Nollywood veteran Kenneth Okonkwo says Buhari has done well for Igbos with Second Niger Bridge

VETERAN Nollywood actor Kenneth Okonkwo has hit back at critics castigating him for supporting President Muhammadu Buhari saying that when he looks at the way the second Niger Bridge is coming along he is proud of how well the regime is doing.

In 2015 and 2019, President Buhari struggled to attract support from across the southeast geo-political zone and only got limited votes from there. His government is perceived to have marginalised Igbos, especially when it comes to appointments and the location of federal infrastructure.

To make matters worse, the menace of Fulani cattle herdsmen has made the Buhari more unpopular n the Igbo-speaking southeast geo-political zone. President Buhari is seen as turning a blind eye to the murderous attacks of the herdsmen but then cracks down hard on those who oppose them like the Indigenous People of Biafra.

Mr Okonkwo, was one of the few Igbos to have backed President Buhari at the last election and has received a lot of criticism for it. Earlier this week, however, he posted a comment on his Instagram page after he shared a video struggling to get his car off the road with cattle in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

Sharing the dramatic video clip, Mr Okonkwo called for the abolition of open grazing as a way for the country to move forward.  He got trolled after sharing the video for campaigning for President Buhari in the previous elections but hit back saying he does not regret it after seeing projects in the southeastern region of the country.

Mr Okonkwo said:  “Yes I supported Buhari and I stand by my decision. When I see that the Second Niger Bridge is about to be completed, when I see that runway at Enugu Airport has been expanded to accommodate international flights, when I see that Enugu-Port Harcourt express roads are being rehabilitated, when I remember all the other things Buhari has done for the southeast and remember that the PDP was there for 16 years and did nothing for us, I am proud of the decision I took and I have no apologies for that."

Prior to making those comments, he called on the government to address the matter of Fulani herdsmen by banning open grazing. President Buhari is widely seen as being sympathetic to the herdsmen being an ethnic Fulani himself and being a man who keeps cattle on his own private ranch in Daura.

Mr Okonkwo had said: “This is why ranching is both desirable and inevitable. How can humans and animals be struggling for a right of way in the Federal Capital City of Abuja?

“We must move on to the 21st-century system of animal husbandry to reduce tensions between passers-by, commuters, farmers and herdsmen. Have a great week ahead and God bless.”