Former Chairman of Police Service Commission (PSC), Chief Simon Okeke has cautioned some Igbo elders to “stop making pronouncements that can be very infuriating and dishonourable to the groups agitating for Biafra. He also urged them to speak out early when youths start derailing, instead of keeping what he called “criminal silence” and subsequently condemning them when things get out of hand.
“The war is over, we have all integrated into Nigeria, there was the doctrine of ‘no victor, no vanquished,’ so the Nigerian experiment has been going on. I have served as PSC chairman and even after that, I have been in pursuit of progress of Nigeria, starting with peace and progress in Igbo land. I think we should stay together as a country, but issues of Igbo marginalization and victimization are real. They are there and very glaring and must be addressed, but not with violence and incessant protests,” Okeke said.
“Sometimes truth can be bitter, but it must be told. There are certain pronouncements from Igbo elders that can be very infuriating and dishonourable of someone that calls himself an elder.
“I have always spoken aloud. I have always said that our Igbo elders should correct the youths early when they are going astray, but they seem to be keeping silent. Their silence is what I have always called ‘criminal silence.’
“If you see the young ones going astray and fail to speak out, your silence is criminal,” he said.
