Two Igbo groups, the Igbo Peoples Congress, and the Igbo Aborigines, have warned the Nigerian Army and security agents to stop killing pro-Biafran agitators, who are not armed or obstructing public peace.
The warning came on the heels of recent shootings and killings of some pro-Biafran members in Ekwulobia, Anambra State.
Meanwhile, Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra, MASSOB, has condemned Wednesday’s clash between members of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, and security operatives at Ekwulobia in Aguata Local Government Area, saying the alleged invasion of a peaceful and non-violence gathering of IPOB members was a primitive act.
According to Igbo Peoples Congress and the Igbo Aborigenes in a statement, “the killing of more than 150 pro-Biafran agitators by Nigerian security agents as reported by the Amnesty International is still fresh in our mind.
“The Ezu River killings by SARS operatives at Awkuzu in Anambra State is also still fresh in our psyche. The quit notice by misled Arewa youths and the ongoing hate song in the north are still endangering the polity and yet these overzealous soldiers and other security agents are not bothered by all these challenges.”
They called on the International Court of Justice at The Hague to take note and bring to justice the killer soldiers and their commanders who also murdered more than one thousand Shiite followers in Zaria some months ago.
The groups insisted that all Nigerians have the right to peaceful agitations, including even secession where marriages are not working.
The groups lambasted the security agents for harassing the ‘Return or Resign” protesters in Abuja and the attack on them by some misled Arewa youths.
Slam Sultan over comments on restructuring
In a similar vein, the groups slammed the Sultan of Sokoto over his comments that what Nigeria needs is the restructuring of the dams in the country and not restructuring of Nigeria.
They expressed shock at this position of the Sultan who hitherto was lamenting the culture of impunity in Nigeria, wondering why the Sultan reached this bizzare conclusion when he knows that Nigeria, as it is currently run, is an unjust polity.
The groups noted that the Sultan may either have been misquoted or if he really made such comments , then it is one of the greatest anti-progressive statements of the century.
They called on the Sultan whom Nigerians look up to to be dispassionate on national issues to explain what he means by restructuring of dams in Nigeria.
“What has Dams and Agriculture got to do with our unjust polity?” they queried.
“The Sultan needs to clarify these issues so that the confidence Nigerians have in him will not be tainted,” they noted.
The spokesmen of the groups, Pastor Okey Colbert and Chidi Obisike finally noted that Nigeria can never make any head way until it is restuctured.
IPOB, Police Ekwulobia clash primitive –MASSOB
A statement by the MASSOB leader, Comrade Uchenna Madu, regretted that Nigeria’s security operatives were still operating in an uncultured manner full of religious and tribal sentiments.
His statement read: “This overzealousness of Nigerian army and police against the non-violenct and armless Biafra agitators speaks volume of rejection, subjection, marginalisation and annihilation plan of Nigerian security agencies against the industrious people of Biafra.
“The wicked and violent activities of Fulani herdsmen and Boko Haram against the Christian Middle Beltans and people of Biafra have not been challenged by Hausa-Fulani dominated Nigeria security agencies.
“This hypocritical and bias of Nigeria security agencies are being monitored and recorded by the international organisations for human rights abuses for reckoning at the appropriate time.”
Groups warn against re-arrest of Kanu
Meantime, three other Igbo groups have warned against any plan to re-arrest the leader of IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, saying such action will spell doom for the country.
The group said the action of the coalition of Arewa youths, who gave the Igbo in the north quit notice, was more offensive than the activities of the IPOB seeking peaceful actualisation of Biafra.
The groups, World Igbo Youth Movement; Igbo Students’ Forum and Igbo Diaspora Women Professionals, said they would not fold their hands and see Igbo being driven out of the north where they made huge investments.
A joint statement signed by Mazi Alex Okemiri for the World Igbo Youth Council; Prof. Helen Ogbonna for Igbo in Diaspora Women Professionals and Comrade Obi Izuo for Igbo Students’ Forum, said: “We caution that Nigeria may cease to exist if Nnamdi Kanu is re-arrested. This may also be the fate of the country if the planned October 1 massacre is carried out against Ndigbo living in the north.”
Meanwhile, the groups have urged Ndigbo to vie for the presidency of the country in 2019, saying it is their constitutional right to do that, insisting that there was no going back on the Igbo presidency project in 2019.
