Quest For Igbo Unity: Who Is More Igbo Than Fellow Igbo?

Igbo people can be geographically seen as dominants of South Eastern part of Nigeria, notwithstanding that many parts of South South geo-political zone of the country such as; majority of Rivers State (Ikwerre people) and Delta State (Anioma people) are Igbos despite some personal and politically motivated selfish analysis of some persons trying to deny their Igbo identities. There are some parts of Cross River, Bayelsa, Benue, Akwa Ibom and Edo States predominantly occupied by Igbos as their ancestral lands. No wonder we have Igbos in Benin which is Igbanke people otherwise known as "Igbo no be Bini."

Investigations revealed that Igbos are found in some countries of the world as none travelers or settlers but indigenous to those countries. Some of the ancestral countries of Igbos other than Nigeria are: Jamaica, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Sierra Leone, Cuba, Sao Tome and Principe,  Gabon, Cameroon and Barbados. The investigations further revealed that the Igbos who have other countries outside Nigeria as their ancestral lands got there during the time of "Atlantic slave trade", while others were during the ancient days of 'unregulated migration.' 

Igbos as travelers are almost in every parts of this world doing their normal businesses as they are well known for it.

On the side of Igbo people in Nigeria's South East and parts of South South, Igbos have been one with equal identity devoid of discrimination among the communities/clans of Igbo nation, even during the first era of regional system of government in Nigeria when all Igbos and other parts of Niger Delta were together as Eastern region. 

Fortunately and unfortunately to some extents, creation of States in 1976 by late Gen. Murtala Mohammed led military government in which Igbos of today's South East were carved into two; old Anambra and Imo States as well as Igbos of Ikwerre becoming part of Rivers State and Igbos of Anioma (present day Delta State) became part of the defunct Bendel State seemed to brought divisions among some uninformed Igbos. 

The creation of States in Nigeria continued till October 1st, 1996 when late Gen. Sani Abacha completed it 36 States and FCT with Igbos of South East having five States of Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo, while Igbos of South South (Ikwerre and Anioma) got themselves in present day Rivers and Delta State respectively with Igbanke (Igbo no be Bini) seeing themselves in Edo State. 

These States creations was what I have seen as means of bringing development to the grassroot instead of division among some people of Igbo land hence, the agitation for more State's creation to ndi Igbo as other parts of the country were given six and seven respectively. 

Before today, there was nothing like; "onye Anambra, onye Ebonyi, onye Enugu, onye Abia, onye Imo, etc," as discriminately referred to these days, rather onye Igbo as we are. The only other identification one  was been given to is in  reference to which particular clan of Igbo tribe an individual belong to such as; Onicha, Nsukka, Anioma, Abakaliki, Arochukwu, Orlu, Nnewi, Mbaise, Ngwa, Ikwerre, Afikpo, Nkanu, etc.

It pains a lot these days to hear or read especially on social media some persons who cannot properly explain their Igbo origin or speak Igbo language fluently trying to disunite oneness of Ndi Igbo with some of their unguided utterances and publications. It is only the enemies of Ndi Igbo can address any clan of Igbo land as semi-Igbo. That you are from any part of Igbo land does not make you more Igbo than anyone from other part  of the Igbo race. 

Parents and guardians should therefore, swing into action of proper home training and re-orientation of their children and wards about oneness of Igbos irrespective of which clan and kindred one comes from. Though there are parents, guardians and elders who mischievously promote this ill-wind of division/disunity in Igbo land through their utterances and unethical training of their children, wards and subjects but they belong to the group Igbo language described as "ndi okenye aruru ala."

For those using social media to promote hate speeches and all sorts of unguided comments about who is original and semi-Igbo, you should first of all understand that you are an enemy of ndi Igbo and self disqualified son/daughter of the Igbo race. You should equally be aware of the Nigerian law called "Cybercrime Act" as ignorance of the law is never an excuse for crime. 

Together, we must fight the enemies of Ndi Igbo within Igbos, as all hands is needed on deck to build Igbo land filled with brotherly love, unity, peace, progress and equal respect to each other. 

 Moses Nnabuife Nwekwu.

News Manager/Editor (Broadcast Journalist)