Hon. Ikenna Azomchine, the SouthEast coordinator of the Obidients movement, has drawn attention to what he describes as regional disparities in federal appointments and opportunities across Nigeria’s security and civil service sectors.
During an interview on Trust TV, Azomchine shared personal reflections on how regional power dynamics have affected career opportunities for Igbo professionals.
“I will take you back to that regional enjoyment, there’s a regional enjoyment. It’s there in the employment, in jobs, in the army, in the DSS, and everything,” Azomchine observed.
Drawing from his own experience, the political figure revealed, “If I may say—I’m Igbo but born in the north. I would have loved to be a DSS director at this level, because some of my classmates are. I know about five of them.”
He attributed the disparity to regional power-sharing arrangements, stating, “But because that regional goodies has not gone to the hand of an Igbo man, I wouldn’t have been—even if I was a DSS.”
Azomchine traced the pattern of regional appointments across recent administrations: “Now you’ve had it in Buhari, now the Yorubas are enjoying it.”
Despite highlighting these imbalances, the Obidient coordinator concluded with an appeal for national cohesion, saying, “Please, we should bear in mind that Nigeria must remain peaceful.”
The remarks underscore ongoing debates about federal character principles and equitable distribution of political power and opportunities among Nigeria’s diverse ethnic and regional groups.