High Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, President General of Ohaneze Ndigbo Worldwide, has urged Igbos both in Nigeria and abroad to support President Bola Tinubu’s administration for the betterment of the country.
During a meeting with the Igbo Community Assembly at his Abuja residence on Thursday, Iwuanyanwu acknowledged that the Igbos did not vote for President Tinubu in the 2023 election, as they believed it was the South East’s turn. However, he emphasized that the Igbos will extend their support to ensure the government’s success and bring relief to Nigerians.
Iwuanyanwu stressed that President Tinubu is the legitimate leader of all Nigerians, as declared by the Supreme Court, and that the Igbos have a vested interest in Nigeria’s unity and prosperity, having invested more than any other tribe. He warned that if Nigeria fails, the Igbos will suffer the most.
“I want to let you know that during the last general election, we didn’t vote for the present administration but he (Tinubu) has been declared the President of Nigeria by the Electoral Commission. The court has declared him up to the Supreme Court. So, as your leader, I have proclaimed that Igbos, as good citizens of Nigeria, will support him. We are going to support him because we want Nigeria to be a success. If Nigeria fails, Igbos are going to suffer more than any tribe.
“If Nigeria is a corporate body like a company, I think we (Igbos) have more investments than many other tribes. Like Abuja for example, the Igbos have a lot of investment here. So if Nigeria has a problem, Igbos are going to suffer. So, if the government fails, Igbos are going to suffer more than any groups because Igbos have more investments in most parts of the country than other groups.
“I think it is my duty as your leader to say that we are going to give every support we can to help the government to succeed. But we also expect the government to reciprocate the gesture by ensuring that what belongs to us is given to us. Nobody likes a situation where what he has is taken from him.
“You all know that the President worked for MKO Abiola and Abiola was my friend. I knew him (Tinubu) that time through Abiola. It is true that we didn’t support him during the election because we believe that it should be an Igbo person. Now we have no reason not to support him and I don’t have anything whatsoever against him. All we require now is to expect him to ensure that what belongs to us and what we have already is not taken away from us,” Iwuanyanwu said.
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