The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has predicted that the shutdown of Onitsha Market for seven days on the order of Anambra State Governor, Chukwuma Soludo and similar orders over traders’ insistence on Monday sit-at-home protest in honour of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the group’s leader will only propel the actualisation of Biafra, not impact it adversely.
In a statement issued on Tuesday – today, January 27 – by the pro-Biafra group’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Comrade Emma Powerful, IPOB, while equally condemning the massive deployment of security forces to enforce the shutdown, described the Governor’s action as a violation of the traders rights to carry on their businesses unfettered.
“We strongly condemn the barbaric and unwarranted actions of Anambra State Governor, Charles Soludo, who has unleashed unruly military and police formations on innocent traders and protesters in Onitsha, IPOB declared in the statement by Powerful.
“We call on all well-meaning Nigerians, human rights organizations, and the international community to immediately caution Governor Soludo and warn the Nigerian police and army to desist from firing live ammunition into crowds of unarmed civilians.”
Warning that provocative tactics such as Governor Soludo has adopted in dealing with the lingering weekly sit-at-home protest in parts of Igboland, not only endanger lives but also exacerbate the very insecurity they claim to combat, IPOB lamented that by allowing himself to be manipulated as a tool in the hands of oppressors, Soludo “has stained his hands with the blood of his own people” who might die in the course of the shutdown enforcement.
“This is not governance; it is state-sponsored terrorism designed to undermine the legitimate aspirations of the Biafran people,” the Biafra self-determination group argued.
“IPOB remains committed to peace and a negotiated settlement that culminates in a democratic referendum on self-determination, the very cause for which our leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, has been unjustly imprisoned.
“We urge all protesters to remain peaceful, law-abiding, and resolute in the face of provocation. Violence is not our path; it is the weapon of those who fear the truth and the will of the people.
“The liberation of Biafra is nearer than ever, as prophesied by our indomitable leader. In his words: ‘If I have to go to Sokoto, the seat of the Caliphate, to set Biafra free from our bondage, then I shall do so.’ Indeed, the Almighty God has twisted the heart of Omotosho, like Pharaoh of old, to send Mazi Nnamdi Kanu to Sokoto, fulfilling this divine prophecy.
“Governor Soludo’s reckless actions have only ignited the fire that will propel us inexorably toward the promised land of Biafra , a sovereign nation where justice, equity, and prosperity will reign.
“We warn that any further aggression against peaceful Biafrans will only hasten the inevitable collapse of the oppressive structures holding our people captive. The world is watching, and history will judge those who choose violence over dialogue”.
