It is with great relief that we digest the news that the Nigerian Senators have rejected the request by President Bola Tinubu for permission to deploy Nigerian troops to Niger Republic as part of an ECOWAS force to reinstate the democratically elected President of the country.
OCHIE Igbo appreciates the discerning mind of the Senators for their boldness in condemning the coup whilst commending ECOWAS leaders on their efforts to restore constitutional order in Niger, but they ruled out military options.
The position of the Nigerian Senate and Northern Senate Caucus resonates with us at OCHIE Igbo.
Therefore, we want to advise that the Nigerian government should observe due diligence in invoking section 5 sub section (4) (a) and (b) of 1999 Nigerian Constitution as amended; bearing in mind that every war is economically driven. There is no small war.
We share the concerns of the Council of Ulama for clearly stating that ‘a war between these countries will harm friendship, cause economic hardship, worsen humanitarian crisis, and leave hard-to-heal wounds on each party’
It is pertinent to remind President Bola Tinubu that he had barely settled down office and should pay attention to a Foreign Policy which reflects the yearning and aspiration of Nigerians.
Often times, what nations with sophisticated military prowess and armament had previously contemplated as small war had always ended up taking complex dimensions and lasting for decades.
It will be the height of vandalism if at this moment when Nigeria’s inflation is hitting the roof, with exchange rate at all times high and energy crisis biting so hard and we go to war; it will leave Nigeria in an unimaginable devastation and may likely turn the giant of Africa into a battlefield.
We are glad that the Northern Senators were thoughtful enough to put into consideration the dangers that a potential war in Niger will put Sokoto, Kebbi, Katsina, Zamfara, Jigawa, Yobe and Borno into.
Therefore, we urge the President Generals of the Igbo communities in the above-mentioned States and the whole nineteen Northern States to continue to cooperate with their host communities as they do their business, they should collaborate with them, live harmoniously and symbiotically.
*Caleb Onwe, Esq*
National Publicity Secretary,
OCHIE Igbo.
