I never intended to demean the Igbo, says Okupe over comments

A FORMER aide to Ex-Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan, Doyin Okupe has tendered unreserved apology to Nigerians of Igbo extraction over some controversial posts he put on his Twitter handle yesterday.

Okupe had attributed the inability of the politicians from the Southeast region of the country to get to the highest political seat to the seething acrimony between them and the North.

In a series of tweets, he said the Northerners are yet to forgive the Igbo over the 1966 coup which claimed the Sardauna of Sokoto.

The former presidential aide, who has declared his interest to run in the 2023 presidency, pointed out that if the Igbos reach a consensus with the North, in the interest of equity, fairness, and national unity, he will shelve his ambition.

“A national consensus for Igbo Presidency cannot evolve until the core north forgives the Igbos for the killing of Sardauna of Sokoto by Nigerian soldiers of Igbo extraction in the 1966 Coup.

“If this consensus emerges, in the interest of equity, fairness & national unity, I will shelve my ambition & support whoever is chosen as a candidate by my party.

“However, in the event that this national consensus is not achievable, I WILL RUN FOR PRESIDENT IN 2023 by God’s Grace.

“This is the political Knot only the Igbo leaders must spearhead and with the support of other well-meaning Nigerians, resolve with a high level of humility and political dexterity,” he said.

Okupe has now apologised via his Twitter account, noting that he regretted his comments.

“I tender my unreserved apology to the Igbos and other Nigerians who felt offended by my post on Igbo presidency and the North. I never intended to hurt or demean the Igbos. Instead, I wanted to help actualize the dream. I regret the said post, and I am truly sorry,” Okupe stated.

The 1966 coup remains the first coup in the annal of the country.It was plotted and executed barely six years after the country got her independence from the clutches of the British colonial rule.

Often tagged Igbo coup, because the plotters  were predominantly from the Southeast of the country and the coup led by duo of Kaduna Nzeogwu and Obianjunu.

The coup claimed lives of many prominent politicians from other regions of the country except the east.

The Premier of the  defunct Western Region, Chief Samuel Ladoke Akintola, was killed; the prime minister, Chief Tarawa Balewa was murdered while the Saraudana of Sokoto, Ahmadu Bello who was premier of the Northern region was also eliminated by the coup plotters.

Thr Sardauna  was not just a political cum religious leader in the North; he was a cult-hero in his lifetime and the manner of his death caused a furore in the North.

The coup was beloved to have led to a reprisal in 1967 which plunged the country into its first and only civil war that lasted for three years.