally bankrupt you're.

And because we're still debating these aboandoned property issues more than 40 years after the fact, and at a time every eastern Nigerian should be focusing on how to make one them win a full presidential term in 2011 underlines the genius of the masterminds of the abandoned property issue designed to placate the insatiable appetite of  gullible Ijaw people.

Well said. Even at that Ndigbo have moved on. Take the case of my cousins in Port Harcourt. One house was stolen from them but now they have got three, even on the same street.

Katsumoto:
Is Ajuluchukwu saying Ifeajuna was Zik's cousin a confession? Ajuluchukwu made his statement while Zik and Ifeajuna were alive and right after the coup in the late sixties while Mbu granted his interview 44 years after the event and after all actors were dead. There is a big difference. Would Ajuluchukwu have lied against Zik and Ifeajuna while they both alive? If he did, then I live you to present the denial from either Zik or Ifeajuna.

Ojukwu is still living. A lot of lies has been said about him, yet he does not go about writing rebuttals. I do not think that Azikiwe ever had time for such lies .

@Ezeuche: You are lucky, your grandfather's house was handed back to him. My cousin lost his till date. He was the first to build a house in that street, the street was then named after him-Ihediohanma Street. After the war, the street was renamed with an Ijaw name and the house handed over to non Igbo in Rivers state.
But you know what, despite the loss, my cousins now own three houses on the same street now. Even non Igbos in Rivers are tenants in those buildings. The Igbo people are blessed abundantly by God.

@Ezeagu and Onlytruth: Please stop the hostility. Enough is Enough. One love.
Pleas display maturity. Udo diri unu.

Katsumoto:
What does it matter whether Balewa was shot or not? The fact is that Balewa died in the hands of Ifeajuna.

Yes but of ashtma illness.
That is the final word.
This can be likened to a situation where a patient in hospital needed blood transfusion within two hours to survive, but the driver from the blood bank arrived with the blood donation three hours later as a result of traffic hold up, then the driver is blamed for the patient's death.

[quote author=~Bluetooth link=topic=509015.msg6703805#msg6703805 date=1283723672]he's from the defunct eastern region so that is enough reason to deduce that he's trying to re-write history.Let's leave sentiments out of this.
-why did the soldier kidnap him ? I mean the main purpose if not to kill him.
-would they have spared balewa if he hadn't die ? Let's assume that he's not asthmatic even when there was a bulle-riddened body when they dropped him off.[/quote]Does coming from the defunct Eastern Region make him Igbo?. Do you not think it will be insane for any person to say that for the fact Enahoro is from the then defunct western region , he is Yoruba.

chyz:
Agbor is Delta State. Are you refereing to Igbanke? Also apart from the many edo words what are the other words? Im not arguing the influence of edo on Ika but the line is clear even so to the point that Anioma state has already been Shaped. I was not hard to do because it was clear what is edo and ika or Igbo as a whole. Now this cannot happen with Okrika because the ethnicity is too intertwined most of them speak igbo as well as kalabari, the land has been bastardized as far as the rightful claim to land according to history. Igbos claim rightful owners to that land and so do the ijaw, its still till this day in dispute and if the war would have taken place we would not be having this discussion about okrika. Trust me the Okrika/igbo thing is far more controversial that the Ika and edo thing,which as been managed by the Anioma creation.

Anioma State:

https://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/profile-ak-snc1/object2/759/80/n116550695029284_69.jpg

When eventually, Anioma state is created, the Igbanke people in Edo state should be merged with Anioma.
Also, there should be further boundary adjustments. Egbema in Rivers state should be merged with the larger Egbema in Imo state. Oyigbo and Omuma LGA's in Rivers state should be placed in Abia state or in the proposed Aba state.
Okpokwu LGA in Benue state should be returned to Enugu state.

Eziachi:
I thought you are educated? And should know better that an asthma attack can kill anyone in an instance just like a heart attack could without the inhaler available and it can happen while you are watching TV or relaxing with a book and by 1966, asthma inhaler wasn’t invented yet until the first batch in 1980 by Pfizer.

From what I read, Mbu wasn’t exonerating the coupist from the death of Balewa, he was only saying that it is a fact that Balewa died not from the bullet of his captors but by an unfortunate asthma attack, which must have been triggered by the panic of being picked up by gun men in my opinion.

Your problem and others like you is that, this new revelation, kind of softened your life time hardcore execution Balewa belief and you don’t want to hear anything else. There are people of that generation still very much around, let them prove Mbu wrong or right, we can only sit and listen.

But it was a common knowledge in the 60s that Balewa was as poorly as Yar Adua was, always missing parliamentary sessions due to ill health and M.T Mbu always sits in for him, hence he was nicknamed the Prime Minister designate at the time. I don’t know what he will gain by saying that his best friend was shot by the soldiers.

Mazi, May the peace of our Lord be with you. There is no reason whatsoever to suggest that Mbu at his old age is far from the truth.

@Bluetooth and co, M. Mbu is not an Igboman, hence it is an outright stupidity to suggest that Ndigbo are making attempts at rewriting history.

Eziachi:
Why not stick with the body of the story instead of making up what wasn’t actually mentioned in the story because it doesn’t tally with your preconceived notion you had held all your life? Where in that story was it mentioned that Chief Awolowo has anything to do with the coup? Was it what you read?

Whether M.T Mbu was wrong or right, whether he was telling lies or the truth is not the point, because neither you nor I will disagree or agree with him because he was a very close friend of Balewa and should know better than you and myself. Always react to what you read, not what you think should be the case based on your liking.
How I wish many like Mbu will come out and tell the present generation what happened and they can make up their mind, instead of going to their graves with the truth. Almost 20 years after June 12 election was cancelled, no one has told us why and we will never know. So how will the unborn generation ever learn from the mistake of their fathers if no one is ready to talk, rather than it the information as something they hold over the rest?

Well said. I have stated earlier that Mbu's contemporaries should be bold to say the truth now that they are still breathing.

yarodin:
Ikwerre people will never claim Igbo. They dress like Igbos, dance like Igbos, have Igbo names, but still claim they are not Igbo. Anytime you call an Ikwerre person Igbo, the deny it very quickly, but they are able to easily fit into any Igbo surroundings because they have Igbo names and can speak Igbo very well. Maybe some of them do claim they are Igbos, but the ones I have met always say they are not.

Those Ikwerre parents who lied to their kids are in the same age bracket as M.Mbu. When lies are continually repeated, it becomes true, but I believe they can reverse that now that they are still alive.
True confession.

EzeUche22:
He died of asthma and they waited this long to tell us!

Wonders never amaze me.

Now when will the true killers of Adaka Boro speak up. Let the Ijaws know who killed their beloved leader.

You are right Uchenna. Also, those Ikwerre parents who lied to their kids about their Igbo identity should confess their sins. This happened within that same period.
Let it keep coming.

FBS:
I did not watch the match live but I'm happy they won. Hope the performance was good too.

Thanks everyone.

@FBI: I have missed your posts for some time now. Hope all is well. Are you no longer a moderator on this forum)?, though Honerico is doing well.

afam4eva:
Eleme is to Ogoni what Ikwerre is to IGBO.

That is right.