As a result, they casually downplay the
significance of the civil war for national
integration or mischievously misinterpret any
reference to its impact on Igboland and the
need for restitution as an attempt to create
division among Nigerians. But how many
Nigerians have thought about the implications
of the fact, noted by Prof. Achebe, that there
were more small arms used on Biafran soil
than during the entire five-year period of the
Second World War or that there were one
hundred thousand casualties on the much
larger Nigerian side compared with more than
two million – mainly children – Biafrans
killed? If Gowon was serious about his “no
victor, no vanquished” slogan and genuinely
wanted reconciliation with the defeated
Biafrans, why did his government implement
extremely harsh measures against Ndigbo
after the conflict? For Ndigbo who suffered the
greatest from the civil war, whose land was
strafed, bombed and devastated, the terrible
experiences of 1966 to 1970 remain a
recurrent source of sadness and inspiration
simultaneously: sadness, because they were
the ones that lost almost everything;
inspiration, given the inherent capacity of
humans to turn adversity into opportunity.
No matter how Igbophobic Nigerians feel
about it, Ndigbo will never allowtheir collective
memory of the civil war vanish into historical
oblivion because it is the single most
traumatic event in their over six thousand
years history. Keep in mind that despite the
Nuremberg trials which bought some former
Nazi officials to justice, continuing efforts by
the West led by the United States to protect
Israel, and the relatively cordial relationship
between Germany and the Jewish nation
presently, no Israeli would dream of forgetting
the Nazi holocaust that took place over
seventy years ago, or belittle its significance in
shaping the future of Israel. Ndigbo must take
a cue from the Jews: they must never stop
talking about their horrifying experiences
during the pogroms and the civil war until
justice, though belated, is done or, at the very
least, some restitution is made by the Nigerian
state. They must continue to remind fellow
Nigerians of the genocide against Biafrans
and the need to correct historical injustices
meted out to them so that the process of
national healing and reconciliation can truly
begin.





But how can justice be done to the Igbo,
considering the corrosive effect of time and
the fact that some of the key players on both
sides of the conflict are dead? Ideally, the
starting point is to prosecute those who took
part in the was – both military and civilian –
at the International Court of Justice for war
crimes, especially against Biafrans. However, I
know that will never happen:Nigeria is yet to
evolve the appropriate ethnically neutral
political consciousness and moral stamina
required to carry through such a noble task. In
addition, leading world powers that supported
the federal forces during the war, especially
Britain and the United States, will definitely
subvert such a move; it is in their interest that
Nigeria remains politically unstable and
economically dependent on the West.
A strong, politically mature and industrialised
black African country would deflate the myth
of white supremacy and realign existing power
relations in the international plane. I submit
that the single most important lesson from
Walter Rodney’s provocative book, How
Europe Underdeveloped Africa, is that the
Western world will not voluntarily allow any
black nation to emerge as a world power. The
current lopsided international system in which
Nigeria and other African countries are
economically and industrially tied to the apron
strings of the West, euphemistically called
globalisation, is consonant with its covert
white supremacist ideology.
Therefore, the high-level representation of
Britain and America during the inauguration
ceremonies of President Muhammadu Buhari
recently is largely a public relations display
intended to hoodwink the unwary. From
experience, the two countries facetiously make
gestures of goodwill towards every new
administration in Nigeria, with the exception
of late Gen. Sani Abacha’sgovernment. Yet,
when it comes to concrete steps to offer real
assistancethat would really transform the
fundamentals of Nigeria’s economy, theyuse
subterfuges to avoid such responsibility. I
predict that if Buhari’s government for
whatever reason draws closer to China and
Russia, America and Britain would orchestrate
one crisis or another to frustrate it.
Going back to the question of justice for the
Igbo and her neighbours, since prosecuting
perpetrators of genocide against Biafrans is
out of the question, the more realistic option
is for the federal government to formulate a
master plan for massive infrastructural and
industrial development of the Biafran enclave.
After all, Gen. Gowon’s post-war policy of
Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and
Reconstruction was never really implemented.
As a result, even forty-five years after the civil
war ended, the South-East geopolitical zone
has the least federal presence, in terms of
developmental projects and heavy industries,
in the country. That said, it is still possible to
invoke the three R’s as a principle for
something like a Marshall Plan for Igboland.
Now, my concept of Igboland is more
extensive geographically than the current
South-East, the latter being apremeditated
emasculation and falsification of the true size
of the Igbo inNigeria. Authentically, Igboland
extends from the five South-Eastern statesto
all the Igbo-speaking areas in Rivers, Delta,
Bayelsa and Cross River states, never mind
the misguided attempts by Northern
dominated military regimes to marginalise
Ndigbo territorially. Considering that, I must
express profound disappointment with
prominent and influential Igbo leaders for not
embarking on consciousness-raising activism
to use Biafra as a rallying symbol for Igbo
renaissance. What I advocate is different from
organisations such as Mass Mobilisation for
the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of
Biafra (MASSOB), Ohaneze Ndigbo and Aka
Ikenga which have become tools used by
some Igbo for selfish survivalist political and
economic negotiations in the existing lopsided
federation.



In my humble opinion, the spirit of Biafra can
be creatively adapted by Ndigbo to ignite
positive psychological and ideological
revolution in all Igbo-speaking areas of the
former Eastern region, which would also be
extended to their close neighbours. For the
Igbo to occupy their rightful place in Nigeria,
all Igbo speaking communities must set aside
artificial animosities and cleavages
deliberately orchestrated by Igbo haters to
divide them and forge a collective vision for
Igbo renaissance preferably within Nigeria. My
call for unification of Ndigbo wherever they
might be may seem far-fetched and unrealistic
considering the ugly divisive experiences of
Biafran war and sustained efforts beginning
from Gowon’s administration to put a wedge
between Igbo communities in the present
South-South states and their brothers and
sisters in the South-East geopolitical zone.
Still, with creative imagination, clear vision,
and selfless service by prominent Igbo sons
and daughters, the vision of a resurgent Igbo
nation living in peace and harmony with fellow
Nigerians is realisable. Unfortunately,
progressively since the civil war ended, Igbo
leaders have failed to fashion a realistic and
workable blueprint for collective Igbo unity.
The unflattering condition of Ndigbo in the
present scheme of things is partly due to the
selfishness and narrow-mindedness of so-
called Igbo leaders of thought. But the voting
pattern in the last presidential election has
proved that, despite their inherent
individualism and republicanism encapsulated
in the expression, Igbo enwe eze, Ndigbo can
come together and reach a consensus on any
issue when their collective interest is at stake.
It has also blown to smithereens the false
claim that the Igbo intend to dominate their
close neighbours. Considering the way
different ethnic groups voted and the outcome
of the March 28 election, Nigeria is back to
the pre-civil war political situation. Therefore,
the real question is – have we learnt from our
past mistakes? Concluded.


source- http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/06/ndigbo-and-the-burdens-of-history-2/

The jews that lost 6 million people during the second world War came out wiser but the igbos that lost more than 2 million people came out of the Civil War more foolish.
I am using this opportunity to beg every igbo adult to teach their children igbo history particularly the Civil War years and stop being overtly stupid.

I am too sleepy, but I promise to read dis 2moro.
Tanx

Space for sale

kettykings:
The jews that lost 6 million people during the second world War came out wiser but the igbos that lost more than 2 million people came out of the Civil War more foolish.
I am using this opportunity to beg every igbo adult to teach their children igbo history particularly the Civil War years and stop being overtly stupid.

ur statement is the definition of Stupidity @ its peak....
See hw ur r insulting a tribe up nd down,,nd still want them to take ur useless advise ....
Can't u pass ur msg without exhibiting ur innate bigotry nd overt senility!!

Mcowubaba:
ur statement is the definition of Stupidity @ its peak....
See hw ur r insulting a tribe up nd down,,nd still want them to take ur useless advise ....
Can't u pass ur msg without exhibiting ur innate bigotry nd overt senility!!

Don't waste you time on a fool without redemption. They are best ignored.

Mcowubaba:
ur statement is the definition of Stupidity @ its peak....
See hw ur r insulting a tribe up nd down,,nd still want them to take ur useless advise ....
Can't u pass ur msg without exhibiting ur innate bigotry nd overt senility!!

If you don't have any point to make, there is no need quoting me.
The advice was meant for igbos and not just any body . How a simple advice I passed across to my fellow igbos can be intepreted as an insult by a non igbo makes me wonder how unrealistic people can be.

Biafra is the substance from which yellowbar's nightmares are made....but WE SHALL BE FREE from this zoo called Nigeria

khupid:
Biafra is the substance from which yellowbar's nightmares are made....but WE SHALL BE FREE from this zoo called Nigeria

So na Yoruba lock una inside the zoo upon all your bragado chest beating without you being able to unlock or free yourself. SMH4U

ayokellany:


So na Yoruba lock una inside the zoo upon all your bragado chest beating without you being able to unlock or free yourself. SMH4U

nah brada, it was our colonial masters that locked us up inside the zoo....but the good thing is that unlike other tribes, we've realised we're in a zoo and we're trying to emancipate ourselves. No chest-beating about that, just the plain truth brah

If SE wants more federal presence why not make every sick SEner head back to the SE whenever they have malaria instead of being parasitic on the paracetamol of another region's state? Let all SEner ply only SEner states then the FG can start paying more attention to deserted settlements there.

Igbo today, Igbo tommorrow! Let us rest kwa nu!



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