The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), a separatist group fighting for the restoration of the Republic of Biafra have risen in swift and sharp push back against the comments made by President Muhammadu Buhari in an interview with Bloomberg, a United States Media group.
In the interview, Buhari accused IPOB of responsibility for vandalizing oil and gas pipelines and infrastructure in Nigeria.
Consequently, the president called on the West and foreign countries to designate the separatist group as a terrorist organization.
According to Buhari, “Criminality and terrorism in oil-producing regions hamper production, and it would help if our western allies designated IPOB as a terrorist group, given their complicity in damage to pipelines and infrastructure,” he had said.
In their response, IPOB swiftly and aggressively denied any involvement in the matters alleged, while calling President Buhari “ignorant” and claiming that the president is simply out to, “advertise his ignorance and the failure of his government in credible intelligence gathering by making such laughable, wide and untenable allegations.”
The group, in a statement released by Emma Powerful, IPOB spokesperson have also drawn the attention of President Buhari to some facts disclosed to the public by the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC).
This government agencies, which is responsible for providing security to national infrastructures had last week, threatened to name those responsible for vandalism of the oil sector in the country.
The NCDC referred to these culprits as highly placed Nigerians, but did not directly or indirect point fingers at IPOB.
“What a contradiction and confusion in Buhari’s Nigeria! In case he has forgotten as usual, just last week, his NSCDC (Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps) boss threatened to name high profile Nigerians behind oil theft.” Said Emma Powerful.
NOTABLE QUOTES
In the statement released on Wednesday by Emma Powerful, in swift reaction to Buhari’s comment, the IPOB spokesperson said the following:
“The attention of the global movement and family of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) ably led by our great and indefatigable leader, Mazi Nnamdi KANU, has been drawn to the laughable, disgraceful and fallacious statement from the supposed President of Nigeria, Major General Muhammadu Buhari, alleging that IPOB is behind pipeline vandalism in the Niger Delta,” the statement reads.
“For the impostor in Aso Rock to tell the US and other Western countries that IPOB is responsible for pipeline vandalism in the Niger Delta shows how shallow-minded and uninformed he is.
“Why should he choose to further advertise his ignorance and the failure of his government in credible intelligence gathering by making such laughable, wide and untenable allegations?
“Muhammadu Buhari should tell America and other Western countries the locations of pipelines IPOB vandalised in their evil country.
“The allegation against IPOB by Buhari is childish because everybody knows that IPOB does not engage in pipeline vandalism in Nigeria. Even the international community knows that IPOB is not involved in such an act.
“Buhari should be reminded that his western audience already knows the actual culprits behind pipeline vandalism in Nigeria and who the beneficiaries are.
“What a contradiction and confusion in Buhari’s Nigeria! In case he has forgotten as usual, just last week, his NSCDC (Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps) boss threatened to name high profile Nigerians behind oil theft.
“Did the NSCDC boss need to issue such a threat assuming IPOB a ‘terror organisation’ according to Buhari’s Nigeria is actually the ones behind the crime.”
