He said it was worrisome that since the nation’s independence in 1960, it is still battling with how to coexist as one nation devoid of all the numerous problems of ethnicity and religion.
Okorocha, who also spoke of his meeting with leaders of the secessionists MASSOB said Nigeria must wake up from its present position, which he described as a sleeping giant to begin to do things like most other nations of the world who take the issue of their citizens seriously.
“There is a major issue that we must address urgently in Nigeria and that is the issue of unity of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Today, I must say that the only force holding Nigeria is God because all the qualities and qualifications of nations that have broken, all of them are here and all the characteristics of a broken nation are in Nigeria. Look at the insurgency in the North-East, the crisis in the South and the last election we had, yet we are still together, it means that God is not done with us yet, we must thank God but we must also not take this grace of God for granted.
“Our main problem is tribalism and sectionalism, some few months ago when President Jonathan was in power. Some people from the South-South and the Christians said it was their time. Today it is President Buhari and some local Nigerians will say it is the time for northerners and Muslims. No nation can develop in that manner.
“When the issue of MASSOB came, they ended their rally in Owerri three days ago in Imo State and it was meant to be the main rally where the catastrophe and destruction will happen. The information came to me that MASSOB was coming to Imo State. With the consent of the President and the Service Chiefs, I said no shooting, give them proper escort. So they were followed with armoured tanks and military vehicles and they went round, prayed at every junction and ended up in Imo State without a drop of blood.
“But in the night, my chief of staff told me that he got a call from somebody that the leadership of MASSOB wanted to see me, so I called Mr. President and intimated him and he said I should go ahead and receive them. So by 11 pm MASSOB arrived my house. When they came in you could see people that for a very long time did not care to take their bath and the first stood up to say ‘I am Late Dr. so, so and so, another said ‘I am late Barr. Or Late Chief so, so and so’ and I told them that I don’t communicate with dead people since they have ‘late’ attached to their names. But they told me they have their reasons.
“They said that some of them were killed in the North-East and they ran back home, they are not doing anything and most of them are orphans and their children cannot go back to school and nobody cares to listen to them. They also told me that they were part of the Niger Delta that caused the problems there but when they gave them amnesty, they were not given after surrendering their arms.
Third, they told me that in Lagos they locked up their shops and the traditional ruler said they should jump into the lagoon. Number four, that they have more than 160 corpses of their members litered all over the country without burial. Number five, they said they want God to hear them. When I asked if it is the reason they want to declare a nation, they said they want everybody to know that the issue that led to Biafra is still there. It is an ill wind that blows nobody any good, sometimes our leaders have a role to play because every unemployed youth in this country is a time bomb.”