By BABARA KALU, Akwa –
The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has made a clarification that it is not against the call for restructuring in Nigeria.
IPOB, however, said its major demand was for a referendum to decide whether “Biafra” would continue to be part of Nigeria or not.
The Media and Publicity Secretary of the secessionist group, Emma Powerful, disclosed this in a statement issued to newsmen on Monday in Awka, Anambra State.
He said, “Nigeria government must bear one thing in mind, IPOB is not fighting restructuring. We are not against restructuring but our demand is not restructuring.
“Our demand is restoration of Biafra State. All we need is a date for referendum to decide whether or not we want to continue with this forced marriage (Nigeria).
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“Those who think Nigeria is ready for restructuring may have to think again. Those benefiting from the current lop-sidedness have made restructuring impossible. They are unlikely to heed the clamour for restructuring.
“But for us, the only thing that can make us slow down a little is government giving us date for referendum. Restoration of the Sovereign State of Biafra is a divine mandate.”
IPOB is a separatist organization in Nigeria. Its main aim is to restore an independent state of Biafra in the Old Eastern Region of Nigeria, comprising mainly today’s South-EIPOB has criticized the Nigerian federal government for poor investment, political alienation, inequitable resource distribution, ethnic marginalization, and heavy military presence, extra-judicial killings in the South-Eastern, South-Central and parts of North-Central regions of the country.
The organization rose to prominence in the mid-2010s and is now the largest Biafran independence organization by membership. In recent years, it has gained significant media attention for becoming a frequent target of political crackdowns by the Nigerian government.
It also has numerous sites and communication channels serving as the only trusted social apparatus educating and inculcating first hand information and news to its members.ast and South-South Regions of Nigeria; and also parts of the Middle Belt states of Nigeria such as Benue State and Kogi State, through an independence referendum.
The group was founded in 2012 by Nnamdi Kanu, a British Nigerian political activist known for his prominent advocacy of the contemporary Biafran independence movement. It was deemed a terrorist organization in 2017 under Nigerian Terrorism Act.
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