A coalition of Igbo leaders and socio-cultural groups has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to immediately lift what they described as a decades-long “economic blockade” against the South-East, citing the closure of key coastal ports in the region since the aftermath of the civil war.

In a strongly-worded communiqué released on Thursday, after a two-day gathering in Asaba, Delta State, the Igbo Unification Movement and ‘Ndi Na Asu Bia’ Socio-Cultural Organization decried what they said was the continued closure of the Port Harcourt, Bonny, and Opobo ports—once critical gateways for trade in Eastern Nigeria.

“The President must lift the unfair economic blockade imposed on the Igbo almost 60 years ago. We urge him to dredge, modernize, and functionally reopen those coastal ports to re-trigger a pole of development in the East, with spillover effects to the Middle Belt and even Lake Chad”, the communiqué stated.

Signed by Chief Kingsley Onyenwemmadu Kainebi (President), Ofochi Benjamin Atagana Esq (Secretary/Legal Adviser), and Chief Cosmas Chikeobi Agada (Chairman, Local Organizing Committee), the communiqué emphasized unity among all Igbo-speaking groups across Nigeria’s geopolitical divides.

The leaders also urged the federal government to ensure a more equitable distribution of infrastructure and federal projects to Igbo-dominated areas, stating that the region continues to lag in development indicators despite its significant contributions to national progress.

The event drew attention to the perceived political and infrastructural marginalization of the Igbo people and called for urgent corrective measures.

Igbo youth leaders, however, thanked President Tinubu for what they described as “gradual improvements” in national security, though they insisted that “a lot still needs to be done.”

The gathering gave full support to the ongoing push for the creation of Anioma State, which would be carved out from the Igbo-speaking parts of Delta State, stating that the proposed state is necessary to ensure equity and justice within Nigeria’s federal structure.

“Creating Anioma State is not just a political demand, it is a question of equity and historical justice for the Igbo-speaking people,” the communiqué added. (The Guardian)