Prominent Nigerian author and writer, Chimamanda Adichie has hit out at Igbos saying they need to get their acts together before demanding for Biafra.
Adichie in a recent interview with media personality, Ebuka Obi-Uchendu submitted that Igbos, particularly the leaders of the region are yet to get the Nigerian presidency because they are unable to unite and fight for a common goal.
The 43-year-old added that more strategic planning needs to be done by the people of the region to articulate their demands and positions on both demands for the presidency and independent Biafra.
The writer added that Igbos have been marginalized in Nigeria hence, the constant push for an independent Biafra but the lack of trust among the people themselves has made progress very slow.
She said: “There is no Biafra. There are new movements but, for me, it’s a question of being practical. Where would the border be? What is propelling these movements is a sense of marginalization, which I think is completely valid.
“But this idea that the answer is independence is what I’m not convinced of. Nobody has made a logical case for me. Quite frankly, I’ve observed the terrible leadership that we have in the southeast.
“Igbo people cannot unite if, for example, we say we want an Igbo president. And then we’re talking about Biafra. There is a lot of political work we need to do in the southeast.
“We need to do a lot of rethinking on how we strategize politically before we can talk about Biafra.”
She also spoke about some fundamental things that need to be addressed about the Igbo culture in line with changing global practices.
Specifically, she warned that promoting the male gender over the female gender as common in Igbo tradition is dragging the region backward.
In her words, “There are things I quarrel with, in Igbo culture. It’s misogynistic, as are many cultures. That’s the problem. The world is misogynistic. At my father’s funeral, they showed where the widow, my mother, would sit.
“And they showed where the sons in the extended family (umunna) would sit. That’s where those coming would go to present whatever they bring. It’s the sons’. And that was the end. My father had three daughters. There was no place for them.
“I raised the question and a man in my umunna said we would have to loiter around. There’s a problem with that.
“There’s a woman who apparently is going to run for governor in Anambra state.
“I’m having a conversation with a group of people and what they’re saying is, ‘Can a woman rule Anambra?’ Do you need a dangling organ to rule a state? It’s hard enough for both male and female politicians.
“But women have this additional problem of perception, a reason for which many people won’t vote them.
“Igbo culture is just not very good when it comes to gender. Culture as we have it are rules men made to benefit men.
“In my hometown, I seem to have this status of an ‘honorary man’ and that’s because of my achievements. People adapt when they see some benefits to it which means that it’s changeable. It’s engraved on the stones.”
Previously, Bibian Anekwe News had reported that Adichie argued that Catholicism in Nigeria is about money, thanksgiving, and fundraising.
Meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader and Senator for Abia South Senatorial District, Enyinnaya Abaribe has said that the quest for Igbo presidency in 2023 is not negotiable.
