The proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has raised alarm over an alleged plot to assassinate the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Catriona Laing, during her planned visit to the South East and warned her to cancel the trip.
IPOB who claimed that it got the information through its intelligence arm, the M-Branch, said that the idea is to assassinate Laing in the South-East and blame it on its members.
According to Punch, this disclosure is contained in a statement issued by the IPOB Director of Media and Publicity, Emma Powerful, on Thursday, pointing out the British government’s unpleasant attitude towards the organization’s aspiration.
Powerful in the statement warned that the information became expedient to put the world in the know of the assassination plot, saying that IPOB respects the sanctity of life.
What IPOB is saying in the statement
The statement from IPOB partly reads, “The global movement and family of the Indigenous People of Biafra, under the leadership of our Liberator Mazi Nnamdi Okwuchukwu Kanu, wish to advise the British High Commissioner, Catriona Laing to be more conscious of her environment.
- “We as well call on British High Commissioner to shelve her regular visits to different parts of the Nigeria country-side especially the Biafraland otherwise referred to as South-East.
- “The reason for this sincere security advice is to save her life. Despite her hatred for Biafra and Igbos in particular, we have optimal respect and value for the sanctity of life, especially visitors to our land.
- “In view of the recently intercepted intel by our M-Branch, the IPOB Intelligence Unit Department, there’s an orchestrated conspiracy to perform a sacrifice big and powerful enough to strengthen the potency of the British hatred against the Igbos and Biafra. Such high profile plan is zeroed toward using a highly placed person capable of making headline news globally as a scapegoat.
- “The leadership of IPOB do hereby advise that Ms Catriona Liang, must as a matter of life and death suspend all her planned activities involving travels within Biafran Territories.
- “Those that are threatened by Biafra restoration project have perfected evil plans to assassinate Ms Catriona Liang, the British Envoy on Biafra soil as a quick and cogent reason for Britain to disengage their weapons supplies to Ukraine and concentrate same towards Nigeria to be used against Biafrans.
- “Their aim is to quash the agitation for Self Determination and to kill as many Indigenous Biafrans as possible and other residents in Biafra land.
- “We want to make it unequivocally clear to the International Community that IPOB is a non-violent Self Determination movement and we understand the usefulness of diplomacy and we respect diplomatic relations.
- “In spite of the Nigerian government’s unprovoked attacks, arrest, torture, illegal detentions, rape, killings and forceful disappearance of our family members especially oue youth, IPOB has not changed our peaceful non-violent agitation into armed struggle.”
- It added, “IPOB does not wish the British envoy death or dead. However, if she ignores this advice and walks into the trap already set by the enemies of the Biafra struggle, that will be considered suicidal.
- “We also want to let those masterminding the assassination plot of a British envoy to understand that nothing, and I mean absolutely nothing, will slow down let alone halt the Biafra restoration project. We, therefore, advise the British envoy never to lose your guard even while we’ve successfully burst their plan.
- “It is worthy to note that we had never attacked British persons, citizens, institutions, investments and properties of any kind, and we do not have such intention now or in the future, notwithstanding being at the receiving end of the British unpleasant attitudes, Igbophobic, Biafraphobic and stringent policies.”
What you should know
- The British Government had a few months ago dismissed media reports stating it had added the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, to its list of terrorist groups.
- This was disclosed in a statement by the British High Commission in Abuja where it stated that the British government does not consider IPOB as a proscribed organisation.
- The embattled leader of IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu, who is also a UK citizen, has been in the custody of the Nigerian government on the grounds of allegations, including treason.
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