GOVERNOR Ikedi Ohakim of Imo State declared yesterday in Lagos that the Igbo must shun self-inhibition and other limiting traits if they must find their footing in modern Nigeria, pointing out that unless they did away with the memories of the civil war, the Igbo nation would not be able to record appreciable progress in the polity.

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He also asked the Igbo to brace up for the challenges of leadership offered by the President Umaru Yar’Adua’s administration.

Speaking on “Leadership and Good Governance: Any Stake for Nd’Igbo in Nigeria?” being part of the annual lecture series organised by Igbo socio-cultural group, Aka Ikenga, at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs,(NIIA), Governor Ohakim reiterated his belief that what the Igbo needed to advance their interest in Nigeria was not effusive lamentation on the setback of the civil war, but a repudiation of some limiting traits, some of them self-inflicted, that militate against their progress as a people.

His words: “My topic: Ndigbo: Rebranding for a Changing World, reiterates my firm belief that what the Igbo need to advance their interest in Nigeria is not effusive lamentation of the setback of the civil war, but a repudiation of some of those limiting traits, some of them self-inflicted that militate against our progress.

In this regard, I completely agree with the American writer and activist, Nikki Giovanni, who said the best anyone can do when dealing with weakness is to get as far away from it as possible.

The Igbo nation needs to distance itself from all those inhibiting and debilitating traits which constitute its weakness today.

The Igbo question can only be answered by the Igbo. The Igbo problem can only be solved by the Igbo. Blaming the Nigerian nation will no longer suffice as reason for our retrogression or stagnation.

“Although some people may argue that the civil war is not over; that the shooting just stopped, I believe that the war is over.

Even if the vestiges of the war and the scars remain visible, Ndigbo must learn to succeed against all odds. Lamentation and self-pity will not advance our cause, rather they will simply attempt to put the blame elsewhere and possibly lead to self delusion.

“As I said at the World Igbo Congress, what is needed is a look inward. It is needed now more than ever before. The question is: can we, as Ndigbo, look at ourselves in the mirror and see a brand new Igbo acceptable to our neighbours without suspicion.

Can Ndigbo look afresh at the map and see a new way of navigating the Nigerian ocean and emerge strong among other critical competitors?”

Lamenting the problems facing the five South-East governors, where progress in their respective states is hampered either by what he called , “the albatross of legitimacy, primitive partisan politics and distraction by a viciousness informed by years of retrogressive politics anchored on the ‘Big Man’ syndrome, he cautioned the Igbo to let go the memories of the civil war in order to be re-integrated properly in the Nigerian fold.

“It will soon be 40 years since the end of the civil war. I make bold today to declare to our people that the cycle of self-doubt and externally imposed leadership in Igboland has come to an end. With the emergence of Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua as President, the Igbo limitations of the past have ended.

I say this, because President Yar’Adua appears less inclined to mind other people’s business. His declared adherence to rule of law actually provided more scope for internal democracy within any group.

“The time is, therefore, now for the genuine leaders of Ndigbo to rise and shine. The future is one that the Igbo must confront with their first 11. As Nigeria prepares to become one of the 20 largest economies in the world in year 2020, the Igbo must reposition and re-brand in order to be an integral part of the economic revolution,” he said.

However, calling for an urgent re-branding of the country, Governor Ohakim argued that time was ripe for the nation to evolve a true nation with genuine nationalists, not hypocrites that, according to him, steal it blind while waving the badge of nationalism.

“We must evolve a national character, not federal character, that is tough on crime and honest about rule of law. We must end the cycle of a nation where nothing works. The choice before Nigeria is not between equity and inequity; it is between equity and disintegration.

The choice before Nigeria is not even between justice and injustice; it is between justice and national downfall. I make these points because Ndigbo have no other country but Nigeria,” he said.

Also, speaking at the event, which had prominent Igbo politicians and industrialists in attendance, former External Affairs Minister, Senator Ike Nwachukwu, who chaired the occasion canvassed the emergence of a new face of leadership in Igboland.

According to him, there is no gain-saying that Ndigbo, over the years, have played tremendous roles in the shaping, reconstructing and re-designing the country called Nigeria.