Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has advised President
Muhammadu Buhari to dialogue with the leader of the Indigenous
People of Biafra , Nnamdi Kanu , to curb the secessionist agitations
instead of the deployment of soldiers in the South - East .
Obasanjo said this during an interview with the Newsweek
Magazine .
The former President said , “ I don’ t see anything wrong in that
( Buhari meeting with Kanu ) . I would not object to that ; if anything, I
would encourage it .
“ I would want to meet Kanu myself and talk to people like him,
people of his age , ( and ask ) ‘ What are your worries ?’ Not only from
the South - East but from all parts of Nigeria ( sic ) . ”
Obasanjo, who led the final offensive that brought the civil war to an
end in 1970 , said he had seen too many wars and it was time for
Nigeria to move on .
He said he believed that enough dialogue had not been done by both
the government and several groups .
The former President , however , said secession was not the answer .
He said , “ Those who fought in the war in Biafra will not want to fight
any other war . I fought in that war and it was an unfortunate war and
I said I had fought one war too many in Nigeria ; I don’ t want to see
another .
“ The heavy boot is not the solution. I believe also whatever may be
the frustration of any youth in any part of Nigeria ; I believe secession
is not the solution. ”
The former President , who was also the military head of state from
1976 – 1979, said economic development in the country was the only
way to solve the various agitations across the country .
Some Igbo leaders have complained that President Buhari , who hails
from northern Nigeria, has prioritised the development of other parts
of the country to their detriment .
“ We need to satisfy the youth in job creation , in wealth creation , in
giving them a better , fulfilled life , in giving them hope for the future.
There ’ s no easy way out , ” he said .
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