The governor of Abia state, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu, has urged the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) to quiet down their protests, alleging that the lockdown imposed in several southeastern states on August 9 is injurious to Igbo people.
IPOB has declared a week-long shutdown on Mondays in protest of its leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s detention by the DSS.
Some states, including Ebonyi, Enugu, and Anambra have entirely shut down on Monday, but Ikpeazu believes the focus should be on securing Nnamdi Kanu’s right to a fair trial and not on keeping Igbos from coming to work.
Whiles addressing the issue, he said;
“I want to say that for the first time since this agitation started, the Ohaneze Ndi Igbo, which is the leading Pan-Igbo socio-Cultural group, has expressed serious interest in making sure that Mazi Nnamdi Kanu gets fair judgement and a powerful delegation led by Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife was sent there and they are monitoring the trials.” Ikpeazu told SunNewsOnline on Monday, August 9.
“Our government is also monitoring and in contact with the family and other concerned institutions. What it means is that collectively, all of us are interested that Nnamdi Kanu will be given a fair trial and if the interest of IPOB represents the interest of the masses of this geo political zone, it means that we must not do anything that will seem as if we want to cut our nose to spite our face.”
“What will be the logic behind asking our children not to go to school? On Monday, they will be writing mathematics in NECO examination which is national. What will be the logic behind asking our people not to go out to make a living?”
” We are already crying that we are marginalized and also pressed hard by the consequences of COViD-19 and EndSars protests. If our children and grand children become illiterates in the future, have we hurt our perceived enemies in anywhere? Let me say this on record, if we have enemies anywhere, I believe there is a way to address them.”
” If we have people that are waging war against us, and then our response is that we will not go to market and not go to school, whatever they are doing to ensure that we behave in that way, they will do it. So, this will be counter-productive against Mazi Nnamdi Kanu because withholding him can affect our economic base and make us illiterates. I think it is not the right thing to do. “
“It should not even be a contemplation. Therefore, I will urge everybody to go about their normal business.”
Source: Gossips24.com
