VOBI 03 13 09 WHAT IS BIAFRA SHADOW GOVERNMENT AND WHY DO WE NEED IT

            My fellow citizens of Biafra you all have heard of the new wave of activity sweeping every Town, Autonomous Community, City, Local County, and Province in Biafra. That is the new Biafra Shadow Government. Most of you are already fully involved in the process of setting up this government. We congratulate you; we urge you to forge ahead fearlessly for this is the path to your freedom and liberation for yourselves, your children and for generations of Biafrans yet unborn. But some of you are still on the sideline wondering and asking: What is this new Biafra Shadow Government and why do we need it? It is this question that we want to address today. So pay attention and listen very closely.            

            The Biafra Shadow Government is your own government that is being elected by you the people of Biafra to govern you the people of Biafra. This government will be elected by you at all levels of Biafran society in towns, autonomous communities, cities, local county, and provinces. You, the people will conduct the elections in your towns, cities, local counties and provinces. There will be no campaign posters; there will be no  corrupt, thieving, lying so called Independent National Electoral Commissions; there will be no giving of bribes; and there will be no thugs. No; there will be none of those devilish things. All that will happen is that you will quietly and carefully look at the people in your local community and choose the responsible, honest, hard working, trustworthy, capable, people to be your leaders and serve in your government. That government is your government and will be controlled by you. Everyone in Biafra will participate in this quietly organized election of Biafra Shadow Government. Teachers, students, doctors, taxi drivers, lawyers, farmers, engineers, market women, accountants, traders, bankers, businessmen and women, tailors, luxury bus and other transporters, sanitation workers, industrialists, shoe makers,  motor cycle transport operators, unemployed youths, retired workers, civil servants, landlords, tenants, everyone who is 18 years and older.

            The new Biafra Shadow Government has nothing to do with Nigeria. We are Biafrans not Nigerians. The madness that you see in Nigeria which they call government will have nothing to do with the Biafra Shadow Government. The stupidity, lying, cheating, stealing, roguery, corruption, and devil worship that you see in Nigerian Government and Nigeria’s so-called elections will have nothing to do with Biafra Shadow Government. The dictatorship that you see in Nigeria will have nothing to do with Biafra Shadow Government. The Biafra Shadow Government is a clean and transparent democracy; government of the people by the people for the people.

            Since 1970, our people have never witnessed a democratic government in Nigeria; a government that they can call their own; a government that pays attention to their needs; a government that is controlled by them; a government that is accountable to them. The Republic of Biafra from 1967 to 1970 despite being at war with Nigeria and being a military administration still managed to run a democratic government. The Head of State of Biafra, General Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu stated clearly then: “There will be no dictatorship here.” General Ojukwu speaking on behalf of other leaders of Biafra then [Dr. M.I. Okpara, Dr. Akanu Ibiam, M.T. Mbu, N.U. Akpan, Eyo Bassey Ndem, I. S. Kogbara, etc] said that because he knew that the people of Biafra – Annang, Efik, Ibibio, Igbo, Ijaw, Ogoja, and even the Itsekiri, Esan, Isoko, and Urhobo have a long standing belief in genuine, and true, democracy and an age old tradition of democratic practice. This is why in Town Unions, Social Clubs and even in family meetings in Umunna, Umunne and Ikwu leaders are chosen by the process of open and transparent election. That is our belief; that is our value; that is our tradition; and that is our practice.

            The Hausa Fulani Yoruba and the Sokoto Caliphate who rule Nigeria have never; repeat never believed in, valued or practiced democracy. They have always practiced dictatorship in the form of feudalism of the dark ages. This is why it has been impossible to successfully organize a transparent democratic election in Nigeria. This is why they cannot organize a census in Nigeria. This is why there is all the corruption, oppression, robbery, embezzlement, stealing, political thuggery, arson, kidnappings, killing of political opponents, and disastrous failure of government to initiate and complete meaningful development projects in Nigeria. Dictatorship as is practiced in Nigeria is a form of government practiced in the dark ages in Europe. It achieves nothing except destroy the people on whom it is imposed. Dictatorship almost destroyed Europe. And Europeans quickly overthrew and destroyed all their dictators and set up democracies.

            Here is how dictatorship works. A thug, an armed robber, a thief, steals or accumulates a lot of money. He uses the money to recruit a bunch of thugs, thieves, robbers, and criminals. He gives them military training and pays them money in exchange for loyalty to him and him alone. Then he uses them to conquer the poor people living in towns and villages near and then far. He now calls this his territory, colony, or dominion. He makes himself ruler of this territory and demands total, absolute allegiance and obedience from everyone living in this territory. He will entertain no questions or queries from anyone about what he is doing. He is the sole controller of all monies collected as levies, and taxes or realized from sale of goods and resources. He gives account to no one about how he spends the money and no one dares question him. He is the sole owner and controller of everything; money, property including all the land in the territory. Everyone will be totally dependent on him for everything they need. If you need land to build a house you beg him to give you a piece of land. If you need land to grow crops you beg him to give you a piece of land. If your car breaks down you beg him for money to repair your car. If he is feeling good on the day you present your case he might give you something. If he is not feeling good he could tell you to go to hell or tell his thugs to kill you. If he likes the shape of your wife or daughter he will take them and order his thugs to kill you if you complain. If you plant crops he will by right get a share of your harvest. If you are a trader he will by right get a share of your money. You dare not complain. He will never bother whether you like what he is doing or not. He sees it as his right to take what you have and make it his own. If you challenge him he will order his thugs to kill you.

He will select people he likes; people who have shown blind loyalty to him and put them in charge of parts of the territory as administrators. Those people will be responsible to him and to him only. He will allow them to do anything they like to the people over whom he has put them in charge. They can oppress the people any way they want; they can persecute the people as much as they want; they can steal everything the people have; they can even kill the people. The dictator will not care or ask them any questions so long as they maintain their blind loyalty to him; do whatever he tells them to do; and bring money back to him. But the dictator will make sure that those his lieutenants are totally dependent on him for everything and that they never become strong enough financially or become powerful enough to challenge him. If anyone appears to be becoming powerful he immediately arranges for him to be killed.  This is why dictatorship is a system of government based on patronage, corruption, bribery, stealing, fraud, intrigues, murder, and secrecy.  

So where do you see this system of government? In Nigeria of course! Everything about the Nigerian government shows that it is a dictatorship. Now you know why Musa is in charge of Nigerian Army JTF in Port Harcourt slaughtering innocent people; why Abubakar, Adebayo, and Adamu are the commissioners of police in occupied Biafra land. Now you know why the Hausa Fulani Yoruba and the Sokoto Caliphate seized your land and the natural resources in them and have been selling the oil and natural gas and putting the money in their pockets. Now you know why their police and army beat you like goats and cows and kill you whenever they like without consequences. Now you know why they impose people you did not elect on you as your leaders and if you complain they kill you. Now you know why they loot your goods and products and burn your houses down. Now you know. Now you know. What do they care about the Igbo, Ijaw, Annang, Efik, Ogoja, Itsekiri, Isoko, Esan and Urhobo? Do they care about the Ikwerre next door to Port Harcourt? If crude oil pollutes all the rivers and streams in Degema, Abonnema, Isiokpo, and Bonny do they care? If all the people in Warri, Sapele, Bonny, P.H. Calabar, Ikom and Obudu die of cholera do they care? If all the people living in Onitsha and Asaba are swallowed up by the River Niger do they care; if the Nigerian vandals rape all the women and girls in Biafra do they care? When fire consumed over 900 poor villagers scooping spilled petrol in Jesse what did the Nigerian Head of State Abdulsalami Abubakar say and do? He called them thieves and threatened to arrest all those who survived and were taken to the hospitals. What did Olusegun Obasanjo do to the people of Odi? What did leper Umaru Yar’Adua do to the town of Abaala in Aba Province few months ago? Now that you know would you like to have dictatorship as a form of government in Biafra and a dictator as the head of State in Biafra? Your answer is a resounding NO! NO!! NO!!!!!!!!

That is why you are working very hard to set up the Biafra Shadow Government; a transparent democratic government; a government that will be controlled by you; a government that is accountable to you; indeed a government that really belongs to you. The government of Biafra 1967-70 despite the war was a democracy. It was a government of the people for the people by the people. The administrator for every province in Biafra was a citizen of that province. The Administrator for Aba Province was Moses Onwuma; Abakaliki was Samuel Mgbada; Annang was Chief Ekukinam Bassey; Awka was Paul Nwokedi; Calabar was Eyo Bassey Ndem; Degema was S. N. Dikibo; Eket was S. J. Edoho; Enugu was Christian C. Onoh; Nsukka was Frank Onyeke; Ogoja was Frank Ugbut; Oji River was Godwin Odenigwe; Okigwe was Sam Mbakwe; Onitsha was R. I. Iweka; Opobo was S. J. Cookey; Orlu was R. I. Uzoma; Owerri was Duke Njiribeakor; Port Harcourt was Emmanuel Aguma; Umuahia was Simeon Ojukwu; Uyo was Chief J. Udoaffia; Yenegoa Frank Opigo. Each of these administrators set up provincial government made up of the people from their province. The same thing happened with local counties and town unions. Government was made up of the people from the local area. A man or woman from Onitsha was not made the provincial administrator for Calabar Province or a person from Umuahia made the provincial administrator for Degema Province or a person from Yenagoa the provincial administrator for Awka. No! That was not done by the Biafran Government of C. Odumegwu Ojukwu. Notice that as soon as the Hausa Fulani Yoruba overran Biafra, Nigerian dictators imposed their Northern and Western Nigeria thugs and armed robber lieutenants on all the communities in Biafra where they simply killed people, pillaged towns and villages, stole and destroyed everything in our land. Do you remember that David Mark, so called Senate President was Administrator of Rivers State where he stole everything in Port Harcourt including houses belonging to Ndigbo and called it abandoned property? Do you remember that? So it was that all over Biafra the Hausa Fulani Yoruba and Sokoto Caliphate dictators flooded Biafra with their thugs, thieves, robbers, and all manner of criminal elements and they simply raped, pillaged and destroyed every community in Biafra.   

It is this total destruction of our dear country Biafra and our people that Biafrans are now set to reverse; to rebuild our society, and to rehabilitate our people. Anyone who attempts to sabotage this effort of our people to rebuild our dear country Biafra will be resisted and destroyed by our people. Anyone who tries to introduce criminal dictatorship as a form of government in Biafra by imposing thugs, thieves and non-resident minions of dictators on Biafran communities will be destroyed by the people. Imposing non-resident minions to rule a community against their will is called colonialism and Biafran Communities are sick and tired of being colonized. They will not take it anymore; not from Nigerian dictators and surely not from some tin can dictator in Biafra land.

My fellow citizens of Biafra the time has come for you to set up your own authentic Biafra government in every town, autonomous community, city, local county, and province all in the mold of the original Biafra Government. The Biafra Shadow Government is your own government, set up by you to serve your towns, cities, communities and provinces. It will be made up of your local people, your own brothers and sisters from your communities, elected by you in a completely transparent election, and these people will serve you not rule over you. They will answer to you; they will be accountable to you and you will reserve the power and authority to remove them whenever you feel that they are no longer serving your needs as a community.  Biafra Shadow Government is your government; The People Rule! So let all Biafrans: teachers, students, doctors, taxi drivers, lawyers, farmers, engineers, market women, accountants, traders, bankers, businessmen and women, tailors, luxury bus and other transporters, sanitation workers, industrialists, shoe makers,  motor cycle transport operators, unemployed youths, retired workers, and civil servants, all rise up like one people and go to work to set up the Biafra Shadow Government in every hamlet, town, autonomous community, city, local county and province. Do not sit on the fence. Be involved now, right now, not tomorrow. For as the great American Benjamin Franklin said “Those who will give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither Liberty nor safety.”