Civil War: Ohaneze Ndigbo demands N2.4trn reparation, state apology for Ndigbo

ENUGU — The pan-Igbo socio-cultural
organisation, yesterday, demanded from the Federal
Government N2.4 trillion as reparation and
compensation to Ndigbo in the five South East
states and Anioma in Delta State, who lost their
loved ones and property during the civil war as well
as those still suffering dislocation and seizure of
property in the country.
It also asked the Federal Government to tender a
“State Apology for the wrongs the government and
people of Nigeria visited on Ndigbo and Igboland” in
the past.
These demands were contained in a statement
entitled, ‘The Atrocities and Injustice Against Ndigbo
and Ohanaeze Ndigbo: Demand for Reparation,’
issued by the Chairman, Ohanaeze Reparation
Committee, Chief Mbazulike Amechi in Enugu.
He recalled that the apex Igbo organistion had on
May 25, 2013 at its Imeobi meeting, which is the
supreme executive organ of Ohanaeze Ndigbo,
resolved that ‘enough was enough’ and that Ndigbo
should now demand reparation and compensation
and a final stop to the persecution of Ndigbo in their
own country.
He said the committee, which he chaired, had taken
the pains to document some of the atrocities,
injustice and deprivation visited on Ndigbo and
resolved to demand that the Federal Government
should in addition to tendering a state apology, pay
a token of N400 billion to each of the five states of
Igboland as compensation for the incalculable
damage done to the Igbo race.
According to him: “It is incalculable to put a price on
the death of millions of Igbo who were killed in the
civil war and on other occasions.
“However the Federal Government should pay a
token of N400 billion to each of the five states of
Igboland as compensation to those who lost their
loved ones, lost property and those still suffering
dislocation and seizure of property.
“The same amount should be paid to the
government of Delta State for the benefit of Anioma
area of the state,” Amechi said.
The elder-statesman, who was flanked by members
of his committee, including Chief Ralph Obioha,
Professor Uche Azikiwe, Dr. Chukwujama, Col. Ben
Gbulie (rtd); Chief Maria Okwor, Prof. Paul Modum
and other leaders of Ohanaeze, at the briefing,
listed some of the chilling atrocities against Ndigbo
as follows:
“On March 31, 1953, Tony Enahoro moved a motion
in the House of Representatives asking for
independence for Nigeria.
“Northern members of the House under the
leadership of Sir Ahmadu Bello (Sardauna of Sokoto)
vehemently opposed the motion and threatened to
break away from the federation.
“Shortly after that, S.L. Akintola went to Kano and in
trying to explain the case for independence, said
something which Northerners did not like. Their
youths took up weapons and massively killed Igbos
in such big towns as Kano, Kaduna, Zaria, etc; and
destroyed and looted their property.
“It was known that over 300 Igbo were killed, but
official figures released by the government only
admitted that “36 people killed and 227 wounded.”
“In January 1966 some officers in the Nigerian
Army organised a coup d’etat and overthrew the
government of nationalists and founding fathers of
the federation.
“A carefully planned pogrom and genocide was
unleashed on the Igbo mainly in the North. On May
29, 1966 they commenced what they termed
“ARABA” test riots. With the help of the police,
Northern youths embarked on a supervised bloody
‘riot’ which lasted for seven agonising days in which
hundreds of Igbo were killed all over the North and
their property destroyed or looted.
“On July 29, 1966, in what was termed “Counter
Revolution and Ethnic Cleansing” which began with
the killing of Major Gen. Aguiyi Ironsi and over 300
military officers and men of Igbo origin escalated
into the massacre of unsuspecting Igbo civilians,
men, women and children in many Northern towns
on a scale unprecedented in any part of the world
even more gruesome than the killings of the Jews
in Hitler’s Ger