Shehu Yaradua Centre has
always been a venue for elite occasions and on September 29, 2016; it was the
turn of Honourable Chudi Offodile to draw his own crowd of distinguished
personalities that cut across all spheres of life.
It was the occasion of the
presentation of his book, ‘THE POLITICS
OF BIAFRA AND THE FUTURE OF NIGERIA’
Among the personalities
that graced the occasion were the former Vice President of Nigeria; Chief Alex
Ekwueme and his wife, the former Senate President;
The event was anchored by
Dr. Abiodun Adeleye. Chief Chidoka, former Aviation Minister moderated the discussion
session. He described the book as an exercise of the finest intellectual
character that took a deep look at the place of Ndigbo in the past, present and
future.
The book reviewer Chief
Chukwuma Soludo stated that the book was one of the best books on Biafra. He
equally described the 20 short chapters of 7 parts of 279 paged book as the
book on the future of Nigeria. It is a book that has done a lot of thinking for
us.
He loved the book because
it is laced with humour, well researched and takes you on a historical journey.
One of the highpoints of the book is on Nigeria’s futile attempt at forging a
nation.
The book he said dealt with
several themes like Igbo identity
crisis, the coup, the counter coup, period of hostilities, the Aburi
agreement, the golden era of Nigeria, years of decline, Dr. Ekwueme’s bid for
power, betrayal, the PDP years among others.
The book is of the view
that development will continue to elude Nigeria until it confronts the Nigerian
dilemma.
Soludo concluded his review
by stating that the major challenge in Nigeria was leadership failure.
Finally on a personal note,
he advised the President not to listen to anyone who advises him to ignore the
burning issue of the Biafra. He also wants him to order for the release of
Nnamdi Kanu from detention.
The next speaker was Bishop
Matthew Kukah. In his welcome address, he said that it was so much as what has
happened but what followed the day after.
In Nigeria he noted, no
ethnic or region is happy.
The discussion panel was
made up of; Prof. A.B.C Nwosu a former Minister of Education, Prof. Ihechukwu
Madubuike a former Minister of Education, Dr. Wale Okediran the former
President of Association of Nigerian Authors.
On their views about the
work, Prof. A.B.C Nwosu said he was proud of the author for the tremendous
courage he showed in interrogating autocracy and for writing a book that was
extremely readable. He stated that despite what the author and his family went
through, the book was devoid of bitterness.
He concluded that
restructuring is the answer because according to him, change is a law of life
and those who keep looking back miss the point.
Prof. Madubuike stated that
there were many reasons why authors write ranging from fame to money and many
others. However he sensed after reading Chudi Offodile’s book that the author
sought to correct a historical perspective.
He stated that Nigeria has
lived in denial for so long and it was time it took a position. Unlike what the
thinking among some quarters is, the Igbos are not leaderless. The phrase
Igboenweze (Igbos do not have a king) means that there is royalty in every Igbo
man.
On justice for the Igbos,
he said that people can live without religion but no one can live without
justice.
He however warned that the
much touted restructuring can only work when justice, equity and respect for
human beings is made the centre.
Finally, he stated that
restructuring the country did not mean self-determination.
Dr. Wale Okediran an award
winning author commended the author for his good command of English.
The book he stated was in
two parts; history of Biafra and the future of Biafra.
He described the Igbos as
energetic and a brilliant race.
He described literature as
a unifying factor and stated that Nigeria owns the Adichie, Achebe, Ekwensi and
other Igbo notable writers.
Okediran said that he was
happy to be part of the project because he urged the author who was his
colleague at National Assembly to write the book after listening to his
brilliant analysis on topical issues. He also continued working with the author
until the book was completed.
In his vote of thanks, the
author recognised Chief Joop Berkhout the Chairman of Safari Books Ltd and his
son for publishing the book after they read and found it worthy.
He recognised late Senate
President, Chuba Okadigbo who urged him to write articles and Prof. Soludo who
in response to the manuscript he sent to him complimented him as writing a successful
book.
He thanked all those who
graced the occasion from all over Nigeria to grace the occasion.
It was a successful event not
just in terms of the money pledged but in terms of the wealth of knowledge
gained on the burning issue of Biafra.
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