“Cheap ‘notice me’ propaganda.” That is how the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) described a recent appeal by Chief Ralph Uwazuruike, founder of the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), and the group went on to accuse him of selling out the Biafran cause for money.
The statement was signed by Mazi Alex Chinonso Omenka, IPOB’s Emekuku Unit 1 Coordinator in Owerri Zone. It answered Uwazuruike’s call on Ohanaeze Ndigbo to visit IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu in the Sokoto Correctional Centre, where Kanu is detained, and urge him to stop allegedly recruiting Igbo youths for violence. IPOB rejects that charge and says Uwazuruike is chasing relevance.
The accusations
IPOB alleged that Uwazuruike “traded his conscience, dignity, and the name of Biafra for money and favour from the Federal Government”. It said he now resembles a businessman who builds houses and hotels. “He worries about the price of cement more than the cost of freedom,” the statement said. It added that anyone with fading relevance attaches himself to Kanu’s name to win favour from anti-Biafra politicians, and claimed the aim is to cover up killings and help the Nigerian government.
The group also took offence at Uwazuruike’s reported comparison of IPOB members to Boko Haram fighters seeking amnesty. “Boko Haram killed many Nigerians and got forgiveness and money,” IPOB said. “Our youths are dying because they demand a simple referendum or try to defend their land.”
Violence and the Eastern Security Network
IPOB insists Kanu has never directed young people to commit violence. What critics call recruitment, it argued, is people defending themselves. The Eastern Security Network, in IPOB’s account, was formed because Fulani bandits and their helpers were killing residents, wrecking farms and seizing land while the army and police failed to act or even assisted the attackers.
Online videos show young men in the bush vowing to fight back. IPOB said these do not prove Kanu is causing deaths from prison. “They are the voice of angry youths who are tired of watching their brothers get killed for no reason,” it said.
Then there is the “100-man divine project”, which came with Kanu’s recent changes in leadership. According to IPOB, the project is “about cleaning up the movement, removing betrayers, and making it stronger for the final victory”. The group said it is meant for “legal work and proper organisation, not guns”, and that Uwazuruike knows this but is “playing games for his paymasters”.
IPOB closed by praising Kanu, who it said demands a referendum for Biafra, has refused every offer to betray his people and has stayed in prison through torture without compromising. “The Lion of Biafra is roaring from prison,” the statement said.
Sources
- You Betrayed Biafra Struggle For Money, IPOB Tells Uwazuruike
- You Betrayed Biafra’s Struggle For Money, IPOB Tells Uwazuruike
