The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Saturday, condemned a statement by Maj Gen Christopher Musa, Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, for allegedly “threatening and intimidating Biafrans for exercising their inalienable rights to free speech and self-determination through social media”.
IPOB’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, stated this in a statement.
According to him, “Maj Gen Musa’s call for Southeasterners to cease propagating IPOB’s activities is not only an affront to our fundamental freedoms but a desperate attempt to silence the awakening of Biafran consciousness. We will not be cowed, and we will not be silenced.”
Powerful said the Nigerian Army had no moral standing to “lecture Biafrans on what is good for us”.
He questioned, “What was the crime of the Biafran youths slaughtered at Nkpor in 2016, a massacre acknowledged by Amnesty International and UN Special Rapporteurs as constituting crimes against humanity?
“What was the offence of the Igbo youths mowed down at National High School, Aba, or those killed during the Trump solidarity rally in Port Harcourt?
“What justified the murderous invasion of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s residence during Operation Python Dance, where 28 innocent Biafrans, including Kanu’s parents, were killed in cold blood by your forces, orchestrated by your Fulani overlords?”
IPOB described the Igbo traditional rulers who interfaced with the Chief of Defence Staff when he made the statement as “unfit to lead and must face the consequences of their betrayal”.
Powerful continued, “We hold them in contempt. It was IPOB’s social media activism that halted the Fulani RUGA settlement scheme in Musa’s (Chief of Defence Staff ‘s) Kaduna village, preserving people’s right to their ancestral lands. It was IPOB, under Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s leadership, that stopped the Waterways Bill designed to enslave indigenous populations to Fulani hegemony.”
IPOB urged the chief of defence staff to show gratitude for IPOB’s tireless efforts to protect indigenous peoples across Nigeria.
It added, “Your reference to IPOB as ‘unlawful’ is laughable. No nation outside Nigeria has proscribed IPOB. Even Canada hosts one of the largest and most vibrant IPOB families globally. Our youths have awakened to the reality that Nigeria’s forced unity is a death sentence for Biafrans.
“Colonialism cannot confer citizenship—only the collective will of the people can. We call on all Biafrans to intensify our social media campaign to enlighten our people that Biafran freedom is not just a dream but the ultimate goal of every Southeasterner.”
Powerful warned the traditional rulers who met with the Chief of Defence Staff that, “Your time was up.”
According to him, “The Biafran people will hold you accountable for betraying our collective struggle”, adding that, “Biafra will rise, and no force on earth can stop it.”
Gen Musa had, a few days ago at an event held at Omor, Anambra East Local Government Area of Anambra State, stressed that the spread of unverified information by IPOB “not only endangers the Southeast but also poses a threat to national unity and peace”.
