PUNCH
The Indigenous People of Biafra has dissociated itself from the purported declaration of the Biafra Republic by some members of the Finland-based group, describing it as a scam.
The pro-Biafran group urged the people to ignore the declaration, saying those involved in the event in Finland were among the sponsors of insecurity in Nigeria’s South-East region.
This was contained in a statement issued by the IPOB’s spokesman, Emma Powerful, on Sunday.
Powerful added that the agenda of those who made the declaration in Finland was to destabilise the South-East, divide the people, cause panic, and divert the attention of Biafrans and those sympathetic to the Biafran struggle.
According to him, there is no room for another Biafra declaration besides the one its late leader, Dim Ojukwu, declared in 1967, insisting that all those involved in the declaration in Finland, are criminals and fake agents.
The statement read in parts, “The noble family of IPOB led by the leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu wishes to disassociate itself from the purported Biafra second declaration by an infamous no-name group. The so-called declaration is a scam. There is no room for another Biafra declaration besides the one our eternal leader, Dim Odimegwu Ojukwu, declared in 1967.
“IPOB wishes to commend responsible media organisations and social media bloggers in Nigeria and in the diaspora that didn’t give attention to the mockery of the Biafra struggle by infiltrators in Finland and elsewhere. However, it is imperative to inform the international community, Biafrans, friends of Biafra, and lovers of Biafran freedom that Biafra had been declared by our eternal leader late Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu in 1967.
“What IPOB is doing is to restore the sovereignty of the declared Biafra Independence that was forced to surrender through genocide by the Nigerian and British governments. IPOB is calling for a United Nations-supervised referendum for Biafrans so that the declared sovereignty can be restored.
“Biafra cannot be declared for the second time by anyone. It is sad that some unscrupulous elements who failed in the mission to infiltrate and destroy IPOB went into the jamboree they claimed was Biafra’s second declaration outside the Biafra territory. Biafrans and IPOB, in particular, are happy that the fun fare the infiltrators had in Finland this weekend was ignored by all responsible media organisations.”
The group noted that persons involved in the purported second declaration in Finland “were among the sponsors of insecurity in the South-East region. Their agenda is to destabilise the South-East, divide the people, and divert the attention of Biafrans and those sympathetic to the Biafra struggle by making the genuine Biafra struggle unattractive to our people. They failed woefully.”
