By Nze Uche Mefor
Political processes can only sustain self-determination where a state genuinely upholds equal rights and justice. When a country persistently refuses to govern fairly, deliberately suppresses sections of its population, excludes them from meaningful participation in governance, and normalises grave human rights violations, the very foundation of the union is placed in jeopardy. It poses a grave question as to how long territorial integrity and non-interference can be invoked as a shield for systemic oppression. Where lawful guarantees such as referendums are denied and the quest for self-determination is criminalised, the state itself compels the oppressed to question its legitimacy. In such circumstances, external self-determination, including secession, emerges not as a provocation but as an inevitable consequence, while actions rooted in criminality only serve to corrupt and delegitimise a just cause.
