From Steve Oko, Umuahia
The Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, IPOB, has warned those calling for the head of Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe over his call for the resignation of President Muhammadu Buhari.
“We are warning and cautioning any person, persons or group who are making frantic efforts to endear themselves to the caliphate by issuing unguarded press statements to retrace their step because Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe is not to be toyed with or his name ridiculed by any faceless, non-existent Igbo group”, IPOB said in a statement.
Abaribe had during a debate on the floor of the senate over the worsening insecurity in the country asked Buhari to resign honourably for the inability of his government to secure lives and property of Nigerians.
But in a swift response the President has lampooned the Senate Minority Leader, describing the call as “irresponsible and childish.”
Presidential Spokesman, Garba Shehu said Abaribe should have been in jail by now for failing to produce IPOB Leader in court whom he had guaranteed.
Apart from the Presidency, an alleged amorphous group known as Igbo Movement in Nigeria, IMN has also chided the former Abia Deputy Governor, and asked him to apologise to the President over the comment.
But piqued by the “unwarranted attacks ” on Abaribe from some quarters, IPOB has warned against any harm on the Abia South senator.
IPOB in a press statement signed by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, backed Abaribe for his courage to speak to power when most of his colleagues were afraid to speak out.
IPOB said any government that fails in its primary responsibility of protection of lives and property “should resign”, as Abaribe demanded.
The statement read in part :”It is important we let the masses that inhabit the colonial contraption called Nigeria know that any government that fails to protect the lives and properties of her citizens is a total failure. Therefore, this Fulani regime is a complete and utter failure and should be removed.
“It is unfortunate that Nigerians do not know what democracy and opposition politics is all about. An opposition party is there to oppose and that is what Abaribe did but surprisingly this rudimentary requirement of democratic governance is lost on some sections of ill-informed Fulani quota graduates hence their hysteria.”
IPOB disagreed with the Presidency that its leader jumped bail insisting that the September 14 ,2017 military invasion of his Afaraukwu Ibeku country home was a plot to eliminate him, hence his miraculous escape.
“IPOB is still in court challenging the Nigeria Army, Police, Navy and DSS invasion of our leader’s compound in 2017. Garba Shehu and his fellows in Aso Rock should always be mindful of these irrefutable facts before opening their mouth again in public.”
