The bill in the Senate that would permanently make the Sultan of Sokoto and the Ooni of Ife the sole Co-Chairmen of the Traditional Rulers Council has been opposed by the Igbo Community Association, or ICA, of the Federal Capital Territory, or FCT, Abuja.
The bill, which has passed second reading in the Senate, is causing controversy, according to BASEMEDIA NEWS, since the Middle-Belt Forum and Ohanaeze Ndigbo are opposing it.
The organization said it would oppose the measure in a statement signed on Tuesday by Mr. Mazi Emmanuel Onah, the Secretary General, and Engr. Ikenna Ellis-Ezenekwe, the President General of ICA.
The statement claims that the bill could lead to social and ethnic instability.
The Igbo organization said, “It smacks of insensitivity towards the ethnic diversity of Nigeria,” and called on the National Assembly to take a step back.
“The National Assembly’s leadership ought to reconsider and refrain from taking Nigeria back to the era of systematic discrimination and government-sponsored exclusion.
“The Igbo people will oppose it. We shall stand with all willing and kind-hearted ethnic groups in Nigeria to oppose this blatant disregard for other ethnic groups.
The Sokoto Sultan is not a conventional leader. He is a person of faith. The Ooni of Ife and the Sultan of Sokoto do not traditionally have jurisdiction over the Kanuris. Not all Igbo people do either.
It said, “The Ooni of Ife or Sultan of Sokoto do not traditionally rule over the ethnic groups that live in the north central region and the south south geopolitical regions.”
Nigeria is still healing from its previous sins, therefore the National Assembly shouldn’t send the nation back to those times, the ICA said.
“There are three main tribes in this lovely country. The Yoruba, the Igbo, and the Hausa. This truth must be acknowledged and respected by the National Assembly.
“We demand that the National Traditional Rulers Council be chaired by representatives from Nigeria’s three main tribes.
The group went on to say, “We demand that members of the National Assembly speak out against this unfolding injustice.”
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