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Tag: IPOB

  • Anambra Police to enforce ban on IPOB activities

    Anambra Police to enforce ban on IPOB activities

    The Anambra Police Command says it has taken steps to enforce the ban on all activities of the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) in the state.

    The State Commissioner of Police, Mr Garba Umar, saiid this while addressing newsmen in Awka on Tuesday.

    Umar warned that any person or persons involved in the activities of the proscribed group would be arrested and charged to court.

    He defined terrorism as the unlawful use of force and violence against persons or property to intimidate, coerce a government, the civilian population or any segment in order to seriously destabilize or destroy the fundamental political, constitutional, economic or social structure of a country.

    “The Terrorism (Prevention) Act, 2013 (As Amended) provides minimum punishment of 20 years and maximum of death sentence depending on the offence.

    “Meanwhile, Section 37 Sub-section (1) Criminal Code Act, Cap 77 provides that any person who wages war against the state in order to intimidate or coerce the President or State Governor is guilty of treason and is liable to on conviction to be sentenced to Death.

    “Therefore, I enjoin the general public to know that participating in the activities of this group is illegal and would amount to treasonable felony,” the police boss said.

    He warned the general public to desist from aiding and abetting members of the group, urging them to provide useful information to the Police to help arrest fleeing members of the outlawed group.

    “The Command also wishes to reiterate that any act of terrorism is criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of the motivation; the Command urges the good people of Anambra to come together to sustain the existing peace in the state.”

    The commissioner assured that the police would continue to safeguard lives and properties of all citizens in the state in line with the vision of Inspector-General of Police, Mr Ibrahim Idris.

    He appealed to parents and guardians to warn their children and wards to steer away from the group.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the Nigerian Army has declared IPOB as a terrorist organisation in a statement issued by the Director of Defence Information, Mr John Enenche.

  • Seven IPOB members docked for murder, kidnapping

    Seven IPOB members docked for murder, kidnapping

    Seven suspected members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) were on Monday arraigned in an Aba North Magistrates’ Court on a 12-count charge of murder, arson and possession of dangerous weapons.

    The defendants are – Chinonso Ude (30), Maduabuchi Echereodo (25), Ukochukwu Ikechukwu (32), Okechukwu Daniel (20), Ifeanyi Sunday (33), Okezie Jeremiah (26), Chizuruoke  and Nwazuo (27).

    The charges read: “That you Chinonso Ude and others on the 14th day of September, 2017 at Ariaria in Aba North Magisterial District did conspire among yourselves to commit felony to wit: use of offensive weapons or explosives.

    “And, thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 10 (1) (C) of the Abia State Prohibition of Terrorism, Kidnapping, Hostage Taking, Use of Offensive Weapons or Explosives and other Threatening Behaviour Law No. 10 of 2009.”

    The Prosecutor, Gabriel Ogbonna, said the accused persons on September 15 allegedly conspired and murdered one ASP Cyril Nwosu at Ariaria.

    He said they committed murder, arson, kidnapping, causing breach of peace, burning of vehicles and destruction of property of the police and belonged to IPOB, a proscribed organisation.

    In his argument, Mr. Charles Onuchukwu, counsel to Ude, Echerodo and Okezie, said the court lacks the jurisdiction to hear murder, kidnapping and terrorism cases.

    Onuchukwu urged the court to delete the three offences and grant his clients’ bail.

    NAN

  • IPOB using fake videos to hoodwink international community – FG

    IPOB using fake videos to hoodwink international community – FG

    The Federal Government on Monday in Lagos accused the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) of using fake videos of mass killings, to mislead the international community and win their support.

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, who stated this when he addressed Online Publishers, said that the fake videos were harvested from other parts of Africa and doctored to look current

    ”We must warn the nation against IPOB’s next line of action, which is to externalise their lies and propaganda.

    “Now they are writing to the governments and the national parliaments of some Western nations to give the impression that they are victims of an ethno-sectarian violence orchestrated by the government, hence they need protection.

    ”Some of the tools that have been employed by IPOB include blatant lies and cheap propaganda, and the medium of choice for the organisation is the Social Media.

    IPOB has harvested gory videos and pictures from other lands and the distant past, which they are now circulating via the Social Media, to deceive the international community.

    “IPOB is deceiving them into believing that the people of the South-East are being subjected to state-sponsored, ethno-religious violence,” he said.

    The Minister said that the videos, which had very high emotive quotient, are circulating on the Social Media.

    He said some ill-informed foreign individuals were already trumpeting IPOB’s lies and propaganda and even alleging genocide.

    ”It is either they do not understand the meaning of genocide or are being mischievous.

    “Either way, there is nothing like genocide anywhere in our country today. What we have in the South-East is a clampdown on a band of lawless people who have no regard for the laws of the land,” he said.

    Mohammed appealed to the Online Publishers to help counter the fake narrative on the Social Media on the situation in the South-East.

    ”In the interest of the nation and your own interest, you must counter this fake narrative, report the issues responsibly and without sensationalism and present the truth to the public.

    “If the Social Media, your platform, is discredited because of the activities of quacks and Internet Trollers, you too will be discredited and your publications will simply go down.

    ”That is why you must distinguish yourselves, as trained and tested professionals, from the charlatans who have seized the Social Media by the jugular.

    “You must distinguish yourself from those who have no regard for the truth and who do not care whether their fake posts set the nation ablaze,” he said.

    He reiterated his earlier statement that IPOB is being sponsored by a coalition of politically-disgruntled and treasury looters, and that the organisation is a contraption against the Buhari Administration.

  • IPOB: Army not under Political Pressure – Buratai

    IPOB: Army not under Political Pressure – Buratai

    The Chief of Army Staff, Lt General Tukur Buratai Monday said the army was not under any form of political pressure on the position it took regarding the activities of the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, (IPOB).

    The Arm Chief, however, maintained that only the Federal Government would take a decision on the proscription of IPOB.

    General Buratai asserted that military had the duty and constitutional responsibility to protect lives and properties in the face of internal and external threats to the territorial integrity of the country, stressing that its actions against IPOB were necessitated by the provisions of the constitution.

    He made the remarks on Monday while fielding questions from newsmen shortly after addressing Principal Staff Officers, Corps, Formations and Operations Commanders, Commandants of Nigerian Army and Corps Schools at the 2nd and 3rd Quarters Conference 2017 of the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) at the Army Headquarters’ Officers Mess, Abuja.

    He said: “Training is a continuous exercise apart from the obvious exercises that you see but there are lot of other exercises that…from different force of the Nigerian Army and even from skills. So it is not a new thing, we have been training, we have been exercising on a regular basis.
    “But once in a while we come and carry out a large scale exercise to harmonize all the aspects of training that have been thought in training institutions and unit formations.

    “Since we came on board in 2015, we have been having series of exercises and we did same set of exercise in 2016 and we are repeating the same thing this year and you are aware of Habin Kunama II, the on-going Egwu Eke II in the South and very soon at the end of Operation Python Dance we move into Crocodile Smile II which will take a lot

    “This is just to reassure Nigerians, law abiding citizens that the Nigerian Army and indeed other security agencies are really concerned with the safety and security of their lives and property. You are very much aware of the security challenges in the country”.

    On the proscription of IPOB he said: “You see, you said political pressure. You should understand the context by which the Nigerian Army is operating. Nigerian Army is part of the political consideration in the democratic system.

    “It is part of the democratic process, is a product of the democratic governance, you know the military. We are not receiving any pressure; we are given what the constitution has provided for us. Constitutionally what our responsibilities are for us, so we are not under any pressure whatsoever.

    “Whatever anyone is saying, we will refer him back to the constitution. There are several provisions that give us those responsibilities and also to carry out such task as duly assigned by the government or by the constituted authority.

    “Be rest assured that we don’t have any other role that is outside the constitution.

    “As regards the proscription, this is what I want to give; the federal government will take a final decision on that. There are guidelines as provided in the Act on the Terrorism Act and am sure the relevant government agencies am talking about will take appropriate steps whether to arrest or whether to do any other actions and we will receive the appropriate directives from the authorities,” General Buratai asserted

  • Fayose has link with IPOB funding, says Ekiti APC

    Fayose has link with IPOB funding, says Ekiti APC

    The Ekiti State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has accused Governor Ayo Fayose of giving financial and logistics support to Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and its leader, Nnamdi Kanu.

    The party urged the nation’s security agencies and the International Police (INTERPOL) to investigate the governor’s alleged support for IPOB, which the Nigerian military high command just declared a terrorist organisation following the seizure of weapons by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) suspected to belong to the group.

    In a statement yesterday by its Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, Ekiti APC said Fayose “demonstrated the seriousness of his support for the collapse of Nigeria” when the governor released his telephone number and email address on April 27 to those interested in the Biafra cause to contact him.

    According to Olatunbosun, the telephone number and the email address Fayose released to the public for identifying with the Biafra struggle are: 070300000393 and email: mystory2006@yahoo.com.

    He described the governor’s action as a “treasonable act”.

    The party’s spokesman said the governor’s lawyer’s statement at the weekend calling for dialogue to resolve the Biafran crisis is an afterthought.

    He said the Army was only performing its constitutional role of preserving the nation’s unity and bringing secessionists and their backers to justice.

    Olatunbosun said: “On April 26 and as published by The Nigerian Tribune and its Tribuneonline publication on April 27, Fayose said he was working in conjunction with Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu to raise funds for Kanu, stressing that he was taking his support for Kanu beyond showing solidarity in court by raising funds that would be deposited in an account opened in Kanu’s name.”

    He said: “He led a campaign to the Chinese Embassy in Abuja and later to Beijing, the Chinese capital, to urge the Chinese government not to help Nigeria out of recession.

    “Relentlessly, he led hate campaigns against the symbol of the Nigerian authority, President Muhammadu Buhari, wishing him dead, including hounding and haunting the President across the world, on his sick bed and threatening to expose the President on a life-support machine. All these were in spite of (Fayose) swearing to uphold the Constitution of Nigeria and to be loyal to the Nigerian state and its President.

    “As reported in the media on May 25, he said: ‘Ekiti State is now part of Biafra’, which drew the ire of several Yoruba groups…”

    Olatunbosun also quoted Fayose as saying: “We are just driving the cause. As soon as we receive his account details, we will be made available. People have the right to agitate for independence. Even in traditional institution, people agitate for autonomy.

    “As many as lawyers willing to fight the oppression should join the struggle for liberation from the oppression.”

    He added: “All the Southeast governors, including Ekweremadu, have opposed Kanu in his secessionist activities while Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has warned him and IPOB to stay away from Rivers. But Fayose declared Ekiti State as part of Biafra. This has confirmed the report that he is part of Biafra’s financiers as he had publicly declared to the media.

    “No wonder, just four months after Fayose started mobilising funds for Biafra, thousands of deadly weapons, including military assault rifles, were smuggled into the country but were intercepted by Customs. It was also discovered that uniformed Biafran militants already have military training camps where they are planning deadly assaults on Nigeria after threatening its leaders.

    “We had earlier alerted security agencies to the presence of armed gangs and stockpiling of arms in the Ekiti State Government House. Fayose’s present activities at raising funds for Kanu confirm that he is part of a rebellion against the Nigerian state.

    “We have always insisted that Fayose is a threat to Nigeria’s unity and the economic survival of its people.”

    Olatunbosun added: “His support for Kanu in funds mobilisation for his treasonable act and the activities of Fayose’s media men in promoting the Biafran cause only point to one agenda to destabilise Nigeria. That has proved us right that Fayose has no agenda than the destabilisation of Nigeria to enable him escape all illegal and criminal activities linked to him.”

    But Fayose dismissed the allegation of funding IPOB and its leader Nnamdi Kanu.

    Reacting last night while featuring on his monthly radio and television media chat: Meet Your Governor, he said: “The APC is hallucinating” by accusing him of giving financial and logistics support to the separatist group.

    The governor wondered why the state’s opposition was accusing him of sponsoring IPOB while he condemned the alleged killing of its members during what he called a military crackdown and occupation of the Southeast.

    Fayose said: “We cannot all be cowed. The militarisation of Nigeria, being witnessed now, can only be likened to 1984 when Buhari was military Head of State.

    “Killing people in the Southeast just because some people are agitating is wrong. I wonder why none of our so-called human rights activists is talking.

  • Kanu holed up in Southeast as Turkey disowns video

    Kanu holed up in Southeast as Turkey disowns video

    As troops and security agents continue the search for fleeing leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) Nnamdi Kanu, there were indications last night that he was in the South-East.

    Security agencies have been placed on the alert at the airports, seaports and borders to watch out for Kanu.

    The Turkish Embassy in Nigeria clarified yesterday that it was not in support of secessionist activities in Nigeria

    A top security sourcesaid: “Intelligence gathering has shown that Kanu is still holed up in the South-East. We will soon fish him out of wherever he is hiding.

    “We are only trying to be constructive in our engagement to avoid huge cost. Security agencies  know what to do but they are just being careful.

    “We have identified some of his sympathisers who could harbour him. At the appropriate time, we will brief Nigerians.

    ” We know he is planning to escape from the country but we won’t allow him. We are determined to arrest him.”

    The Turkish Embassy in a statement said: “The Embassy of the Republic of Turkey wishes to inform the Nigerian public about the following:

    “Abdulkadir Erkahrahman, a Turkish citizen, has been sharing videos for some time against the Nigerian Government and presents himself as a Turkish diplomat.

    “Mr. Abdulkadir Erkahrahman is neither a diplomat nor a civil servant or an official representative of the Government of Turkey.

    “The Government of Turkey is committed to the territorial integrity and political unity of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

    “Furthermore, Turkey never supports secessionist activities against the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

  • Why we clamped down on IPOB, Kanu, by Fed Govt

    Why we clamped down on IPOB, Kanu, by Fed Govt

    ‘Looters, opposition behind group’

    IYC urges talks      

    IPOB chief ‘in Southeast’

    The  Federal Government yesterday alleged that the opposition was fuelling the Independent Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) rebellion to distract the Buhari administration and destabilise the country.

    Urging Nigerians to be vigilant and resolute, Information and Culture Minister Lai Mohammed said the evil machination of the group and its plan to incite Nigerians against one another had failed.

    Besides, he stated why the government moved against IPOB.

    Mohammed hailed Southeast governors’ decision to proscribe IPOB, stressing that the organisation, which has been labelled a terrorist group by the military, should cease to exist.

    He told reporters in Lagos that IPOB’s activities had reached a crescendo, threatening national unity.

    Mohammed said: “IPOB is nothing but a contraption by those who believe they have lost political power as well as the right to loot our treasury. It is a tool in the hands of the corrupt and disgruntled elements to sabotage the Buhari administration. It fights for no one, but the corrupt and the disgruntled. It seeks to set us apart as a people, exploiting our fault lines. Its modus operandi is to trigger conflagration nationwide through attacks and reprisals.”

    The minister lamented that IPOB had violated Nigeria’s sovereignty by setting up parallel military and para-military organisations, mounting road blocks, confronting the military, openly soliciting for weapons and inciting hatred and violence.

    He noted that the group’s atrocities had been documented by the

    military, including the formation of a Biafra Secret Service, the formation of

    Biafra National Guard, extortion of money from innocent civilians at illegal road blocks, and

    illegal patrol.

    Mohammed applauded the military for its decisiveness in checking the organisation, adding that Nigeria would have been on fire, if the soldiers have not risen to the occasion.

    The minister stressed: “There is no doubt that the wounds inflicted on the nation’s psyche by

    the activities of IPOB will take some time to heal. But,  while that happens, Nigerians must understand that IPOB was not set up to fight for the right of anyone or group, but as a tool to destabilise the nation, divert attention from the efforts of the Buhari administration and obliterate the laudable achievements of the Administration.

    “IPOB is being sponsored by those I will call the Coalition of the Politically Disgruntled and the Treasury Looters. They believe that by sponsoring this group to destabilise the country and trigger chaos, they will realise their ambition of escaping justice and then be free to dip their hands into the nation’s treasury again.”

    Mohammed wondered why the IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu, who led a protest at the

    Nigeria House in London against Boko Haram insurgency and in support

    of Nigeria’s unity under the Jonathan Administration, suddenly metamorphosed into a monster with an agenda to set the nation ablaze.

    He said IPOB had intensified its nefarious activities to distract the government when it should consolidate on its monumental achievement of taking the country out of recession.

    The minister chided the IPOB agitators for their hate speech, fake news and disinformation, pointing out that these tactics were employed to shift attention from the feat.

    He added: “The self-imposed IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu, is the master of hate speech. No one, including the same people whose rights he claims to be championing, escaped his vitriolic and

    primitive attacks.

    “We challenge all his sympathisers to scrutinise his incendiary, divisive and inciting speeches, the name calling and the derogatory remarks about the nation’s leaders, and then, tell the

    nation if such do not constitute hate speech. Leaders of thought and commentators who have shown the inclination to accommodate Kanu and his excesses should say if this is what they expect from someone who wants to lead.”

    Mohammed alerted the country to IPOB’s plot to attract sympathy for its propaganda from the Western world by giving the impression that its members are victims of ethno-sectarian violence orchestrated by the government.

    He urged the international community not to jump into any conclusion on the basis of fake videos and other false portrayers in the social media.

    Mohammed appealed to the media to show restraint by objectively reporting the motive behind the deployment of troops to the Southeast for “Operation Python Dance II” to check the group.

    He added: “The military has labelled IPOB a terrorist organisation and the Southeast Governors have proscribed it. It’s time to let IPOB go to where it belongs, the dustbin of history. The tense situation triggered across the country by IPOB’s activities must be brought down. The media has a big role to play in that, and I believe we will all do the needful.”

  • HURIWA As IPOB’s NGO Arm

    There is bad, there is disaster and there is HURIWA, Human Rights Writers Association. HURIWA is alleging extralegal killings in the implementation of Operation Python Dance II in the southeast geo-political zone and thinks that this is a justification for decentralizing the nation’s military assets.

    Before attempting an understanding of the outlandish claims and even more outrageous suggestion, an appreciation of what or who HURIWA is perhaps necessary, for as Khalil Gibran wrote “And you who would understand justice, how shall you unless you look upon all deeds in the fullness of light?” When looked at in the fullness of light, HURIWA is an embodiment of the character driving it, one Emmanuel Onwubiko, who has run the so-called NGO as a sole proprietorship, tool for extortion, paid activism, ethnic propaganda mouthpiece and most recently as a terror organization’s NGO arm.
    Onwubiko of course applied the veneer of respectability to HURIWA by latching on the words “Human Rights” which should tickle the fancy at a time that the world is making the culture of political correctness into a cult following. The appellation would have suggested neutrality, objectivity and universal application of standards across board. Save for some coerced staffers with Islamic names used as decoys, HURIWA is capitally Igbo is in all it does. Igbo to an extent that the only thing that makes it bother about non-Igbo issues is when there is money to be made from the subject matter and at such times morality has no role to play.
    It is therefore not surprising that the only noticeable time Onwubiko/HURIWA had pursued any non-Igbo issue with conviction was when he got the contract to make the outlawed Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) appear saintly. Then, like now, he could not help but stand logic on its head and must have thought this time around that since he has the experience of defending a quasi-terror group, albeit with a high degree of failure, he can help defend the latest terror group on the planet, IPOB, the Indigenous People of Biafra.
    Having established the pedigree of HURIWA and its owner as bigoted pieces of work, the perspective becomes clearer as to why Onwubiko never thought to call his brother, Nnamdi Kanu, IPOB leader to order for the series of misdeeds that were the foundation for the tension that he (Onwubiko) has suddenly found irksome today. If HURIWA were genuinely in the business of writing about ‘human rights’ then it would have known that use of offensive terms and derogatory association infringe on their recipients’ right to dignity. HURIWA and Onwubiko were around when Kanu and the IPOB rabble gleefully referred to Nigerians as ‘animals’ living in the ‘zoo’.
    The sole proprietorship was there when IPOB lock down the economy of some Nigerian states thereby denying some families the means of their (daily) livelihood for the duration of the so called ‘sit-at-home’ that people were not given the option of observing but were coerced by IPOB’s militants. Perhaps, Onwubiko was passed out in a beer parlour when Kanu declared in Ohafia that he was coming to Abuja to bring back the head of President Muhammadu Buhari – he should not have ever bragged about bringing back anyone’s head since the teenage girl recently caught in Imo with two human heads is enough proof that when certain people speak of cutting off human heads it is not to be taken slightly.
    Where was HURIWA’s censure when IPOB delivered the endless barrage of hate speech even as other groups continually raised the alarm for them to stop? The sick behaviour was defended as freedom of speech and some even went on to say that Igbos are given to metaphorical speech. Several IPOB members, within and outside the south-east geo-political zone, have openly admitted to stockpilling weapons in preparation to dealing with other Nigerians. The group also bragged about having a nuclear weapon that can destroy ten states in the north and Onwubiko did not think that the entire population of the north would have been left jittery, fearing for their life.
    What took the cake was HURIWA’s indifference to Kanu’s launch of Biafra Secret Service, BSS, a militia group in violation of Section 227 of the Constitution that categorically stated that “No association shall retain, organise, train or equip any person or group of persons for the purpose of enabling them to be employed for the use or display of physical force or coercion in promoting any political objective or interest or in such manner as to arouse reasonable apprehension that they are organised and trained or equipped for that purpose.”
    Phone records would show that Onwubiko was in touch with Kanu, or at least through proxies, before and after he inaugurated IPOB’s army so he shares the blame for not advising his client not to dare the state. Transaction records could also link him to Kanu or other IPOB sponsors, which would be most unfortunate since monetary gains should take secondary place where the stability of a country is concerned. Only that the agenda of HURIWA and IPOB are the same so the integrity of Nigeria is not of concern to Onwubiko here.
    It is therefore inconceivable that HURIWA/Onwubiko expected that the Army would conduct its operations differently when it knows it was dealing with an entity that has declared itself as a parallel army. This is more so that IPOB members pelted troops with various objects to trigger what was to later follow.
    Sadly, Onwubiko’s conclusions appeared to have been reliant on fake news and managed images and videos. For someone that is masquerading as being involved in human rights work, photo and video verification skill has become a prerequisite to ensure that reports are not based on lies and manipulated reality. He should have had the presence of mind to ask questions as to why the videos circulated by his clients have been cut to exclude portions that document their provocations. He should have also queried why gory pictures from other unfortunate incidents are being passed off as images from the military operation in south-east. Except of course he is ignorant of these manipulations, he is being mischievous or both in varying mixes.
    HURIWA’s other failings may be excusable but its call for military assets to be decentralized has set a new record in being irresponsible in making contribution to a public discourse. First, with the history of attempted secession five decades ago and the military coups that plagued the country afterwards, it is only logical that temptations are kept away from would be treasonable fellows. Secondly, if the military assets were kept within IPOB’s reach would the situation not have been worse than what we are currently dealing with since the terrorists would have simply overrun the facility and use the equipment against the Nigerian state?
    Those who truly understand what is at stake are warning against treating the IPOB issues with the same levity and ethnic sentiments that made Boko Haram into the one that got away. HURIWA was silent when the head of another insurrection group, Ombatse was killed during a security operation in Alakyo, Nasarawa state ion November 16, 2014; its voice was only heard when it was paid to harass Labaran Maku, the then information minister. Had Ombatse not been contained then through a timely deployment the situation would probably been a horror show by now.
    Someone must therefore help Onwubiko end his hallucination of trying to drag the international community into what remains, for now, Nigeria’s internal affairs. IPOB has been designated a terror group, anyone that belongs to it would be tracked down and brought to justice irrespective of ethnicity. Kanu has made his choice, he must have been fully conscious of what he was doing when he broke every law imaginable because he was confident of the backing of failed entities like HURIWA and characters like Onwubiko. HURIWA must similarly make its choice, a decision to either be a proper human rights NGO or to be the NGO arm of IPOB. Prevaricating between both possibilities would not serve its client, Kanu well.
    Otairu esq  writes from the Centre for International and Strategy Studies, Abuja.‎

  • IPOB: Senate to meet security chiefs

    IPOB: Senate to meet security chiefs

    Senate President Bukola Saraki said yesterday that the Senate would meet with security chiefs to chart a path for resolution of contentious issues genetrating tension in the South-East.

    He said that the meeting would address the tension in the South-East and the skirmishes in Plateau.

    Saraki said security agencies, political and religious leaders must work for the promotion of dialogue as means for tackling agitations to ensure peace.

    In the statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Yusuph Olaniyonu, Saraki urged Nigerians to maintain the peace and avoid statements or actions capable of aggravating tension. The president of the senate said that the crises in the country were not unconnected to the economic challenges being faced by citizens.

    “The tension in some parts of the country has its roots substantially in the economic situation.

    “The nation should be assured that some of the legislative and executive actions taken to address the economic problems are beginning to yield fruits.

    “This is why we recently witnessed the rebound of the economy and the exit of the country from recession,” he said.

    He called for calm among the people, especially in the South-East and Plateau, saying that the government required the cooperation of everyone in solving all problems.

    “I want to appeal to our people to avoid stoking ethnic or religious fires. We should not deepen the fault lines of our nation and place citizens in danger of violence and sustained crises.

    “The government requires the support of all Nigerians and we should please give peace a chance. No real development or genuine economic activity can take place in the midst of crisis or tension.

    “Investments and development thrive only where there is peace,” Saraki said.

    He advised political, community and religious leaders to take actions that would douse the tension and reassure the people that the best way was for us to live together in peace and harmony.

    “All leaders at this point must canvass support for government and preach peace, love and harmony.

    “Once again, I plead with our people to avoid taking laws into their hands or antagonizing our neighbours,” he added.

  • Managing IPoB

    Managing IPoB

    •Utmost restraint on both sides; definitely not show of force, is the way out 

    It is unnerving that the presidency has chosen the path of deathly show of force in handling the testy matter of Nnamdi Kanu’s so-called Indigenous People of Biafra (IPoB). Last week, the Nigerian Army hierarchy had announced what it terms ‘Operation Python Dance II’ (Egwueke); a partial military lockdown of the five southeast states of Nigeria.

    The first edition of this needless show of military might in an already embittered civilian enclave at a period of year-end festivities turned out to be an unwarranted provocation. Though the army explained that the exercise was grounded in such noble motives like conducting anti-kidnapping drills, mounting of road blocks and cordons, and a show of force to curb the rising threats to national security in the southeast part of the country; the result was a far cry from the intent.

    If the army had done a thorough evaluation of the first operation, it would have realised the futility of it: that it only succeeded in further alienating them from the people of the zone. The excruciating traffic snarl occasioned by the myriads of road blocks; the molestation of innocent citizens and resultant extortions by soldiers were the sour fruits of the first outing.

    If the first one was a near debacle, the current edition of the ‘Python Dance’ seems to portend catastrophic auguries. Even before its take-off, it is already recording bloody casualties and deep controversies. There is no doubt that this operation is targeted at the activities of the separatist IPoB across the southeast.

    As has been reported, the first port of call of the soldiers is the precinct of the IPoB leader’s residence which, as to be expected, has provoked the ire of the young man and his supporters leading to skirmishes with soldiers. A curfew had to be imposed on Abia State, the centre point of the crisis and it is anyone’s guess what else may follow if reason does not prevail, especially from the Federal Government.

    We must state here in the most unequivocal of terms that Nnamdi Kanu has crossed the lines and needed to be brought under some check by the Federal Government. First, he is under bail and has severally violated the terms of that bail. Worse, he has committed fresh offences which may tantamount to treason by raising what he called Biafra Security Service (notwithstanding that it may be merely a band of misguided youths clothed in cheap black T-shirts).

    This is not acceptable. There can only be one sovereign in a sovereign enclave and any agitation for separation must be under the law of such sovereignty. We also believe that government must act and quickly too to curtail the invidious activities of IPoB and its leader.

    Having said all that, the Federal Government has acted rather impulsively if not precipitously by choosing the rather deleterious option of throwing in troops in the fray as a first option. Since IPoB posed no immediate danger of armed insurrection, we thought government would have exhausted the existing court bail process. It could also have charged Kanu to court for fresh treasonable offences.

    By this process Kanu would have had to appear before the court. In the event that he refused, government would have chalked up more moral, legal and political points in the eyes of right-thinking people and even the international community to eventually move against him.

    Further, even in the event of having to apply force on who would have then been termed a dissident, we still do not see why government would mobilise the Nigerian Army in a matter that would have been better handled by the police and the intelligence corps.

    We call for caution, extreme caution especially on the part of the Federal Government. Now that this matter has been brought to a knife-edge situation, we must ensure that it does not escalate. Agitation for self-determination is no crime under any charter known by the civilised world. Needless to add that Nigeria cannot afford another civil carnage; we therefore urge utmost restraint and wisdom on both sides.