Abia mass grave: IPOB speaks, cautions DSS
- The national publicity secretary of the Indigenous People Of Biafra, Powerful Emma has said that the Department of Security Services (DSS) is instigation ethnic violence among Nigerians
- Emma said the IPOB is not a violent group and will not resort to violence
- He said the main focus of the group is the actualization of Biafra
The Indigenous People Of Biafra has officially reacted to the statement released by the Department of State Services (DSS) on the discovery of shallow graves in Abia state.
Speaking to Legit.ng, the national publicity secretary of the IPOB, Powerful Emma said the statement by the DSS is aimed at instigating ethnic violence among Nigerians.
He also denied claims that the IPOB is a violent organization.
Emma said: "You know everybody in this world knows the truth that IPOB is doesn’t kill anybody; and if our DSS can come up with such kind of blackmail in order to tarnish the image or reputation of an organization like IPOB, they are doing it to their own detriment because everybody knows what they (the DSS) are doing.
"For long they have been killing us, the army police and the navy have been killing our people but we have never retaliated, how can we now kill people – five people - who are living around this our side," Emma said.
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He said the organization is focused on the actualization of the freedom of Biafra rather involving itself with violence.
"If IPOB was a violent group, it would be killing like 20,000 and not five, but because we are not a violent group we are not mandated to involve in violence, we are not meant to intimidate anybody.
Only what we are fighting for is the freedom of our own nation called Biafra," he said.
Describing the statement as a blackmail, the IPOB said the group is yet to find some of its missing members said to be killed by security operatives.
"And whatever they are blackmailing, the DSS and all the rest of the security agents are doing against the IPOB, they will not get it the way they want it because the whole world knows that we are not a violent group.
"I know and the people around the world know that DSS are planning for the ethnic cleansing of the Igbos, they want to instigate the northerners to start killing our people over there.
"What they are doing is against the International Law, and the IPOB have given them seven days to proof to the entire world and show evidences that shows that the IPOB killed these people.
"If there was anybody killed, the Nigerian security should be held responsible, because in Aba on February 9, they killed so many of our people and most of our people are still missing up till now," he said.
“And at the side of borrow pit along Port Harcourt-Aba express road they burnt some people, burnt them with fire and threw them inside the borrow pit.
"We are still looking for many of our members and we are yet to get information whether they are still alive and we never retaliated.
"Besides, they saw a shallow pit of victims, how did they identify who is Hausa-Fulani and who is not? That is a ploy to make sure they tarnish the image of the IPOB because in our case that is coming up at the Appeal Court.
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"They want to make sure that the judge feel biased about the matter and to give a wrong judgement because they know that we are on top of them, they know what we are pursuing and what we are pursuing, Nigerian government and the DSS can never put an agenda for us.
"They want us to become violent and we would not do that that is why they are pushing us, killing us but we will not retaliate and we know why,” Emma continued.
He added that the IPOB is not a terrorist group and will never resort to terrorism as widely claimed.
“If we react now, they will tag us as terrorists, we are a terrorist organization and they cannot make us to become one, besides we are not ready to fight.
"How can DSS in Abuja know what is happening in the state because even the DSS in Abia state have said that they are not aware of these claims. This is unfortunate means of cheap popularity for the DSS but the good thing is that they have reduced themselves to nothing," he said.
Emma further advised the DSS to focus on its responsibility of ensuring the safety of all Nigerians rather than instigating ethnic crisis in Nigeria.
"They are security agency responsible of protecting everybody, not one section of the people, that is if they feel that we are one,” Emma said.
Source: Legit.ng
