Negotiate With Kanu – Obasanjo Tells Buhari
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said that President Buhari should meet with Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the secessionist Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), to prevent escalation of the ongoing crisis.
Yesterday, Obasanjo was quoted saying:
“I don’t see anything wrong in that [Buhari meeting with Kanu]. I would not object to that; if anything, I would
encourage it.”
Talking to journalists , Obasanjo, also expeessed readiness to meet with Kanu inorder to enquire about the demands of the agitating groups.
“I would want to meet Kanu myself and talk to people like him, people of his age, [and ask:] ‘What are your worries?’ Not only from the southeast but from all parts of Nigeria”, he said.
He also mentioned that the army’s “heavy boot” response to pro-Biafra
sentiment is “not the solution” but adds that the quest for secession by IPOB is not the way forward either.
“We need to satisfy the youth in job creation, in wealth creation, in giving them a better, fulfilled life, in giving
them hope for the future. There’s no easy way out,” he said.
On Friday, the military authorities declared IPOB as a “military terrorist group” enlisting them among other terrorist groups in Nigeria like Boko Haram and Ansaru.
