News

IPOB Ranked ‘10th Deadliest’ Terrorist, Group Protests

Published

1 year ago

March 17, 2023

The Indigenous People of Biafra has dismissed the IEP Global Terrorism Index Report of 2022 as a conspiracy by the Federal Government and some other foreign agencies to blackmail and demonise the group.

The pro-Biafran group was reacting to the report by the Institute for Economics and Peace, which had rated it number 10 “deadliest terror group”.

In a statement on Thursday, IPOB’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, said it was disappointing that a reputable organisation such as IEP would descend so low to publish “fictional and inaccurate accounts in their 2022 terrorism index report”.

IPOB said an extract from the report released by the global research group showed a great contradiction from what was supposed to be assumed as a research and investigatory group.

Powerful, therefore, insisted that IPOB remained peaceful but resolute in the pursuit of Biafra liberation through a UN-supervised referendum, adding that they were not going to be distracted by sponsored blackmail and propaganda.

The statement read in part, “In the IEP’s Terrorism Index Report of 2022, the current Federal Government was cleverly portrayed as having improved in counter-terrorism while in reality the terrorists have become more emboldened during the period.

“According to the report, the total dead due to terrorism in Nigeria for 2022 is 448, which in the lowest level since 2011. This is concocted falsehood. In one state such as Benue alone the Fulani sponsored terrorists have killed more than 400 civilians. The report, as it relates to Nigeria, showed a full script from Nigeria Government handed over to the institute for publication.

“In the same report, IPOB was mentioned as the third most violent group that has caused civilian deaths. We challenge IEP to present irrefutable evidence where IPOB killed any person in Nigeria. On the contrary, there are many verifiable evidences, both in print and social media, on the massacre and extrajudicial killings of many IPOB members by Nigeria security agencies since 2017.

“We are here to tell our own stories to the world with facts and figures. We advise the US government to stand as a global human rights defenders to defend the right of every world citizen and not join the oppressors to abuse the rights and privileges of ordinary citizens.”

“Irrespective of all these illegal arrest, detention, torture, extrajudicial killings including extraordinary rendition of our leader, IPOB have remained peaceful in the face of all these high levels of provocation. Nigeria Government is pushing the narrative that IPOB is the aggressors but in the reality we are the victims of oppressive Government.

“As evil and wicked as the Federal Government of Nigeria and in their desperation to blackmail peaceful IPOB struggle, they have sponsored armed groups claiming to be IPOB who were paid to commit all manner of crimes in the Eastern Region so as to shop evidences to blackmail IPOB.

“We have in several press releases distance ourselves from those criminals being led by agent provocateur in Finland. Their actions and inactions has nothing to do with IPOB nor Mazi Nnamdi KANU. Some gullible IPOB’s members who joined them were dismissed from the movement.”
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News

Police Seal Off Benue APC Factional Secretariat

Published

26 mins ago

April 19, 2024

Editor

Armed policemen have sealed off the secretariat of the All Progressive Congress,APC, in Makurdi, the capital city of Benue State.

The party secretariat belongs to the Austin Agada-led APC Working Committee located along JS Tarka Way opposite the Railway Market in Makurdi.

There are two party secretariats in the capital city.

The other one belongs to Benjamin Omakolo’s team which is located along Kashim Ibrahim Way.

The Publicity Secretary of the Agada faction, Daniel Ihomun, said that the sealing off of their secretariat may not be unconnected with the inauguration of members of the zoning committee for the forthcoming local government election.

“We are to inaugurate members of the zoning committee for the coming local government election today at our secretariat only for the government to send policemen and their thugs to seal off the secretariat,” Ihomun said.

It was learnt that policemen and Armour Personnel Vehicle were deployed to the Agada-led office as early as 6am on Friday.

Efforts to get the reaction of the state Police Public Relations Officer, Catherine Anene, to ascertain the reason for the sealing off of the party secretariat were not successful as her phone rang out at the time of filing this report.

The Agada-led faction had constituted a 21-men zoning committee drawn from the three senatorial districts of the state and was expected to be inaugurated on Friday.

But in a swift response, the Omakolo-led team had in a statement issued by its Publicity Secretary, Terseer Agber, called on all party members and the general public to disregard the zoning committee constituted by the Agada-led committee.

News

JUST IN: Army Releases Delta Monarch Arrested Over Soldiers Killings

Published

1 hour ago

April 19, 2024

Editor

The Nigerian Army has released the traditional ruler, Clement Ikolo, earlier declared wanted and arrested over the gruesome murder of 17 soldiers in Delta State on 14 March 2024.

The monarch was declared wanted by the Defence Headquarters alongside seven others for alleged involvement in the act.

He was released to Senator Ede Dafianone who stood surety.

He was released during a brief at Army Headquarters by the Director, Army Public Relations, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu.

Details later…

News

Bandits Seek Peace Talks With Zamfara Gov In Viral Video

Published

14 hours ago

April 19, 2024

Editor

Some bandits have called for a peace talk with the Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal.

The decision of the gun-wielding men was made known in a viral video on Thursday.

In the video, a bandit, Garba Habeeb, who claimed to be the leader, appealed for negotiation between his group and the state government.

He said, “Because I represent Zamfara State (bandits), after that I need to send message to Dauda Lawal. Dauda Lawal Dere ‘ittakullaha’ (fear God)!

“As from today, we need peace. We need peaceful coexistence in Zamfara State. Continued fighting will not bring us peace. Peace is what is required of you.

“If you look at what’s going on in Eastern Africa, you’ll agree we need to find common ground to resolve our differences.

“After that, I need to send a message to the military, Tukur Usman Gusau, because he’s the one who sends warplanes to bomb bandits.

“Last week, a vigilante group came to my area to follow my cow and sheep to go (sic). This one is not good.

“Dauda Lawal Dare, you’re the leader of Zamfara State, fear God. If you lead a peaceful Zamfara, (sic) then call all the leaders of Fulanis and all the ‘Kachallas’ (bandits commanders) to the negotiation table for the benefit of all,.”

Efforts by to reach the governor’s spokesperson, Sulaiman Idris, for comment proved abortive as his phone lines were not connecting and text messages were not replied to.

In 2019, bandits in Zamfara gave conditions for laying down their arms, one of them being the halting of extra-judicial killings of herdsmen.

The bandits also demanded that they be allowed to attend local markets without fear or intimidation.

Recently, the governor called for the deployment of more soldiers due to the high level of insecurity plaguing the state.

He made the call when he visited the Chief of Defence Staff, Christopher Musa, at the Defence Headquarters in Abuja.

A statement by the governor’s spokesperson disclosed that the governor briefed the CDS about the security situation in the state during the meeting.

Lawal expressed concerns over the resurgence of attacks in some parts of his state and appealed to Musa, an army general, to deploy more troops and weapons to the state.

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