Governor Charles Soludo of Anambra State says he does not subscribe to separatist views or agitation for an independent Igbo nation. This was as he called for a dialogue on the future of the Igbo people, stating that issues surrounding separatist agitations must be discussed openly among all stakeholders. Soludo stated this on ‘Sunday Politics’, a programme on Channels Television.
“For me, I believe very strongly that the agitation thing and the position of a separatist view of Igbo land. For me, as a full-blooded Igbo man, I don’t believe that,” he stated.
Soludo stated that he wants all voices in Igbo land, including those calling for secession, to engage in honest dialogue on what best serves the region’s interests. “But I want us to have a conversation, I have said why I need Nnamdi Kanu to come and sit with everybody else because nobody has better rights than the other.
”We are all Igbos and are all entitled to our views, and those of them who want us out of Nigeria, we will all sit in a room and debate it: are we served better being out of Nigeria or within Nigeria? I am of the view that the Igbo man needs Nigeria and Nigeria needs the Igbo man. I am of the view that the Igbo man needs Africa and Africa needs the Igbo man, and I am of the view that the Igbo man needs the world,” he said.
According to the Anambra governor, the Igbo people have historically been known as itinerant, hardworking, and tolerant, and that intolerance or violent protests will not lead to meaningful progress. Expressing optimism that Kanu will eventually regain his freedom, Soludo said the region must seize the opportunity to chart a collective vision for the future.
