Human rights activist and lawyer Maxwell Opara has sparked reactions with his recent comments about President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's connection to the Igbo community.
Speaking during an interview with AIT, Opara said that the Southeast people are being marginalized, and added that he thought that President Tinubu who is a democrat would treat the region differently when he came into power.
He said that apart from being a democrat, President Tinubu is married from Igbo.
He said that President Tinubu's wife, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, hails from Delta State, adding that the people of Delta are Igbos.
He said that the Igbos have been marginalized by previous administrations, and that he expected President Tinubu to be more accommodating to the Igbos because of his ties to the Igbos.
Speaking during the interview, he said, "Any government that came they would sideline the people of Southeast. Everybody. And anybody who is in this country who is saying that the people of Southeast are not being marginalized will not make heaven. That person is lying. It's obvious. Where is this hatred coming from?"
Speaking further he added, "And we thought that Tinubu who is a democrat, who is even married from Igbo. His wife is from Delta, they are Igbos. Forget about what they are claiming, they are Igbos.
"You can't tell me that you are not Igbos and you are answering Emeka."
You can watch the interview here (watch from the 2:36:44 minutes).