By Charles Igbo
Ijaw Militant, Alhaji Muhajidi Asari Dokubo, on Sunday, March 14, 2021, declared a Biafran State out of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, thus putting himself on a direct collision course not only with the Nigerian Government but with Christians and Nnamdi Kanu.
He set up what he called a Biafran Customary Government, BCG, to be piloted by four people, with himself at head, to run the affairs of the Biafran State.
By doing that, in clear exclusion of IPOB members, apparently without consultation with the body, Dokubo has effectively sacked the leader of the Indigenous Peoples Of Biafra, IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. An epic battle is expected between IPOB headed by Kanu, and the now new Biafra Customary Government of the Biafra State. Kanu and IPOB have been in the forefront of the struggle for the actualisation of the Republic of Biafra, independent of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
For that, he has been at logger heads with the Nigerian Government, which declared IPOB a terrorist organisation, proscribed it, and charged Kanu to Court for treason. He is currently in Britain, which citizen he is, after jumping bail in Nigeria.
It is unlikely that Kanu will allow Dokubo, easily, to “steal” Biafra from him, the same way Ralph Uwazuruike, the leader of MASSOB, whose subordinate Kanu was, allowed Kanu to steal the Biafra thunder from him.
The unexpected action by Asari Dokubo is, also, expected to put him on a collusion course with Christians. The areas Dokubo carved out to make up his new Biafra are 99.99 percent of the Christian faith. He said:
“I, also call on Biafrans in the various province of the Biafra nations in Aba, Abakiliki, Anang, Awka, Calabar, Degema, Eket, Enugu, Nsukka, Ogoja, Oji River, Okigwe, Onitsha, Opobo, Orlu, Owerri, Port Hacourt, Umuahia, Uyo and Yenegoa provinces.
“We are going to proceed to set up provincial structures of Government starting with Provincial Assemblies and Provincial governance and administration.”
Dokubo, a native of Abonema, Rivers State, a voluntarily law student drop-out, son of a late Rivers State High Court Judge, converted from the Christian faith to the Islamic faith. How he hopes to be the Head of Government in a strictly Christian area is one of the things he will battle with.
He is likely to have a stiff resistance from the people, especially, the millions of youths who, already believe in IPOB.
When one adds the above to the fierce resistance he would face from the FG, the uphill task he faces can be imagined.
Yet, he may have considered the obstacles while birthing his new version of the Biafra agitation in a statement, on Sunday, signed by the
Head of Information and Communication of the Biafra Customary Government, Uche Mefor. The statement, also, announced George Onyibe as Secretary and, Emeka Esiri as in charge of Legal matters.
In declaring the new Government, Dokubo, said he was pushed by the injustice and marginalisation of the Igbo in various zones of the country and wants a “better life for his people”.
He said that the new Government will take up the insecurity challenges faced by the Igbo race, and would focus on science and technology to improve lives of the Igbo.
The statement reads in part: “We, as people, have resolved that as Biafra, it’s time for us to take our destiny in our hands and bring freedom to ourselves and our children and the generation of Biafrans yet unborn.
“I hesitate a little but I thank God that it’s time for us to do our duty and our service to motherland, I have accepted this role. I have dedicated my life hundred percent to play this role.
“My first act today in taking this position is to name those who would be on the driver’s seat to navigate through this period of tempest, this period of uncertainty with me.
“I want to call on our brother, George Onyibe to come on board to join as the secretary of the defacto customary government of the State of Biafra. He will take care of the administrative, day to day administration of the Biafra State.
“I also call on our brother Emeka Emeka Esiri to take care of the legal needs of this nascent government.
“My brothers and sisters, the four of us will kick start the process, others will come on board. We want volunteers who are committed, we want volunteers because there is nothing anymore. We are the people who have volunteered to salvage ourselves and the rest of us.
“I also call on Biafrans in the various province of the Biafra nations in Aba, Abakiliki, Anang, Awka, Calabar, Degema, Eket, Enough, Nsuka, Ogoja, Oji River, Okigwe, Onitsha, Opobo, Orlu, Owerri, Port Harcourt, Umuahia, Uyo and Yenegoa province.
“We are going to proceed to set up provincial structures of government starting with provincial assemblies and provincial governance and administrators.
“Let nobody be mistaking that Biafra;will be worse than Nigeria. There is nothing that will be worse than what we are facing today in Nigeria,” Dokubo stated.
He claimed that his Government will attend to all the needs of the people
Dokubo: “Fellow Biafrans, our Government will concentrate on the following areas: security paramount, securing the lives and properties of our people, we are going to invest everything we have in science and technology to increase the scientific and technological discoveries, fabrications and making life easier for our people through science and technology.
“We are going to pursue rigorously the education of our people, we are going to make sure that we feed ourselves.
“You are all aware of the recent plot where they decided to stop food from the north. They failed woefully, they will continue to fail. The Government of Biafra States will look to make sure that we only eat what we can produce.”
The BGC leader promised that to achieve this purpose, there will be no war with anybody.
“Nobody can stop us. Nobody can blockade us as they did in the first war. We’re not going to fight any war with anybody, we’re walking to freedom.
“We will not shoot any gun with them, they will prepare their weapon but they will have nobody to kill with their weapon,” Dokubo emphasised.
Asari Dokubo and Nnamdi Kanu were allies in the “Freedom Struggle.” Indeed, it was strongly speculated, but not confirmed, that he helped Kanu escape from Nigeria through the Azumini River, and into exile when the Nigerian army invaded his father’s palace in Afara, Abia State, in an incident Kanu said was meant to assassinate him. His parents, also, went into exile the same day. Both, unfortunately, died in exile, and were buried the same day in their home town.
For the records, Dokubo, like Kanu, does not live in Nigeria. He lives in Cotonou, in the neighbouring Republic of Benin.
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