By Lukman Olabiyi
Former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has eventually broke silence over rumour link his paternity to Igbo, says such such insinuation made him laughs.
The former leader shared his views during a meeting with the Ndigbo Amaka Progressive Market Association , an umbrella body of major markets in Lagos state,
at the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library in Abeokuta on Thursday.
Obasanjo, who did not elaborate on the paternity claim, used the occasion to underscore his belief in national unity, asserting that no Nigerian should be excluded from any part of the country.
He declared, “We own this country together,” and emphasized that everyone, including the Yorubas, Igbos, and Hausas, should work towards unity rather than division.
All these were stated in a statement issued by the ex president’s Special Assistant on Media, Kehinde Akinyemi
According to the statement, the former President said the leadership of the group reached out to him to support the establishment of the Owerri Central Market positioned to be the best of its kind in the country.
The former president acknowledged that the Central Market Owerri had been contemplated since the creation of Imo state, adding that for one reason or the other, it has not been implemented, “but, I am glad it is coming up again and I hope this time, we are all going to make it real. It is going to be big, the first of its kind.
“And, I am happy also that the governor is showing the desired interest and understanding. And, I am confident that the Owerri Central Market will be, as he expressed the desire to lead the marketing team for the market.
Obasanjo said he doesn’t believe anybody in Nigeria should be driven away from any part of the country asserting that, “we own this country together ”
“Having ensured that the Yorubas, Igbos and Hausas all came together to fight the war of unity in Nigeria, and “not to fight Igbos to go, but to come. So if anybody says to me, that somebody should leave any place, he will be the one to leave.”
In his remarks, the group’s spokesperson Chief Emeka Dallas Emmanuel who read a letter jointly signed by Comrade Chinedu Ukatu and Evangelist Iwuchukwu Ezenwafor said the market will be a hub for innovation and entrepreneurship assuring the group’s determination to play its role to the growth of the market and the nation.
He further sought the help of the former President towards the actualization of the international market capable of taking a vast majority off the streets.
Emmanuel added that the assistance of the former president will go a long way in helping their members to obtain loans to purchase shops and spaces at the market.