Afa Igbo Efuna, South East and Mainstream Politics : The Dawn of a Golden Era.

By: Okonkwo Godspower Ikechukwu

“Given the amplitude of economic advantages and opportunities the Igbos have over time created for themselves across and beyond Nigeria, an introspective view of our sociopolitical sojourn tells the story a people who have what it takes to replicate such opportunities and fly politically, but have been condemned to crawl due to the paucity of a substantive agenda and unified political ideology.”

November 2017 marked a major climacteric and turning point in the sociopolitical trajectory of the Igbo Nation as the introduction of the “Afa Igbo Efuna” movement beamed a kaleidoscopic ray of hope for the Igbo Nation.

The landslide victory and tremor set off off by the Afa Igbo Efuna storm at the Anambra Gubernatorial polls tends not to be easing off soon as the name “Ifeanyi Ubah” (proponent of the Afa Igbo Efuna Movement) already began making cameos in most political debates as the age long anticipated catalyst set to champion the long awaited pan-Igbo revolution as well as unleash the proverbial “rainstorm” which would cleanse the augean stables.

Given the amplitude of economic advantages and opportunities the Igbos have overtime created for themselves across and beyond Nigeria, an introspective view of our political sojourn tells the story a people who have what it takes to replicate such opportunities and fly politically, but have been condemned to crawl due to the paucity of a substantive agenda and unified political ideology.

NDIGBO AND THE ALLURE OF SECESSION.

Despite the unfavourable outcome of the June 12 elections and the discreet clamour for an independent Oduduwa republic, the Yorubas didn’t seek to break out of Nigeria forcefully. Rather with a unified agenda and defined ideological framework, they created a powerbloc and bargaining muscle for themselves, they got the Presidency of Nigeria and in no distant time foregrounded their prominence as powerbrokers in Nigerian mainstream politics.

While no one begrudges the strident agitation for secession, it is pertinent to note that succession of secession holds no template for success in certain cases. Back in 2011 When South Sudan gained its independence from Sudan, Joy and exuberance was the mood of the land. But today, internal crisis, hysteria and the recently declared famine in parts of the country have replaced the high hopes its citizens once had. South Sudan is rich in oil, but following the implosion suffered by the fledgling republic it is one of the least developed regions on earth.

Similarly, countries like Northern cyprus, Eastern Ukraine, Eritrea amongst many others have suffered variegated setbacks after secession.

The question remains; why quit after our redoubtable sacrifices and contributions to the building of modern Nigeria, especially at a re-defining moment when the threshold of a Golden Era stands before us.

AFA IGBO EFUNA: THE DAWN OF A GOLDEN ERA.

Under the auspices of the Afa Igbo Efuna movement, the Igbo Nation defied all preconceptions to witness a “never seen before” landslide feat at the Anambra Gubernatorial polls last year.

In our collective search for the elysium and continuous struggle for a restructured polity, Ndi Igbo must articulate and adopt a practicable framework which would champion the rebuilding, sustenance and relevance of the Igbo dream and legacy bequeathed to us by our founding fathers.

While APGA might have been written off as a “one state party “ in recent times, with an extraordinary tinge of altruism, sincerity of purpose and unison we can reclaim our  lost stake in the political equation of this country.

Undoubtedly, what was witnessed in November 2017 can be replicated and even surpassed in the Southeast and beyond. After all, _what we did yesterday taught us that nothing is impossible, because what seemed impossible yesterday was possible today, so nothing will seem impossible tomorrow._ (Apologies to the late Fidel Castro).

Having studied the political terrain in the Southeast in particular and Nigeria in general where every political party must gird its loins regionally before appearing at the centre, the incontrovertible fact here remains that there is need for the Igbo nation to identify with our kith and kin. The implication of this is that in search of political identity in Nigeria, APGA remains our last hope.

We must understand that by embracing the Afa Igbo Efuna movement and re-invigorating APGA, we have a trump card to play when we find ourselves at the game table.

A new lease of life has come to the Igbo nation and we must strive embrace it.