LATELY, I had the opportunity to lay my hand on an editorial of the Nigerian Tribune newspaper dated June 1, 2022 and titled The South-East and IPOB’s sit-at-home conundrum. The major takeaway was on how IPOB’s sit-at-home order had been crippling economy of the southeastern region through series of attacks by unknown gunmen who forcibly enforce the order every Monday. We recall that the proscribed group introduced a sit-at-home order in August 2021 as a means of mounting pressure on the Nigerian government for the unconditional release of its leader, Mr. Nnmadi Kanu, who is currently in detention at a Department of State Service (DSS) cell. IPOB initially declared the holiday for Mondays but later extended it to any day Mr. Kanu is billed to appear in court. Since then, the South-East has become a ghost region with all businesses shut down on such days and every Monday as residents stay at home, mainly out of fear of attack.
Mr. Kanu was standing trial for alleged treasonable felony and terrorism before he jumped bail and escaped out of the country. But he was later rearrested in Kenya and repatriated back to Nigeria for the continuation of legal proceedings. Initially, the southeastern people had willingly obeyed this order as a sign of solidarity to Kanu whom they regarded as a saviour until they started to count losses on the economic cost on businesses and the livelihoods of individuals and families over a period of time which made the situation no longer bearable. Thus, they started resisting and defying the so-called directive. However, IPOB militants under the disguised identity of ‘unknown gunmen’ have been killing people and destroying their hard-earned properties as a way of enforcing compliance. This ugly trend has dented the image of the region as one of the most dangerous zone in the country as it has become the epicenter of criminality where people are being maimed and killed in cold blood on a daily basis.
Meanwhile, the Anambra State governor, Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo, has said that an estimated N19.6 billion has been lost alone during the sit-at-home period and it seems as if the IPOB is committed to ruining the South-East economy as the attacks continue without any signs of abatement. I personally believe that it is baseless to embark on a killing spree and destruction of people’s properties just to press home your demand for the release of a citizen who is standing trial before the court of law. This is tantamount to ruining the society, which may turn bloody when the community members are pushed to the wall and decide to protect themselves. This can snowball into violence which can destroy the society and give reasons for hatred or even war between the people and government. On a number of occasions, there have been several initiatives made to persuade IPOB to revoke the sit-at-home rule so as to promote peace, unity and rescue government from economic downfall. One of these efforts is the move to persuade President Muhammadu Buhari to release Kanu with the assurance to maintain peace. However, this could not be achieved as Buhari insisted that Kanu should have his day in court to clear his name and that he could not interfere with the judiciary.
Meanwhile, in spite of the measures being taken to prevent killing and kidnapping in the South-East by the governors in collaboration with other federal security agencies , the killing and abductions of government officials and their accomplices have continued unabated. The spirited efforts by Professor Soludo and other stakeholders in Anambra State to douse tension in the region have been commended but there has been little or no significant success. The ugly trend is still in resurgence while people continue to live in fear and sorrow. The recent killing and beheading of an Anambra lawmaker by unknown gunmen as well as the brutal murder of an Arewa pregnant woman, Harira and her four children were, to say the least, barbaric acts. Something must be done to rescue South-East from these blood-sucking demons who continue to hold the region by the jugular. Definitely and urgently.
- Iyiola is a student of the Department of Mass Communication, Babcock University, Ogun State.
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