Special to USAfrica magazine (Houston) and USAfricaonline.com, first Africa-owned, US-based newspaper published on the Internet
Showdown ahead Anambra Nov 6 Governorship elections as IPOB calls for 1 week sit-at-home; Buhari orders soldiers to be ruthless to disrupters. (Publisher’s note: the IPOB later cancelled/called-off/denied calling for boycott of the Anambra election).
The latest efforts of the Anambra State Governor Willie Obiano appealing for increased participation of voters, improved security and peaceful voting seem headed to a critical, dangerous test in less than two weeks.
Amidst the recent increase in insecurity in parts of Anambra and the now the escalated IPOB factor whereby the Indigenous People of of Biafra (IPOB) declared, today — for the first time, a 1-week sit-at-home protest — from November 5 to November 10, 2021, will complicate an already complex set of circumstances.
Emma Powerful, IPOB’s Media and Public Secretary, stated in a news release: “Following the adjournment of our great leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s court case to 10th of November 2021, by the Federal High Court, Abuja, we the great movement and family of the Indigenous People of Biafra wish to inform Biafrans, friends of Biafra and lovers of freedom that IPOB will lock down Biafraland from 5th of November to 10th of November except Sunday, November 7th, a day our people worship the Almighty God if the Nigeria Government fails to release our leader unconditionally before 4th of November 2021.”
“Our leader … must be released unconditionally on or before November 4, 2021 because he has not committed any offense known to any law. Failure to release our leader (Kanu) on or before November 4, 2021, our one week Sit-At-Home begins on November 5, 2021 till November 10.”
The IPOB announcement came in, surprisingly, when Anambra State is finalizing plans for its governorship election on Saturday November 6.
IPOB conceded that “Although we quite understand the pains and adverse effects of this option on our people, we are compelled to take it to achieve a better purpose in the collective interest of Biafrans.”
On the demand for freedom for Kanu, the IPOB spokesman said “We have taken time to analyse what transpired on October 21 when our Leader was arraigned in court and discovered that the federal government is not sincere and only wants to humiliate him and keep him perpetually in DSS custody to rot there.”
“We all saw how lawyers, journalists, Igbo delegates and respected traditional rulers and other people who came from all around the world to witness his court case were restricted and denied access into the court premises by security agents who kept them outside under the scorching heat of the sun. What a humiliation and wickedness!”
IPOB promised it will not allow Kanu “to be tried secretly and we can never also allow him to be tried under Sharia law under any guise. Nigeria must follow International laws in handling our leader… Nobody resident in Biafra land is expected to flout this directive as doing so amounts to challenging the will of the people on the Biafra project.”
