The Ohanaeze Youth Council (OYC) has criticized the federal government for poor provision made for the South-East in the 2016 budget proposed by President Muhammadu Buhari.
Today.ng reports that the group expressed its dissatisfaction in a statement made on Monday, December 28, and signed by its secretary-general, Mazi Okwu Nnabuike, and the forum chairman in the seven Ohanaeze states, Mazi Alex Okemiri.
Wondering why the federal government voted billions of Naira to the North-East, the OYC accused the government of deliberately marginalizing the South-East.
“The South-East is supposed to be declared a disaster zone going by long years of neglect. Nothing short of the scheme for Niger Delta Youths and militants and creation of the Ministry of South East Affairs will assuage the feelings of the suffering Igbo youths who are the worst treated in the country,” the statement read in part.
The OYC also warned the Nigerian army not to repeat the alleged provocative killings it carried out at Onitsha and called on the military High Command “to fish out the soldiers that used life bullet on unarmed protesters, else we will write officially to the international Criminal Court over the matter”.
Members of the group wondered how could the army use life bullet instead of rubber and tear gas on unarmed protesters.
The council urged the security agents to arrest some people they described as impostors, who “have been going about claiming to be presidents of the council and extorting money from members of the unsuspecting public, and planning violent attack on the South-East states”.
The OYC highlighted that the Youth wing of Ohanaeze Ndigbo is currently under the leadership of Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro.
Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari has recently explained how the federal government will source for funds to run the N6trillion budget for next year.
Buhari assured Nigerians that in spite of the fall in the international price of crude oil, measures taken to block leakages in the nation’s revenue generating agencies would ensure enough cash to fund the budget.
