Ohanaeze Ndigbo, an Igbo socio-cultural organization, announced that non-violent Pro-Biafra agitators are prepared to engage in dialogue with the federal government to address longstanding issues.

In a statement issued on Tuesday by the group’s factional Deputy President General, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro, Ohanaeze stated that the proposed talks could lead to the release of prisoners of conscience, including Nnamdi Kanu, the reopening of the Eastern Economic Corridor, and an end to violence associated with agitation.

Isiguzoro said, “It is our earnest hope that those misled into cycles of violence and armed struggle will choose to abandon their hostile actions, paving the way for a peaceful and prosperous Southeast.”

The statement described the agitators’ decision to pursue peace as a response to twelve years of diplomatic efforts by the international community and United Nations-affiliated peace groups advocating for negotiations.

Ohanaeze noted that the non-violent Pro-Biafra agitators’ willingness to extend “a dove of peace and a hand of friendship” to the federal government marks a significant moment in Nigeria’s history.

Isiguzoro stated, “This forthcoming dialogue is anticipated to mirror the earlier discussions held at Aburi, Ghana, now reborn as the ‘Abuja Accord’.”

He stressed that the talks aim to resolve grievances fueling the Biafra agitation since the Nigerian Civil War ended in 1970.

The dialogue, according to Isiguzoro, seeks to address the “Igbo Question” and the unimplemented policies of reconciliation, reconstruction, and rehabilitation proposed by General Yakubu Gowon post-war.

He added, “the non-violent Pro-Biafra agitators have extended an olive branch to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, inviting the federal government to engage in a constructive dialogue” to tackle these unresolved issues. (The Guardian)