Former Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi, has said the recent military clampdown on the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and its subsequent proscription are not the solutions to the Biafra agitation.
According to him, so long as Nigerian youths remain unengaged in meaningful employment, they would be disposed to joining forces with individuals or groups leading agitations of all sorts.
He blamed Biafra agitation on leadership failure over the years in the country but called for dialogue with those who are agitating in order to look at meaningful solutions that can give them hope.
Obi told the Sun newspaper:
“Irrespective of whatever the Federal Government has said about IPOB, my position has remained constant – agitation in Nigeria is nationwide. It is all over the country, not just from one side of the country. The reason is very simple: there are millions of young people in their productive ages doing nothing.
“When you don’t know where the next meal will come from, you are a free agent, you can become anything. The reason why you people are here is because you know where the next meal will come from.
“What you see today is the cumulative effect of leadership failure over the years in the country. That is one of the consequences and it’s not going to be solved by what we are doing today. You can quote me anywhere.
“We have to sit down, dialogue with those who are agitating and start looking at meaningful solutions that can give them hope. Once a country makes her people to develop a sense of hopelessness, the people will agitate a lot.”
