After a a meeting which was convened by the Director General, Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilization (CBAAC), Sir Ferdinand Anikwe, the leaders , under the auspices of Igbos in the Daispora, said that ''Igbos in the north will not run again''.
They said, ''We have gathered here in respect of the general election which is around the corner. We have come to brainstorm and ex-ray the situation politically to decide whether or not to stay in our northern states of residence or otherwise.
"As leaders, we are appealing to our people to stay behind, not to panic or run away because we are all Nigerians. There is no part of Nigeria where there is no security threat. So, we should stay where we are and exercise our franchise.
"But if anybody decides to go, we cannot stop that person, but to the best of our knowledge as leaders, we have consulted widely and in all our consultations with the authorities, we have been given total assurance that our lives and property are safe.
"Before, when we have not spoken, there was a lot of apprehension and anxieties. That was before we made some contacts as far as security issues were concerned but in our various states, we have had the privilege of interacting with our governors who have assured us that we are safe and as such, we should stay where we are"
''The level we are now in this country is not the same as 2011. This is 2015 and I feel there must be change and development. But let me ask this question, for how long will Nigerians continue to run whenever there is election? For how long shall we be threatened and we start running about? This country belongs to all of us.
"We ran away in 1966 during the Coup. We ran away in 1967 to wage the Civil War. We are back, we are Nigerians. So, we are here as Nigerians. We are not running an inch to any place because running all the time is a sign of weakness and we are saying that we are no longer going to accept that weakness".
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