From Godwin Tsa, Abuja
Elder statesman and Ijaw leader, Chief Edwin Clark, has called on Nigerians to desist from hate speeches, ethnic and regional irredentism that are capable of igniting another civil war in the country.
While stating that the country cannot afford another civil war, the former Information Minister called on Nigerians to toe the line of peace rather than engaging in actions that exhibit intolerance and unwillingness to live together.
Speaking with Sunday Sun yesterday, as his independence message to Nigerians, Clark called on both the federal and state governments to tackle the issue of youth unemployment so as to reduce crime and restiveness in the country.
In addition, he called on the Federal Government to put an end to the activities of herdsmen and kidnappers.
He lamented that recent developments in the country were reminiscent of the events that led to the civil war in 1967. The Ijaw leader strongly condemned the activities of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), saying they brought insecurity to the South-east, while also describing the quit notice a coalition of Arewa youths issued to the Igbo living in the North as treasonable.
Clark said: “At 57, the crisis in the country should be stopped. We don’t want secession; we don’t want another civil war. This young man, Nnamdi Kanu who is calling for Biafra state was only two months old when the war ended.
“Today, he does not respect the elders who fought the war. That the Igbo are marginalised by the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration is a temporary issue and not enough to call for secession.
“Let us love one another. The quit notice by the Arewa Youth Council is criminal and treasonable and should be condemned. Everybody is free to live anywhere he wants to.
“We can’t afford it because it is distractive. At a time when we seek to reposition our country for stronger national cohesion and economic resurgence, to play our destined role in Africa and the world, we do not need this distraction. Governments across the country need a peaceful political and security atmosphere that allows them to concentrate on delivering the promised dividends of democracy to the people.”