From Fred Itua, Abuja
Leaders from the South East under the platform of Igbo Elders Consultative Forum, yesterday, urged the Federal Government to immediately demilitarise the region and embrace dialogue with a view to resolving any security threat to the November 6 governorship election in Anambra State.
They also demanded the immediate release of over 5,000 Igbo youths arrested by security agencies on the suspicion of being members of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and Eastern Security Network (ESN). They said doing so would facilitate peace process and restoration of normalcy in the South East.
The forum’s chairman and former governor of Anambra State, Chukwuemeka Ezeife, stated this at a press briefing in Abuja.
“The increasing insecurity in the South East has taken a frightening dimension and remains a terrible and worrisome puzzle that must be addressed for the Independent National Electoral Committee, INEC, to conduct a free, fair and credible election in Anambra State. We, therefore, call upon the Federal Government to demilitarise the South East, as well as take other necessary administrative and non-kinetic measures to restore peace in the zone, thus paving way for a smooth conduct of the scheduled Anambra State election.
“Similarly, the Federal Government’s immediate release of over 5, 000 Igbo youths arrested by security agencies, and dumped in different detention camps in various parts of the country under dehumanising conditions in the name of unknown gun men, IPOB, ESN, among others, will facilitate peace process and restoration of normalcy in the South East. A political solution through the instrumentality of dialogue with all relevant stakeholders is key to the present security imbroglio in the South East. It is our firm belief that a secured and peaceful environment is indispensable for the conduct of free, fair and credible election in any democratic state, including Anambra State.”
Ezeife noted that movement from one city to other in Igboland had become a nightmare with several police and military checkpoints littered all over the place.
He said a journey from one part of the South East to the other, including inter and intra cities movements, have turned into nightmares as several hours were wasted on short-routes that ordinarily would not take more than 30 minutes.