This is the News Analysis segment of the Voice of Biafra International broadcasts
For October 30th, 2004
You have heard the news; now, the analysis…
“My peoples and my nations shall not be sacrificed for the sake of preserving a worthless idea called Nigeria.” So speaketh the Lord. And so it is.
“The peoples and their nations must live and thrive, though the name and concept of Nigeria die. The peoples and their nations must not, and will not, be allowed to perish just to save a dying Nigeria.” So says the Lord.
Fellow Biafrans: Let us chose to accept the promise of the Word of God
This week, we would like to address your courage and your boldness, your determination in the face of overwhelming odds. Although some people may laugh at you or make jokes about your methods and question the success and effectiveness of what you are doing to actualize Biafra using MASSOB agenda, you have kept the faith and kept on keeping on. We acknowledge and salute your efforts. We shall tell you how successful what you are doing is, but before then, let us exhort you to stay the course.
Freedom is never free—anyone that tells you otherwise doesn’t know what he or she is talking about. Freedom has a price. Liberty comes at a cost, sometimes, great cost. That price may be even your own life, but at least, it costs you your comfort and leisure. The cost may be your health and relationships, pleasure or enjoyment. It may take a very long time, it may be a short time to capture or regain your freedom and liberty, but it is always at some effort—usually great effort. As if that is not enough, watch out: if you fail to remain vigilant about your won freedom and liberty once you regain it, you are bound to lose it to unscrupulous operatives.
In these times, everyone points to the United States of America as the pre-eminent example of liberty and freedom. What most people do not see is how vigorously such freedom and liberty are defended each day by the US citizens, as individuals, in groups of organizations, using watchdog and oversight agencies, and by enacting people’s laws which the people have to abide by or face the consequences, without favor or partiality. Oh yes, this goes on every single day—even as we speak—and it still takes courage on the individual and collective levels, effort and boldness to maintain, retain and sustain this freedom and liberty. How the US fought and died to gain its liberty and freedom in the first place is all history now, and may sound like a romanticized folklore, in which case, the realness is forgotten and not appreciated. Let that not fool you into thinking that it was not a serious and prolonged struggle, painted with blood and wetted with sweat, full of tears and agony, of injustices small and great, won by sacrifice too great to imagine or recount—just as you are going through now.
Back on our own continent, we bring you the example of South Africa where the Africans fought against white-led apartheid for decades to obtain their freedom and liberty. The struggle was so bad for the African South Africans and the cost was so great, the course so long that one of their struggle-songs was titled: “What have we done?” The lyrics of that song in its entirety were just that rhetorical question: “What have we done?” They struggled against the juggernaut of not just the best trained and best equipped security and military force in Africa, but indeed, one of the best in the entire world; and at the same time, the most arrogant, most brutal and most heartless, most sadistic, racist and ruthless, most hypocritical human beings in the history of humanity on this planet. Then, one day, God heard their question, “What have we done?” and God answered them, leading them out of bondage through the agency and leadership of His chosen one, Nelson Mandela. Even then, it was at great cost in blood, sweat and tears—and oh, the TEARS…!
Everyday, Nigeria and Obasanjo kill our people, maim and injure our people, throw them in jail for physical, psychological and psychic torture, and destroy our property; and they do it with arrogance and heartlessness, with impunity, without remorse and without accountability. And we ask, “What have we done?” just like South Africans. Be certain that God has heard our question, and deliverance is a certainty.
We are not asking, of our people, for fearlessness, though if you already possess it, that’s a fine trait. We are not looking for people who do not become afraid, although those already possessing this quality are at a great advantage. We are not looking for brave people, but we will take them any time. We seek not the Solomon’s, though we welcome those of them among us. We are not looking for extra-ordinary people but are at the same time glad that we have them. We are looking for ordinary people—people like you and me—and we are asking of them: take a stand for your freedom and for your liberty, though you are afraid and you want to run away, though you are not strong and feel like collapsing anytime, though you can’t stand pain nor the sight of your own blood nor that of a comrade, though you are stressed or inconvenienced. We ask you to take a stand for your liberty and freedom not because it is easy, but because, though extremely difficult, it is the right thing—and only thing—to do.
What is the alternative? Is freedom too expensive and is liberty too costly? Then, consider the price-tag of slavery, the cost of, and or the penalty imposed by, slavery; keeping in mind that even the King of slaves is still a slave, as is a “successful” slave. How much is your human dignity and respect worth? What is the worth of hope, the price of being able to plan your own future and that of your family and offspring? What value do you place on being able to go where you please, when you please? What is the value of feeling secure in your own home and in your own place—secure because you are in charge of your own destiny and actions? What is the meaning of life if it is in coma, the situation which our people describe as “a condition of living where the dead is definitely better off”—which in fact describes living as a slave?
Fellow Biafrans, without liberty and freedom, you are nothing but a nonentity, non-human—nothing! in fact—just a laughing stock, a mere football to be kicked around by those who have made it their business to take away from you such liberty and freedom and prevent you from regaining such.
You know what? Your struggle against this worst kind of evil is already yielding results Obasanjo is fretting and frantic. The SSS is acting like a mad dog and a desperate wild animal, now lashing out at you and biting you. Nigeria Police is in a frenzy of arrests, torture and killing of our people, veritable acts of desperation. The rest of Nigeria is trying everything, using everything, to convince you that Biafra is not really for you. Given the choice of going after militant and or terrorist nationalistic groups in Nigeria, Nigeria has instead decided that you are the most and worst threat—you that bear no arms and attack no one, not even your sworn enemies, not even in your own self-defense. Yes, you are winning. God is answering your question: ”What have we done?”
It is for these reasons that we thank you the people of Biafra, MASSOB and MASSOB leadership, Biafra Foundation (BF), Biafra Actualization Forum (BAF), all other pro-Biafra actualization groups and all supporters of our Biafra actualization. We appreciate you. We know your effort, and we know that God has heard your question, “What have we done?” And in answer, He gives us Biafra, which we fight for. Thus:
Biafra lives! Live, then, in freedom and in liberty, which only Biafra can make possible, designed and created as such by God.
Biafra alive!
That’s the news analysis for the week. Thank you.
God bless and keep Biafra, and you, until our next broadcast. Voice of Biafra International (VOBI) broadcast continues (http://www.biafraland.com/vobi.htm) with the summary of the News Analysis in Igbo language.
Ndi Biafra, anyi e kelee unu.
Nke a bu akuko nke anyi na a kpo News Analysis si na Voice of Biafra International radio di na Washington DC na ala Amerika na a bia ra unu na abali a.
Na mbido, anyi na e wetara unu okwu si na onu Chineke anyi na a si na Ya a gaghi e kwe ka okike Ya, nke unu dum bu, la na iyi site na ighi ihe ojo o ahu a na a kpo Nigeria. Chineke na e kwu si na Nigeria ga a nwu, ma na okike nke Chineke, nke bu unu dum, ga a di ndu, ma na e ri kwa ndu, bie kwa ogologo ndu. Nde Biafra: Ka anyi kwere kwa na nkwa Okwu Chineke.
Anyi na e kele unu maka obi-sie-ike na omume igba-dimpka nke unu zi ri anyi na ihe na ile unu na eme na ihe gbasara inweta Biafra. Unu mere nke oma nke ukwu u. Agbam-ume nke unu ji ri we e na a gba oso-ije nke a wu ihe di ezigbo nma, na ihu Chukwu na mmadu. Ihe unu mere na e me ire, na eme kwa mkpotu na ala Biafra na na ime ala Nigeria ta.
Anyi ji oghere nke a na eme ka unu cheta kwa na inwere onwe mmadu, na i na eme ka diala, na na a gahari ka diala na a wughi onye ohu—na i bi ndu otua a dighi nfe. Onye obula choro i bi ndu diala na a wughi nwa ohu, onye ahu jikwara kwa i me ihe o bula kwesiri ime ka nde mmadu ndi aru ghara i ma ha obu na olu, kpuru ya ka onye ohu. Mara kwa unu na ihe o bula anyi wu ndi Biafra na eme na inweta onwe anyi, o wu nde Nigeria ka anyi na ha na a gba mgba na na a lu ogu. Ka anyi e kweghi kwa la ka ha ma nye anyi obu na olu, kpuru anyi ka anyi wu nde ohu. O wu otua ka ha wu nde Nigeria si na a kpara anyi agwa na oge na ile—ka anyi wu nde ohu ha. Ma, anyi e nweghi ike i kwe ha ka ha na eme anyi otu ahu ozo. Na ighi nke a, ma anyi na e ghi urha, ma anyi na e teta e teta, ma anyi di ndu ma anyi nwuru anwu, anyi ga na a gwa ndi Nigeria na anyi a gaghi a kwusi i lu si ha ogu, ebe ha na acho so o so i ji anyi gbara ohu.
Anyi na a gwa ndi Biafra: ike a gwughi kwa la unu na ihe unu na eme gbasara nweta Biafra. Onye a choghi i wu onye ohu na a gbali oge na ile ka ya chuo ndi choro i gba ya ohu oso, chupu ha ma lu si ha ogu. Maka o wu ohu ndi Nigeria ka anyi ga a wu o wuru na anyi e nwetaghi Biafra. Ndu onye ohu wu ndu mkpaari na ndu mmekpa-ahu, mgbe mmadu ibe gi ga e nwe gi di ka a na e nwe anumanu ma o bu ngwongwo. Nke a wu aru. O wughi ndu ka onye ohu di, maka onye ohu wu “o-di-ndu onye nwuru anwu ka mma.”
Na ighi nke a, ihe o bula i na eme gbasara nweta Biafra, na e mesi ya ike, maka anyi a gaghi e kwe ka anyi bie ndu nde ohu na aka na na ime Nigeria. Anyi na e kele unu maka nke unu mere eme, maka ihe unu mere e mi i la Obasanjo na nde SSS na ndi polici ha ujo. Ujo a ba a la ha na ahu, ha na a gbari ka nkita ara na acha, i ta gbu anyi wu ndi MASSOB na ndi otu na ndi isi ha, na ndi Biafra ndi ozo. O nwere ike ha ga e meru anyi ahu, ma anyi a gaghi a kwusi ihe anyi na eme, kama, anyi ga na eme si ya ike, me e ya nke ukwu, rue mgbe anyi nwetara Biafra. Maka na o wu so o so Biafra ga a zoputa anyi na aka ojo o Nigeria, gbaputa anyi na ohu ndi Nigeria tinyere anyi.
Oge na ile ka anyi na e be na a ju ajuju a: “O wu gini ka anyi mere?” Chineke a nu la olu anyi na ajuju anyi; Chineke a sa a la ajuju ahu: O jiri i nye anyi Biafra sa a ajuju ahu. Maka so o so Biafra ga a gbaputa anyi na aka ndi na acho i gba anyi ohu—ndi ojo o ahu a na a kpo nde Nigeria. Biafra wu ndu-diala anyi; Biafra wu ndu anyi. O wu Chineke mere ya otua.
Biafra, ndu gi! Biafra, ndu gi!! Biafra, ndu gi!!! Ma ka Chineke no nyere la gi!
Ndewo unu!
Voice of Biafra International (VOBI) broadcast continues
Voice of Biafra International (VOBI)
A SHORTWAVE Radio Broadcast Service
transmitting on 7380 kHz (on 41 meter band)
at 2100 - 2200 Hours UTC (Universal Time [Coordinated])
equivalent to 10.00pm - 11.00pm Biafraland time
every Saturday.
A project of Biafra Foundation (BF) and Biafra Actualization Forum (BAF).