Monday, paralysed activities in the commercial city of Onitsha,
Anambra State.
The army of protesters with their banners and placards marched on the
ever busy Onitsha-Enugu expressway for over two hours.
They were protesting against the continued detention of the Director
of Radio Biafra, Mr. Nnamdi Kanu by the Federal Government.
Though, they were peaceful and non-violence, in their agitation for
the actualisation of Biafra, and the release of Kanu, they dared the
military, the police, and other security out fits.
The IPOB members marched from Niger Bridge Head entry into Anambra
State, where the plaque of former Biafran warlord, late Dim
Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu was built, to Naval Outpost, Atani Road
Ogbaru Local Government Area.
They also, went back to Uga Junction, where they again joined the
Onitsha, Asaba-Enugu expressway, down to Upper Iweka flyover.
At the Upper Iweka flyover bridge, they danced for about 30 minutes
and prevented vehicular movement before their leaders directed that
they should allow the vehicles to move, but slowly.
Some of the placards had inscriptions as "Nigeria is a lawless land,
and a terrorist state," "Biafra is a nation not a society," "Free
innocent man, Nnamdi Kanu or there will be no peace", among others.
On their march towards Zik Roundabout, they stopped in front of the
Onitsha Military Cantonment on the Onitsha-Enugu expressway, danced,
chanting anti-Federal and Anambra State Government and Military songs,
demanding the release of Kanu.
Furthermore, they warned that if anything happened to him, they would
make Nigeria ungovernable, before they left for Zik Roundabout.
The group also stopped at Inosi Onira, the home of First president of
Nigeria, the late Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, to pay homage to Zik's plaque
built at the roundabout, and addressed reporters.
According to the group's spokesmen, who gave their names as Emma
Powerful and Sunday Igbokenyi, from Okija, IPOB wondered why Kanu
should still be in detention after the court had granted him bail.
They alleged that a ban had been place on all the imported goods the
Igbo were major importers so as to humiliate them.
They added that IPOB was a non-violent group and its members should
not be treated like criminals, when Federal Government was petting the
Boko Haram members.
Igbokenyi said that the people, who claimed to be leaders of Ohaneze
Ndigbo branches in the Igbo-speaking states, were political jobbers,
who had been benefiting from contracts and settlements from the
Federal and State governments.
IPOB insisted that such people could not represent Ndigbo with their comments.
According to them, "whether the Ohaneze Ndigbo, South East Governors
and Igbo traditional rulers and prominent Igbo who talk from both
sides of the mouth are castigating and calling them names or not, we
are determined to achieve our objectives"
The IPOB members took their protest to Ogbunike Toll Gate from where
they turned and marched to Awka Road and Old Market Roads in Onitsha
where they stopped vehicular movement.
-DailyTimes
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