"Nothing seems normal anymore."
A group of women, under the aegis of Nkata Ndi Inyom Igbo, has demanded an end to the insecurity across South-east Nigeria.
At its third annual conference held at the old Governor's Lodge Enugu on Tuesday, Josephine Anineh, the group's president, said the women were disturbed by the insecurity which she said had continued to take a toll on the social and economic lives of the people in the region.
"As women who had high hopes of partnering with our men and young people to develop our homeland, we are totally disappointed that all we see and feel is tears, sorrow and blood.
"As daughters, sisters, wives and mothers, we, the women, have looked on as our region is mired in self-destructive lethargy and actions. We, the women, are the greatest victims of the insecurity in the land," Mrs Anineh said.
The group's president said the women have decided to partner men to ensure return of peace, unity and development in the region, arguing that women in Igbo land play important roles in resolving conflict in communities and families.
"Nothing seems normal anymore. We are losing the human capital as we lose our productive men, we are suffering the losses of our sons and husbands and we look on as investors scamper out of the South-east to other states because there is fear and anxiety in the land.
"Our children, our hope for the future are all running away from home and those who remain are unemployed while those outside who feel like hearkening to the 'Aku Luo Uno' mantra are reluctant to come home because we literally have a Hobbesian state in Igboland where life seems to be brutal, short and nasty," the president stated.
Continuing, she said: "We are ready as women to initiate the moves that can return peace to our region. We have sadly looked on but it is obvious we all need a team spirit for the wrongs to be righted. Every other region in Nigeria might not be an Eldorado but there seems to be some synergy that promotes peace and unity that sadly seems to be lacking with us.
"The South-east needs the urgency of now to address the insecurity that has made the region lose billions if not trillions of naira for a region known for its industry and commerce. We must steady the ship of the region before it sinks like the Titanic which even though was supposedly built to be strong sank in a very historic manner."
On her part, the Chairperson of the Board of Trustee of the group, Regina Amadi-Njoku, said that they were concerned because women remain the worst victims of the insecurity in the region.
"Many are in captivity while many more live in fear or have been displaced and become refugees in Igboland. Many that are outside the South-east are too scared to make the valued journey to our home land," Mr Amadi-Njoku said.
"This has dire socio-economic consequences. We are therefore here today to rub minds, to proffer solutions in unison so that we can harness the values of the complementarity that prospered our forebears," she added.
Governor Mbah speaks
Responding, Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State commended the women for bringing up the conversation at this time and assured of his administration's support.
Mr Mbah, represented by the Deputy Governor of the state, Ifeanyi Ossai, urged the women to participate and contribute to the task of restoring peace and security in the South-east.
The governor said the initiative was an avenue to remind men about what they have failed to do and that it was imperative to encourage both women and men to take seriously the need to join hands in fighting insecurity in the region.
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Background
Security has deteriorated in Nigeria's South-east with frequent attacks by armed persons in the region.
The attacks often target security agencies, government officials and facilities.
Hundreds of people, including community leaders, security operatives and government officials, have been killed or injured in such attacks.
The Nigerian government has accused the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) of being responsible for the deadly attacks in the region. But the group has repeatedly denied any involvement in the attacks.
IPOB is a group leading agitation for an independent state of Biafra which it wants carved out from the South-east and some parts of the South-south Nigeria.
