One was taken aback reading the screaming headline; “Northern group withdraws quit notice issued to Igbos”, which got copious space in the media last week. Since the initial quit notice passed seemingly unnoticed, its withdrawal obviously raised curiosity as to what led to the order in the first instance.
The NCM just took a cue from sundry northern groups in the habit of arrogating to themselves the powers of issuing quit threats to the Igbo at slightest disagreement. But, the issue involved in this instance does not deserve all that noise. The group’s president, Awwal Aliyu while announcing the withdrawal of the quit notice, had said they realized there was no tribal sentiment attached to the state government’s decision. According to him, Otti meant well and is interested in the safety and security of traders in the market contrary to the allegation that he had asked northerners resident in the state to leave.
The envisaged displacement of those who converted the market to their personal residences is the source of the distortion. Uncomfortable with the reality of having to seek rented accommodation outside the market, mischief makers went to town and invented a quit order to northerners to sway sentiments of ethnic and parochial hue to their side.To allay the fears of the cattle dealers, Otti went out of his way to promise financial assistance to vulnerable ones to enable them rent accommodation.
In the course of the operations, some kidnappers were arrested even as millions of Naira suspected to be ransom from kidnapped victims was recovered. There were clear indications that the area is a hotbed for sundry criminalities.