The meeting was convened at the instance of the presidency in a step seen by the leaders of the zone as an act of disrespect and have demanded for an apology.
The presidential delegation which convened the meeting had cancelled it while stakeholders comprising traditional rulers, religious leaders, opinion leaders, youths, and women from the zone were already seated at the venue of the meeting.
Chairman of the South-South Governors Forum and Delta state governor, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, informed the stakeholders that the presidency gave an emergency security meeting called by President Muhammadu Buhari as a reason for the cancellation.
The stakeholders expressed displeasure with the development, describing it as disrespect to the people of the region and called for an immediate public apology from the presidency. They said that the action of the federal government amounted to treating the South-South and its people with disdain, and warned on the consequences of undermining the zone. But in a solemn appeal to douse tension, Governor Okowa implored the people to remain calm in the face of the disrespect and embarrassment caused by the cancellation of the meeting. On social media, most south-south people have been commenting on the incident.
(C) Control TV 2020.
