Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akiolu, has come under condemnation following a statement credited to him on the Lagos State governorship election.

Oba Akiolu was reported to have warned Igbo leaders living in Lagos that if their people vote against the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, they would be in trouble.
In a meeting with Eze Ndigbos in Lagos, Oba Akiolu had warned: “On Saturday, if any of you goes against Ambode, whom I picked, that is your end. If it does not happen within seven days, just know that I am a bastard and it is not my father who gave birth to me.”

Reacting to this warning, the Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organisation (PDPPCO), the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the pan-Igbo socio-cultural organisation; Aka Ikenga and others, described the statement credited to Oba Akiolu as unfortunate.

In a statement yesterday, Director of Media and Publicity of the Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organisation (PDPPCO), Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, described as ominous and unacceptable, the threat by the Oba of Lagos against the Igbo in Lagos.

Fani-Kayode said: “The truth is that we were threatened with ethnic cleansing and religious carnage in the North had Buhari not won the presidential election on March 28 and had President Jonathan not quickly conceded defeat. We let that go and kept the peace, but now, our traditional supporters are being threatened in Lagos and in many other states as we approach the April 11 governorship elections.
“Let two things be clearly understood. In as much as we all want peace in this country and as Jonathan has graciously and quickly conceded defeat in the presidential election, this does not mean that we are weak or powerless.

“Let it be clearly understood by all and sundry that any attempt to kill, maim or molest our supporters in the North, in the West or indeed, in any other part of the country either before, during or after Saturday’s governorship elections or any attempt at ethnic or religious cleansing by the APC, their supporters or their friends and agents, will be deemed unacceptable and will be met with defiance, contempt and a well-orchestrated and solid resistance.”

Fani-Kayode also stated: “These APC threats and all the attendant rubbish that go with them must stop. No one is intimidated on our side and neither do we fear for the future because God is with us; He is faithful and He is in perfect control. This is an election and it is not a war; so, we must be civilised, restrained, gentle and courteous in all our ways and dealings.

“The APC would do well to remember that they only won the presidential election by two million votes. They got 14 million votes while the PDP got 12 million votes in that election. This means that we have 12 million loyal foot soldiers and supporters in this country and that is no mean feat. Those 12 million voters cannot be ignored or treated with disdain and contempt. They must and will be respected.”

Also reacting, the leadership of the PDP, in a statement by Chief Olisa Metu, national publicity secretary, condemned Oba Akiolu’s statement.

The party stated: “Our response to the Oba of Lagos is that he cannot play God and can never be God. God owns the universe and every part of it and can never share His glory with any human, no matter how highly placed.

“We, therefore, call on all Nigerians in Lagos State; all Igbo, Hausa, Yoruba and people of other tribes; all northerners and southerners; all Christians and Muslims to turn against this unpatriotic stance, by coming out en masse to vote for the PDP candidate, Mr. Jimi Agbaje on Saturday.”

The PDP said the Oba’s threat, “ reminds of the 2013 inhuman and callous arrest, detention and eventual ‘deportation’ of non-indigenes by the APC-led government of Lagos State and confirms fears that the APC is indeed, on a mission to destroy our national unity, balkanise the nation and obliterate the personal freedom Nigerians enjoy today.”

The party added: “Already, the APC has started terrorising supporters of the PDP with vows to make life unbearable for them when it eventually assumes power. Our investigation reveals that many of our prominent supporters have been marked.

“The process has already started with threats to the life, family and business of the Chairman of the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN), Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah, for supporting PDP candidates and helping non-indigenes win some Lagos seats in the National Assembly on the platform of our great party.”

The party said if these “threats on a duly elected state governor and innocent Nigerians constitute the picture or foretaste of the order of the day when the APC finally assumes power at the centre, then the nation is in serious danger. However, the PDP states in very unambiguous terms that Nigerians would not accept such under any guise whatsoever.”

The PDP called on the President-elect, “General Muhammadu Buhari, as the leader of the APC, to call his members and supporters, particularly in Lagos and Ekiti to order; bearing in mind that it was the peaceful atmosphere and the level playing field nurtured by the PDP-led administration that created the room for his emergence at the presidential poll.”

Also reacting to Oba Akiolu’s comments, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, said it was still consulting and also carefully studying the reported threat by the Lagos monarch.

Secretary-General of Ohanaeze, Dr. Joe Nwaorgu, who spoke to our reporter in Enugu yesterday, described the statement as very weighty, coming from the revered Oba and as a result the body would not reply in a hurry, as the statement had multi-dimensional implications.

Said he: “The statement is very weighty and has far-reaching and multi-dimensional implications. Therefore, it is a soup that has to be licked carefully. We are taking our time to consider all the ramifications of that move of the Oba of Lagos. When we are ready to make a statement, the President-General will make a statement. We are consulting and weighing all implications of that statement; it’s weighty coming from such a man. We are not going to rush to a conclusion.”

Speaking also on the Oba’s warning, Aka Ikenga, in a statement by Chief Goddy Uwazuruike, said: “Aka Ikenga condemns the statement credited to the highly respected Oba of Lagos threatening Ndigbo resident in Lagos to vote only a particular candidate in this governorship and state assembly elections. It is mind boggling that Ndigbo are threatened with consequences if they disobey.

“It is a known fact that we seek a free and fair election. At what point were Yoruba and Hausa/Fulani people threatened for their votes?

“We have waited for a retraction of this statement in vain, but we have stated it repeatedly that people should vote according to their conscience without any fear or favour. Freedom of choice is an inherent right and nobody can take it away from Ndigbo.

“For the avoidance of doubt, threat to one Igbo man is a threat to us all. We shall do our civic duty as directed by INEC and the security agencies to whom we have copied this press release.”

On its part, MASSOB condemned the statements credited to the Oba.

In a statement issued in Enugu yesterday, and signed by its Director of Information, the group described the statement as, “the ranting of a coward who dies even before his actual death. The Oba has no authority to intimidate Ndigbo in Lagos.

“Ndigbo control 70 per cent of Lagos economy; the economic power and affluence of Lagos State is in our people’s hand. This is a democracy, where everybody has the freedom of voting for their preferred candidates.

“Why must the Oba threaten Ndigbo with death and annihilation in Lagos State? The Oba is afraid that the PDP candidates may win and knowing that Ndigbo have bloc votes he is expected to appeal to our people for vote, not to insult us. MASSOB demands an apology from the Oba or we start desecrating and insulting the Yoruba.”

Also in his reaction, the founder of the Igbo Youth Movement and leader of the South East Self-Determination Coalition, Evangelist Elliot Uko said: “The wild jubilation and the revelry going on in the country today just because oil wells of Nigeria have been hijacked by the people who claim they are masters is very nauseating. The revelry and wild jubilation is uncalled-for; the insults and invectives poured on the mighty Igbo nation by non-entities and all sorts of clowns are quite idiotic.

“But the total shocking, wild and surprising insult rained on Igbo nation by a revered traditional ruler who went ahead to tell them that they must do his biddings and that they will perish inside the lagoon if they don’t do his biddings, exemplifies the mindset of the cabal that will seize power on May 29 and their total disrespect and hatred for Ndigbo.

“The shocking insult coming from such a revered traditional ruler simply confirms that the struggle of March 28 was not about good governance; it’s about controlling Nigeria in the unitary structure imposed by the military wing of Northern Nigeria.

“The invectives and insult poured on the Igbo nation confirms how the rest of Nigeria see the Igbo. The revered Oba cannot talk to the Ijaw Nation that way; he will be afraid to talk to the Fulani or the Kanuri’s that way; it is only the Igbo he can talk to that way. What he is saying is that there is no democracy in Nigeria; he is saying that the Obi of Onitsha has the right to curse the Fulani in Onitsha who voted for APC; that the Obi of Onitsha has the right to kill all of them inside River Niger; that he has the right to promise them hell for voting APC. He is saying that the Obi of Onitsha has the right to incite the Igbo to kill all non-Igbo in Onitsha, who voted for APC. What he has done is that he has told the world that come May 29, Nigerians are in for hell.”

Also reacting to Oba Akiolu’s warning, the Igbo Action Movement (IAM) in a statement signed by its President, Col. Uche Ukaegbu (retd), threatened to sue the Oba of Lagos. According to the group, “if the Oba of Lagos wants the Igbo to vote for the APC candidate, he should persuade them to do that and not to threaten their lives and property in Lagos State.”

It reminded the traditional ruler that the Igbo had contributed immensely to the development of Lagos and would never succumb to the threat, saying: “The present and future generations of Ndigbo will never forget this threat.”

The group appealed to the Chairman of the South-East Governors Forum, Chief Theodore Orji, Ohanaeze, politicians and businessmen from the South-East to quickly convene a meeting and fashion out a response. It said that Oba Akiolu should be dragged to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for making a hate speech against the Igbo.

Also speaking, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, South West zone expressed shock and utter disappointment over the statement credited to the Oba of Lagos.

In a statement signed by the President and Secretary of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, South West zone, Prince Nathaniel Uzomah and Iheonunekwu George respectively, the group said that though Igbo have very high regard for the traditional ruler, he can never intimidate or mandate them on how to exercise their fundamental human rights.

According to them, participating in an electoral process is a fundamental human right, which nobody, no matter how highly placed, has the power to direct even his driver or houseboy to vote for a particular candidate.

They urged Igbo resident in Lagos to disregard the threat and vote according to their conscience.
According to them, it was unfortunate that while President Goodluck Jonathan and other well-meaning Nigerians were trying to quell the tension in the country by suing for peace, somebody, as highly placed as the Oba, wanted to continue to overheat the polity.

Sunnews