The Council of Elders of the Indigenous People of Biafra
(CEIPOB) has said that the Fulani should be blamed for whatever mayhem
unleashed on the people of the South-South and South-East regions from October
1st, 2017 following the eviction notice issued by a Coalition of Arewa youths.
This was stated in a communiqué co-signed by the chairman
and secretary of the Council – Col. Joe Achuzia, who is a civil war veteran,
and Professor Chidi Osuagwu respectively, after a meeting of CEIPOB held in
Owerri.
Describing the ultimatum as weird, the Council said the idea
originated from the Fulani in the North and dissociated the people of the
Middle Belt and Borno State from the quit notice.
“The Council of Elders of IPOB holds the Fulani responsible
for the threat, as Hausa are under dogs in the so-called Hausa-Fulani society.
We hold the Fulani accountable for whatever happens to the peoples of the
South-East and South-South of Nigeria as a consequence of that threat.
“Like in 1966, they will have no way of distinguishing
others from Igbo, which is why all were subjected to the pogrom then. In 1966,
it was marauding Hausa-Fulani, mostly, that organized the killing of easterners
in Maiduguri and the Middle Belt,” a communiqué issued at the end of the
council’s meeting read.
The communiqué stated that with the experience of 1966, the
eviction threat should be taken seriously as anything can happen in a state of
confusion, adding: “it takes only a determined mob to create mayhem.
Moreover
people with feudalist mind-set are by nature self-obsessed; narcissistic, at
the expense of others.”
While welcoming the condemnation of the ultimatum by the
Northern Governors’ Forum and Arewa Consultative Forum among others, the IPOB
elders noted with dismay that such action did not constrain the youths from
repeating their threat two days later.
“The use of Arewa House as the venue for issuing the threat
carries added significance as ordinary rabble-rousing youths; who are not
scions of the Fulani oligarchy, cannot have easy access to such a historically
important venue for such nefarious activity over the time frame involved.
“Distabilisation of the Acting Presidency of Yemi Osinbajo
seems the immediate objective of the outrage at Arewa House. Anyone familiar
with the influence of Al Maghili’s The Obligations of the Prince (same as
Machiavelli’s) on caliphate politics will recognize that bringing the Igbo into
the equation is, more likely, a smokescreen, which nevertheless is very serious
indeed.
“The long term aim of the people behind this is to, through
divide-and-rule tactics, isolate Igbo and project Ndigbo as the ‘Problem of
Nigeria’. A national scapegoat, who should either succumb to intimidation,
blackmail, internal colonialism or be mobbed like in 1966 – 1970. Yet Igbo are
no problem to Nigerian neigbhours as Fulani, with their weaponised cows, are to
neigbhours across West Africa,” the communiqué read.
It stated that Biafra as articulated in the Ahiara Declaration,
is a land where every African can stand free and proud.
“This is what Ojukwu meant by Biafra-of-the-mind. Biafra is
not a geography-bound phenomenon. Nigeria can become Biafra, and attractive to
Biafrans, if it begins to believe in truth-justice.
“But a land of untruth and injustice, a realm of chaos as
Nigeria is now, is not acceptable to Biafrans. If truth-justice and freedom are
to be found only in one village called Biafra, it is still the best for
Biafrans and Africa.
There is limitless space for those who look up,” it added.
By Chijioke Jannah
