The apex Igbo socio-cultural group, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has asked the leader of the proscribed Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, to stop calling for the secession of the South-East from Nigeria.
Speaking at a media briefing in Enugu on Wednesday, the President-general of the group, George Obiozor, said there is no reason for the Igbo to live separately from other tribes in the country.
Obiozor also urged the Igbo to live peacefully and co-exist with other ethnic groups anywhere they find themselves in the country.
The Ohanaeze President, however, the IPOB leader to avoid “actions and utterances” that can put Nigeria in danger and play his part in developing the country.
He said: “The Igbo nation is not at war with the rest of the country and there is nothing that demands our separate existence from Nigeria.
“We have mutual responsibility in this matter and it is sacred in our hearts. All actions or utterances that put us in imminent or present danger must be avoided.
“Nnamdi Kanu should act and play his part well. There lies his honour.”
Obiozor also noted that his leadership will address the perceived marginalisation of the Igbo, and ensure better representation for their interests.
He said: “How we are perceived as a people is borne out of our feeling of insecurity in the country. Our leadership will find out how to reduce this vulnerability of our people.
“I am ready to provide leadership and we shall not disappoint.
“We must invent a well-defined common course for our people. We must unite our people. We need a leadership that will be progressive.
“I, therefore, call on our people to join hands with us to bring accelerated development to our place.”
