BY MARTINS DURU
The armed attack on Labour Party members meeting at Awgu community on Sunday, September 4, has raised fresh security concerns ahead of next year’s general elections. A similar incident occurred about a week earlier at the neighbouring Nenwe, in Aninri Local Government Area.
This was as gunmen attacked and killed three policemen on patrol in New Haven, Enugu, on Wednesday night. A viral video showed gunmen who shot sporadically, even as they fired at a vehicle at the meeting venue after the party members scampered for safety. The attackers claimed to be Biafra activists vowing not to allow political gatherings to hold in Biafra Land.
Chairman of the party in Awgu Local Government Area, Ikechukwu Igwebuike, said no life was lost in the notorious shooting but heaped the blames on the doorstep of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.
He described the attack as a cowardly attempt to scare the members of the party in the state, saying that no cartilage of bullets and cache of bombs can silence a peoples’ agenda and resolve, which time has come.
A leading unionist and chieftain of the party, Uchenna Ekwe, stated that the September 4 attack “would go down in the political history of Enugu State as the day that reactionary politics coronated itself with the sullied robe of cowardice and violence.”
Ekwe said that it was unfortunate that while the rest of the country was beginning to make a fast break from the politics of bullets, bombs, biceps, and triceps, certain interests in the ruling political establishment in Enugu State were bent on testing the resolve of the people.
For the LP chieftain, those moments of demonic gyrations captured in the videos, were an attempt to ride on a false flag as no other political party meetings were attacked or threatened apart from those of Labour Party.
According to Ekwe, the recent reactionary and barbaric attack on the meetings of the Labour Party in Enugu State and the futile attempt to hide it under the Biafran agitation betrays the source of the violence in different parts of the South-East as being politically motivated.
Analysts say the surprising emergence of Labour Party as a counterforce after PDP has seemingly infiltrated the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state makes it imperative that LP should be disconcerted.
The Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) has often stated that it does not harm Biafrans. But given the legendary fables around the group and its Eastern Security Network (ESN), it is possible that criminals, including political touts adopt the franchise to target opponents.
Many people have also expressed concerns about the likelihood of a return of the violent politics of 1999-2003 era in the peaceful Coal City.
Nonetheless, officials of the PDP in the state would not react to the development. However, IPOB in a swift reaction washed its hands off the dastardly incident, and accused the government and its agents as being responsible.
Condemning those who used IPOB and Biafra insignias for such shameful escapade, spokesman of the group, Emmanuel Powerful said “Anybody or criminal groups hired for such impersonation and demonization will soon incur the wraths of IPOB volunteers and ESN operatives.
“IPOB has made it known to the public severally that we are not interested in the jamboree selection process they called Nigeria election. Anybody linking IPOB in whatever way to this their jamboree is deluded. IPOB is very sure that it was Nigeria Government and her compromised security agencies particularly DSS and Army Personnel that sponsored some of their men with some criminal gangs they created to attack Labour Party campaign ground and made it look like IPOB volunteers and ESN operatives attacked them. We are not involved.”
In the same hue, the leadership of the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) said the attack was unwarranted, insensitive, unprovoked and unnecessary.
Its leader, Uchenna Madu in a statement said Pro-Biafra agitators were not interested in Nigeria’s political electioneering because they are Biafrans and not Nigerians.
He said that Biafra agitators were not inclined to activities or inactions that could discredit the actualization and restoration of Biafra.
According to him, attacking political gathering, political party offices or even political campaigns will always discredit the Biafra struggle.
He said: “Though some people of South-East region and other indigenous citizens of Nigeria still believe that the collapsed Nigeria State will still be remedied through the 2023 election on the possible emergence of Mr Peter Obi as the President of Nigeria, MASSOB does not think about the future survival of Nigeria.
“We must maintain the principle of non-violence and civil disobedience as MASSOB always preached. MASSOB is not against the candidature of Mr Peter Obi running for the President of Nigeria. Eighty five percent of indigenous people of Nigeria earnestly support him because they desire for a radical positive change. MASSOB wishes him good luck. But we are not Nigerians. Our main focus is Biafra actualization and restoration. We don’t believe in Nigeria continuity.”
For the Coalition of South East Youth Leaders (COSEYL), the vicious attack on Labour Party gathering in Enugu State by hoodlums was sponsored by politicians who were scared of the rising popularity of the party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi.
The COSEYL also said the futile attempt to hide it under the Biafra agitation betrayed the source of the violence as being politically motivated. President General of the group, Goodluck Ibem lamented that politicians have hijacked the Biafran agitation as a cannon fodder for political violence and criminality.
“It is very unfortunate that the oppressors will use the oppressed to attack their fellow oppressed citizens. The attackers and their sponsors went too far and they must be arrested and prosecuted according to the dictates of the law.
“The main reason for the attack is to instil fear on the electorate in South East to boycott the elections so that they can rig and manipulate the elections. This has always been the tactics of election riggers and manipulators.
“We call on our people not to be deterred in their determination to vote out bad leadership in our society but come out in enmasse to vote candidates of their choice,” Ibem stated. On its part, the Alaigbo Development Foundation (ADF) declared its support for a peaceful democratic engagement devoid of rancour and any form of violence ahead
ADF acting National Secretary, Abia Onyike admonished that the Nigerian people will not tolerate any acts of sabotage or brigandage aimed at creating an anarchic situation to deprive the people the opportunity to freely choose their leaders in next year’s election.
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