Igbo in Uyo, group lament Boko Haram killings

IGBO in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State capital, have urged those killing innocent Nigerians in the northern part of the country to sheath their sword for peace and unity of the nation.They made the call as a group, Herbert Macaulay Movement (HMM), lamented that Nigeria is drifting away from the dreams the founding fathers of the nation laboured and fought for, calling on Nigerians, irrespective of their religious or political affiliations, to rise and save the country from terrorists.Fielding questions from journalists at a press conference in Uyo at the weekend, President of the Igbo community in Uyo, Barth Okpala, said his people joined other Nigerians to condemn the killings of innocent Nigerians, including their brothers in the North.Okpala, who said he had to relocate from Bauchi to Akwa Ibom State in 2001 because of similar crisis, appealed to those who were affected directly or indirectly by the killings to either relocate from the flash-points or return to their home states.At an event to mark the 66th anniversary of the death of Herbert Macaulay, one of the foremost Nigerian nationalists, the group noted that 'the country today is facing the greatest challenge since the series of cruel events and depravity that led to the Civil War.'Briefing journalists yesterday in Abuja, President of the movement, Mark Oliseh, who decried the recent attack on the media and the reoccurring incidence of bombings in some parts of the country, noted that the Boko Haram sect is waging a war of terror on the Nigerian people and government, calling for a nationwide protest against the insurgents.He said: 'Let it be made clear that the terrorists do not fight for anybody but their own illusory convictions. The boundary and geography of terrorism gradually extends to include even those who feel protected by silence and sympathy. No wonder we are drifting apart! Where is the Nigerian dream' Where is the dream of the founding fathers to establish a strong modern black nation in Nigeria''Oliseh described the late Macaulay as a great patriot who brought together Nigerians of all stripes to demand independence from the British imperial powers on the platform of the National Council for Nigeria and the Camerouns (NCNC).
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