Grumbles as Kanu threatens to shut down Ebonyi for three days

The last visit by the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu to Ebonyi State elicited divergent views from the citizens of the state, especially when he said he was going to shut down the state for three days in his next visit. There were cheers. But there were audible grumbles in many quarters.

Some are of the view that the IPOB leader had taken his agitation too far going by his pronouncements. Others who listened to him were basking in the euphoria that the state had been taken over by Biafra agitators.

This development had stirred lots of mixed feelings and reactions from Ebonyi people, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and even other Pro-Biafra agitators in the state.

The leadership of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the State had earlier at the party’s secretariat warned that even as they were not averse to genuine agitation, the state was opposed to protests that could degenerate into violence and youth restiveness in the state.

The party chairman, Chief Onyekachi Nweboyi and the Youth Leader, Elder Sam Igwe in separate press briefings said that the youths in the state should avoid being lured into breaching the laws of the land. Igwe, the youth leader who thronged the party office with youths numbering thousands told them to remain peaceful and avoid any clash

He noted that the IPOB leader as a notable son of Igbo land should have informed the appropriate authorities of his visit instead of sneaking into the area last weekend when thousands of his supporters marched out to receive him.

Meanwhile, in a chat with Vanguard, the Ebonyi State leader of the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra, MASSOB, Biafra Independent Movement, BIM, Mr. Nwifuru John added that Raph Uwazuruike of MASSOB (BIM) remains the number one and father of Biafra agitation in the country.

“Uwazurike has done many things since then. He brought back Biafra currency, even Biafra uniforms that we are wearing now; Uwazurike is the one that brought them. He has achieved so many things before other groups came out and he still loves the groups because he cannot do it alone. We need more Pro-Biafra groups.

“We were not aware of Nnamdi Kanu’s visit to Ebonyi State but through our security agents, we got the information. But we didn’t want to stop them because what they are doing is what we are doing but they should maintain non-violence. MASSOB (BIM) maintains non-violence.

“We want to inform the world that we MASSOB (BIM) are still with Uwazurike. We want to let the world know that Uwazurike is the number one citizen of Biafra. He is the father of all Biafra agitators in the country.

“After 1970 when the civil war ended, nobody ever mentioned the name Biafra till 1999. It was Uwazurike that came out openly and mentioned the name Biafra and raised the flag. Nigeria’s security killed many of the Biafra boys because of that  flag. He maintained non-violence. The security was still shooting people without arms even when Uwazurike was shouting that they were non-violent.”

Addressing the crowd at Aziokwu Primary School close to Abakaliki Mechanic Village, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu vowed that the conduct of 2019 general election will not hold in all the Biafra states across the country, adding that nobody can stop the actualization of the sovereign State of Biafra no matter whose ox is goad.

He added that Ebonyi State remained one of the topmost Biafra states with rich natural resources put in place by God and that nobody can stop Ebonyi and other states from being part of Biafra.

 “I will teach our enemies what they don’t know. I will teach them that nobody can stop Biafra because Biafra has come to stay. I will transverse all parts of Biafra lands and other areas without anybody stopping me including police and soldiers who are always in the habit of harassing our people.

“I will continue to walk in the midst of these security agents as you can see and nobody will arrest me. They know they can’t stop Biafra. I have come to declare Ebonyi a Biafra state and when next I come, I will shut down the state for three days”.

Many are still wondering whether Mazi Kanu really understood the meaning of shutting down a State for three days in the name of Biafra agitation. Ebonyi is indeed a peaceful state and the tolerance of the people should not be tested on the platform of youthful exuberance and high-handedness.

The tension his visit generated could have led to a full scale civil disorder, if not for the ingenuity and intelligence of security agents and maturity of Ebonyi youths in the State.

Also, a Public Affair Analyst, Mr. Felix Uka stated that: “I watched with bewilderment how old men and women, young boys and girls, the educated and the illiterate left what they were doing to catch a glimpse of Nnamdi Kanu and hear him. This is how revolution grows; it starts from the mind; he has caught the interest and attention of a number of people. Nonetheless, all I can say for certainty is in line with Acts 5:39 “but if it is of God, you will not be able to stop or overthrow or destroy them; you might even be found fighting against God”.