The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) ordered Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma till the end of the month to release innocent Biafra agitators imprisoned in various cells around the state or face the wrath of the group.
IPOB urged Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Igbo religious leaders, civil society groups, and women organizations to caution the governor against arresting innocent members of the group, stressing that it will no longer tolerate the hounding of its members in Imo, in a statement signed by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, in Enugu.
“Friends, family members and associates of Hope Uzodimma must tell him to release those innocent Biafrans arrested unjustly in Imo State. We give him till the end of November 2021 to do so; failure of which he will be testing the will of the masses and our irrevocable resolve to restore Biafra. There is no justification for arresting peaceful agitators of Biafra, whereas bandits and mass murderers are allowed to roam the streets freely. This hatred against the innocent must stop.
“We want to put it clear to him and his co-travellers that IPOB will never stop in Imo because it is one of the states in Biafra territory. Uzodimma and his co-travellers are uninformed and cannot stop our agitation for freedom in Imo. We don’t want anybody to blame IPOB should we decide to react,” the statement stated.
Uzodimma and corrupted security officers, according to the organization, had already caused enough harm to innocent IPOB members and ordinary civilians in the state.
In the meantime, Governor Uzodimma has contributed N10 million to the Anglican Diocese of Egbu, which is located near Owerri, the capital of Imo State.
At the Second Session of the ninth Synod of the diocese, held over the weekend, the governor, represented by his Special Adviser on Religious Affairs, Revd. Chidi Nwanebu, urged the clergy and laity to pray fervently for the government and people of Imo to overcome the challenges they face.
St. John’s Anglican Church in Naze, Owerri North Local Council, hosted the event.
Chief Press Secretary/Media Adviser to the Governor, Oguwike Nwachuku, accompanied the governor’s delegate, who said: “Governors will come and go, problems will come and go, but Imo State will remain.”
Uzodimma promised to leave the state in a better shape than he found it, promising to keep building roads.
The Bishop of the Diocese, Geoffrey Okoroafor, expressed his gratitude to the governor for his interest in the things of God and the kind donation.