Northern Youths To Withdraw Quit Notice Today

Barring any last minute change of mind, the Coalition of
Northern Youth Groups (CNYG) will today suspend a clause in its
Kaduna declaration, otherwise known as ‘quit notice’ issued
Nigerians of the Igbo extraction to leave the 19 Northern states by
October 1, LEADERSHIP not TheNigerialawyer gathered yesterday.

A source who is privy to the activities of the coalition told
this paper that the Northern youths have concluded plans to
announce the suspension of the ‘quit notice’ at an international
press conference in Abuja today.

According to the source who preferred not to be mentioned in
print, the CNYG’s decision to withdraw the quit notice followed
series of meeting with numerous stakeholders.

He said the final decision to withdraw the quit notice was taken
since last week at a meeting between the leadership of the
coalition and seven prominent Northern elders.

“At the meeting which took place last week Wednesday, the
Northern elders persuaded the Arewa youths to withdraw the quit
notice for the sake of national interest, in order that the country
be kept as one”, the source added.

Recalls that at the height of the tension generated by the quit
notice issued the Igbos, the Arewa youths were engaged in series of
meetings with eminent stakeholders in the country in frantic moves
to prevail on them to rescind their decision.

The stakeholders who invited the coalition for a meeting include
eminent Northern traditional rulers, the Northern Governors’ Forum
led by Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno State, the Directorate of
State Security, the National Peace Committee, the Northern Elders
Forum, several Igbo leaders and cultural groups, including Ohanaeze
Ndigbo Youths Worldwide and the Eze Ndigbo in all the 19 northern
states.

Also, a position paper by the coalition titled, ‘General
Assessment and Possibility of Review of the Kaduna Declaration and
a letter it wrote to the Vice President exclusively obtained by our
correspondent confirmed the decision by the northern youth groups
to withdraw the quit notice.

In the position paper, the CNYG said the decision to withdraw
the quit notice is tied to a set of demands which it had
articulated for the attention of the National Peace Committee, the
Northern Governors’ Forum (NGF) and the Northern Elders Forum (NEF)
for onward transmission to the presidency.

The conditions attached include the immediate re-arrest of the
self-appointed leader of the indigenous people of biafra (IPOB),
Nnamdi Kanu, who breached his bail conditions.

According to the coalition, the strange quit notice, issued on
Tuesday, June 6, 2017 in Kaduna, was in response to the breakaway
agitation by Igbos under the auspices of IPOB led by Kanu.

The CNYG noted in the paper that they were at different times
prevailed upon by stakeholders to reconsider their stance in the
interest of national security and unity.

In the position paper, CNYG recalled the four grounds on which
it based its decision to issue the ‘Kaduna Declaration as follows:
“The Igbo’s arrogant attitude of continuing affront on the peace of
Nigeria, spewing hatred and heaping insults on others and expecting
everyone else to stoop condescendingly to this brazen affront.

“The incessant threat, insult, violence and open call for war on
all other tribes and regions that has become the hallmark of IPOB’s
Biafran agitation based on fake and exaggerated claims of
marginalization, is, to put it mildly, offensively provocative.

“No reasonable standard allows a people to defer with the
universally recognized path of civility and opt for violent
campaigns and hate summons on a mere perception of marginalization
anywhere in the world.

“At one time or another, other parts of Nigeria have also made
similar complains of marginalization but followed it up in
civilized democratic manner as against the Igbo violent option”, it
said then.

Although the Kaduna State government swiftly reacted to the
controversial decision of the Arewa Youths by ordering the arrest
of their leaders who made the pronouncement, the order was never
effected by the Kaduna State Police Command, a situation that
further aggravated exchange of words between some Southern and
Northern leaders.

Also, the federal government had initiated various peace moves
as championed by the then acting president, Osinbajo, with series
of meetings with leaders of thought from the North and the
Southeast in order to douse the tension raised by the Kaduna
Declaration.

Meanwhile, the letter dated Thursday, August 17, 2017 by the
Arewa Youths intimating Osinbajo of their decision to suspend the
‘quit notice’ to Igbos today, which was obtained by LEADERSHIP
yesterday was signed by the coalition’s chairman, N.A. Sharrif.

“We have resolved to announce at an open air international press
conference on Thursday, August 24, 2017 in Abuja the definite
suspension of the relocation clause contained in the Kaduna
Declaration”, CYNG told Osinbajo in the letter titled, ‘Update on
The Kaduna Declaration and Commending Your Excellency’s Effort at
Maintaining National Security and Peace’

The Arewa Youths also demanded that seven conditions must be met
as necessary to the definite suspension of the quit notice.

The conditions include to allow the Igbos and support them to
hold a referendum to decide their future, either as Nigerians or as
biafrans, in view of the fact that the population of the Igbos that
supports Biafra is far larger than the few who seem to be against
it.

The coalition noted that by virtue of Nigeria being a signatory
to the various international conventions that entrench the right of
a people to self-determination, it was only proper for Nigerian
authorities to reflect that right in the ongoing constitution
review so as to end the deception that Nigeria’s unity is
non-negotiable.

The CNYG stated: “If for any reason a referendum cannot be held
for the moment, we insist the Igbo both in the Southeast and in
other parts of Nigeria be made to discard totally any idea of
Biafra and to show practical actions to prove that they believe in
one Nigeria.

“All southeast political and religious leaders including elected
and other office holders should openly denounce Biafra and declare
loyalty to one Nigeria by doing away with all symbols and flags of
Biafra and replacing them with recognized Nigerian symbols.

“In collaboration with law enforcement agencies, a careful,
lawful and purposive search should be conducted of all suspected
premises in the North in which IPOB sympathizers might be amassing
arms. This is necessary because since the declaration of war by
IPOB, there had been cases of interception of caches of arms
concealed and smuggled into some parts of northern Nigeria.

“Immediate steps should be taken for the rearrest of Nnamdi Kanu
and his appropriate prosecution; total closure of the open drug
markets operating in Northern Nigeria and the implementation of the
NDDG using the initial channel of distribution, and lastly

“We demand that the federal government comes up with clear laws
on hate speech, even if the Igbos leave Nigeria, this law should
remain to contain other individuals or groups whose way of
agitation is to engage in hate speech capable of disrupting peace
and harmony”.

Barring any last minute change of mind, the Coalition of
Northern Youth Groups (CNYG) will today suspend a clause in its
Kaduna declaration, otherwise known as ‘quit notice’ issued
Nigerians of the Igbo extraction to leave the 19 Northern states by
October 1, LEADERSHIP not TheNigerialawyer gathered
yesterday.

A source who is privy to the activities of the coalition told
this paper that the Northern youths have concluded plans to
announce the suspension of the ‘quit notice’ at an international
press conference in Abuja today.

According to the source who preferred not to be mentioned in
print, the CNYG’s decision to withdraw the quit notice followed
series of meeting with numerous stakeholders.

He said the final decision to withdraw the quit notice was taken
since last week at a meeting between the leadership of the
coalition and seven prominent Northern elders.

“At the meeting which took place last week Wednesday, the
Northern elders persuaded the Arewa youths to withdraw the quit
notice for the sake of national interest, in order that the country
be kept as one”, the source added.

Recalls that at the height of the tension generated by the quit
notice issued the Igbos, the Arewa youths were engaged in series of
meetings with eminent stakeholders in the country in frantic moves
to prevail on them to rescind their decision.

The stakeholders who invited the coalition for a meeting include
eminent Northern traditional rulers, the Northern Governors’ Forum
led by Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno State, the Directorate of
State Security, the National Peace Committee, the Northern Elders
Forum, several Igbo leaders and cultural groups, including Ohanaeze
Ndigbo Youths Worldwide and the Eze Ndigbo in all the 19 northern
states.

Also, a position paper by the coalition titled, ‘General
Assessment and Possibility of Review of the Kaduna Declaration and
a letter it wrote to the Vice President exclusively obtained by our
correspondent confirmed the decision by the northern youth groups
to withdraw the quit notice.

In the position paper, the CNYG said the decision to withdraw
the quit notice is tied to a set of demands which it had
articulated for the attention of the National Peace Committee, the
Northern Governors’ Forum (NGF) and the Northern Elders Forum (NEF)
for onward transmission to the presidency.

The conditions attached include the immediate re-arrest of the
self-appointed leader of the indigenous people of biafra (IPOB),
Nnamdi Kanu, who breached his bail conditions.

According to the coalition, the strange quit notice, issued on
Tuesday, June 6, 2017 in Kaduna, was in response to the breakaway
agitation by Igbos under the auspices of IPOB led by Kanu.

The CNYG noted in the paper that they were at different times
prevailed upon by stakeholders to reconsider their stance in the
interest of national security and unity.

In the position paper, CNYG recalled the four grounds on which
it based its decision to issue the ‘Kaduna Declaration as follows:
“The Igbo’s arrogant attitude of continuing affront on the peace of
Nigeria, spewing hatred and heaping insults on others and expecting
everyone else to stoop condescendingly to this brazen affront.

“The incessant threat, insult, violence and open call for war on
all other tribes and regions that has become the hallmark of IPOB’s
Biafran agitation based on fake and exaggerated claims of
marginalization, is, to put it mildly, offensively provocative.

“No reasonable standard allows a people to defer with the
universally recognized path of civility and opt for violent
campaigns and hate summons on a mere perception of marginalization
anywhere in the world.

“At one time or another, other parts of Nigeria have also made
similar complains of marginalization but followed it up in
civilized democratic manner as against the Igbo violent option”, it
said then.

Although the Kaduna State government swiftly reacted to the
controversial decision of the Arewa Youths by ordering the arrest
of their leaders who made the pronouncement, the order was never
effected by the Kaduna State Police Command, a situation that
further aggravated exchange of words between some Southern and
Northern leaders.

Also, the federal government had initiated various peace moves
as championed by the then acting president, Osinbajo, with series
of meetings with leaders of thought from the North and the
Southeast in order to douse the tension raised by the Kaduna
Declaration.

Meanwhile, the letter dated Thursday, August 17, 2017 by the
Arewa Youths intimating Osinbajo of their decision to suspend the
‘quit notice’ to Igbos today, which was obtained by LEADERSHIP
yesterday was signed by the coalition’s chairman, N.A. Sharrif.

“We have resolved to announce at an open air international press
conference on Thursday, August 24, 2017 in Abuja the definite
suspension of the relocation clause contained in the Kaduna
Declaration”, CYNG told Osinbajo in the letter titled, ‘Update on
The Kaduna Declaration and Commending Your Excellency’s Effort at
Maintaining National Security and Peace’

The Arewa Youths also demanded that seven conditions must be met
as necessary to the definite suspension of the quit notice.

The conditions include to allow the Igbos and support them to
hold a referendum to decide their future, either as Nigerians or as
biafrans, in view of the fact that the population of the Igbos that
supports Biafra is far larger than the few who seem to be against
it.

The coalition noted that by virtue of Nigeria being a signatory
to the various international conventions that entrench the right of
a people to self-determination, it was only proper for Nigerian
authorities to reflect that right in the ongoing constitution
review so as to end the deception that Nigeria’s unity is
non-negotiable.

The CNYG stated: “If for any reason a referendum cannot be held
for the moment, we insist the Igbo both in the Southeast and in
other parts of Nigeria be made to discard totally any idea of
Biafra and to show practical actions to prove that they believe in
one Nigeria.

“All southeast political and religious leaders including elected
and other office holders should openly denounce Biafra and declare
loyalty to one Nigeria by doing away with all symbols and flags of
Biafra and replacing them with recognized Nigerian symbols.

“In collaboration with law enforcement agencies, a careful,
lawful and purposive search should be conducted of all suspected
premises in the North in which IPOB sympathizers might be amassing
arms. This is necessary because since the declaration of war by
IPOB, there had been cases of interception of caches of arms
concealed and smuggled into some parts of northern Nigeria.

“Immediate steps should be taken for the rearrest of Nnamdi Kanu
and his appropriate prosecution; total closure of the open drug
markets operating in Northern Nigeria and the implementation of the
NDDG using the initial channel of distribution, and lastly

“We demand that the federal government comes up with clear laws
on hate speech, even if the Igbos leave Nigeria, this law should
remain to contain other individuals or groups whose way of
agitation is to engage in hate speech capable of disrupting peace
and harmony”.