- Tijjani Muhammad Musa
"There are some Igbo people who have no hut in their father’s house here (in the South East), but they have ten-storey building in the North and Lagos. Have you ever seen any storey-building built by a Hausa man in Igboland? Yet we say we are one Nigeria. Not even a hut. What is happening? Let us tell ourselves the truth.” - Rev. Father Mbaka
"There are some Igbo people who have no hut in their father’s house here (in the South East), but they have ten-storey building in the North and Lagos. Have you ever seen any storey-building built by a Hausa man in Igboland? Yet we say we are one Nigeria. Not even a hut. What is happening? Let us tell ourselves the truth.” - Rev. Father Mbaka
Well, if we must "tell ourselves the truth" to quote Rev. Father Ejike
Mbaka and answer his question, it is pertinent that we ask another very
important question thus; Could it be possible that in Hausa, Yoruba and
other lands, the Igbos are encouraged and allowed to own and even
develop properties, whereas such a gesture is not reciprocated in Igbo
land?
Stories abound of how the Igbos treat whoever is not of their ethnic extraction in their region, states and localities. They are reported to be very hostile to whoever indicates any interest in acquiring landed property within Igbo dominated land and so make it virtually impossible for any to own a piece of land, talkless of building a one bedroom flat there.
Again, reports has it that the Igbos refuse to rent out shops to non-Igbos in their markets and such areas of commercial interactions, no matter how hard those non-Igbos try to do so. But all are aware of how easily Igbos are given shops to conduct their businesses in areas outside their region.
Again eye witness reports has it that the Igbos would not even let a business partner of their fellow tribesman park, stand or sit in front of their own shop, so long as that customer is not there to transact business with them. They will insist he or she should move away from their shop front to the person they are there to do business with.
Again many are witnesses to the fact that the Igbos in most instances are niggardly with his language. Where other people will readily teach an Igbo man their language for easier and more accommodating interaction and transactions, the Igbos would mostly refuse to teach a single Igbo word to a non-Igbo for reasons best known to them. They are that non-giving.
These and other negative attitudes of the Igbos are some of the essential reasons why many 10 storey buildings can never be found built by non-Igbos in Igbo land. Until this psychological problem is squarely addressed by leaders and religious personalities of Igbo extraction, other people, not just Nigerians would not find it possible to invest in Igbo land.
I hope this brief response answers Rev. Father Ejike Mbaka's question. "Let us tell ourselves the truth" indeed.
(c)2015 Tijjani M. M.
All Rights Reserved
***This is the abridged version of this piece. For the full all-inclusive version, please visit our website and read it via this link:
http://www.designworldinternational.com/…/281-let-us-tell-o…
Stories abound of how the Igbos treat whoever is not of their ethnic extraction in their region, states and localities. They are reported to be very hostile to whoever indicates any interest in acquiring landed property within Igbo dominated land and so make it virtually impossible for any to own a piece of land, talkless of building a one bedroom flat there.
Again, reports has it that the Igbos refuse to rent out shops to non-Igbos in their markets and such areas of commercial interactions, no matter how hard those non-Igbos try to do so. But all are aware of how easily Igbos are given shops to conduct their businesses in areas outside their region.
Again eye witness reports has it that the Igbos would not even let a business partner of their fellow tribesman park, stand or sit in front of their own shop, so long as that customer is not there to transact business with them. They will insist he or she should move away from their shop front to the person they are there to do business with.
Again many are witnesses to the fact that the Igbos in most instances are niggardly with his language. Where other people will readily teach an Igbo man their language for easier and more accommodating interaction and transactions, the Igbos would mostly refuse to teach a single Igbo word to a non-Igbo for reasons best known to them. They are that non-giving.
These and other negative attitudes of the Igbos are some of the essential reasons why many 10 storey buildings can never be found built by non-Igbos in Igbo land. Until this psychological problem is squarely addressed by leaders and religious personalities of Igbo extraction, other people, not just Nigerians would not find it possible to invest in Igbo land.
I hope this brief response answers Rev. Father Ejike Mbaka's question. "Let us tell ourselves the truth" indeed.
(c)2015 Tijjani M. M.
All Rights Reserved
***This is the abridged version of this piece. For the full all-inclusive version, please visit our website and read it via this link:
http://www.designworldinternational.com/…/281-let-us-tell-o…
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