The Council of Elders of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has said that the Fulani should be held responsible for whatever happens to the people of the South-South and South-East regions as a consequence of the eviction notice issued by a Coalition of Arewa youths.
Coalition of Arewa Youths, backed by the Northern Elders’ Forum, had on June 6, issued an ultimatum for all Igbo citizens resident in North to quit the region on or before October 1, 2017.
Describing the ultimatum as bizarre, the Council said the idea originated from the Fulani in the North and dissociated the people of the Middle Belt and Borno State from the quit notice.
“The Council of Elders of IPOB holds the Fulani responsible for the threat, as Hausa are under dogs in the so-called Hausa-Fulani society. We hold the Fulani accountable for whatever happens to the peoples of the South-East and South-South of Nigeria as a consequence of that threat.
“Like in 1966 they will have no way of distinguishing others from Igbo, which is why all were subjected to the pogrom then. In 1966, it was marauding Hausa-Fulani, mostly, that organized the killing of easterners in Maiduguri and the Middle Belt,” a communiqué issued at the end of the council’s meeting read.
Although, the meeting was held at Owerri in Imo State under the chairmanship of Col. Joe Achuzia, a civil war veteran, the communiqué he co-signed with the secretary, Professor Chidi Osuagwu was made available to Daily Sun yesterday in Asaba.
The communiqué stated that the with experience of 1966, the eviction threat should be taken seriously as anything can happen in a state of confusion, adding: “it takes only a determined mob to create mayhem. Moreover people with feudalist mind-set are by nature self-obsessed; narcissistic, at the expense of others.”
While welcoming the condemnation of the ultimatum by the Northern Governors’ Forum and Arewa Consultative Forum among others, the IPOB elders noted with dismay that such action did not constrain the youths from repeating their threat two days later.
“The use of Arewa House as the venue for issuing the threat carries added significance as ordinary rabble-rousing youths; who are not scions of the Fulani oligarchy, cannot have easy access to such a historically important venue for such nefarious activity over the time frame involved..
“Distabilisation of the Acting Presidency of Yemi Osinbajo seems the immediate objective of the outrage at Arewa House. Anyone familiar with the influence of Al Maghili’s The Obligations of the Prince (same as Machiavelli’s) on caliphate politics will recognize that bringing the Igbo into the equation is, more likely, a smokescreen, which nevertheless is very serious indeed.
“The long term aim of the people behind this is to, through divide-and-rule tactics, isolate Igbo and project Ndigbo as the ‘Problem of Nigeria’. A national scapegoat, who should either succumb to intimidation, blackmail, internal colonialism or be mobbed like in 1966 – 1970. Yet Igbo are no problem to Nigerian neigbhours as Fulani, with their weaponised cows, are to neigbhours across West Africa,” the communiqué read.
It added that what the Igbos want self determination, adding that historically, the Igbos have been associated with the very creation and propagation of the doctrine of pan-Africanism.
It stated that Biafra as articulated in the Ahiara Declaration, is a land where every African can stand free and proud.
“This is what Ojukwu meant by Biafra-of-the-mind. Biafra is not a geography-bound phenomenon. Nigeria can become Biafra, and attractive to Biafrans, if it begins to believe in truth-justice.
“But a land of untruth and injustice, a realm of chaos as Nigeria is now, is not acceptable to Biafrans. If truth-justice and freedom are to be found only in one village called Biafra, it is still the best for Biafrans and Africa. There is limitless space for those who look up,” it added.
