SUPREME COUNCIL OF ELDERS
Exclusive to MOBIN MEDIA NEWS from the table of supreme Council of elders:
We, in our capacity as the Supreme Council of Elders of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) running the Customary Government by which we commenced the struggle for self-determination by legal methodology and political diplomacy and authorised the case between Biafra and Nigeria currently in the Court of Appeal in pursuance whereof we presented our Memorandum to the National Assembly by MOBIN for the restructuring of Nigeria by devolution of power to the six geopolitical regions so that every region would govern itself in Nigeria, now speaking on behalf of both the living and the dead among us, have considered all the issues and challenges facing our struggle for self-determination, and in consequence whereof we make this statement and give our consent for its publication by all media houses in the whole world:
IN THE BEGINNING:
Barr Emeka Emekesiri, founder and vision bearer of IPOB, filing the case between Biafra and Nigeria in Suit No FHC/OW/CS/102/2012. Standing by his side was Engr Innocent Amadi.
Emeka Emekesiri, explaining legal issues to the Council of Elders of IPOB after a Court session
- In the beginning, our struggle for self-determination was glorious and respected by all authorities in Nigeria and in the International Community. Unfortunately, a man called Mr Nnamdi Kanu, who left Chief Ralph Uwazuruike’s MASSOB and joined us with a laptop broadcasting on an internet radio called Radio Biafra destroyed our struggle by the use of false propaganda and incendiary broadcasts and incitement to violence. He rebelled from the authority of the Customary Government and the Supreme Council of Elders of Indigenous People of Biafra.
- We excommunicated him on 12 May 2014, and he formed his own faction of IPOB which went into confrontations with the Nigerian Authorities. Considering that his case with the Nigerian Government is still before the Court, we shall refrain from commenting on his case to avoid violating the Rule of Sub-Judice. Some people did worse than Nnamdi Kanu to set our Movement backward. We have decided to forget the past and move forward with the original vision of self determination by the rule of law, politics, and diplomacy.
- MOVING FORWARD:
There is a problem now with the struggle for self-determination for the remnants of the Biafrans who the founder and vision bearer of IPOB described as Indigenous People of Biafra. The image of the Biafran Struggle has been terribly damaged because of the violence, frauds, lies and deceits in the name of BIAFRA.
The imposition of a sit-at-home order in the South-East of Nigeria and its enforcement by the unknown gun men killing anybody who disobeyed the order destroyed the peace and economy of the whole region and made many people to run away from the South-East and settle in the North and West and South-South. The violence and confrontations have led to the death of many Biafran youths. It was also reported that some Biafran militant groups killed many Nigerian police men and military officers and destroyed Government properties.
As a result of these killings and violent confrontations resulting in insecurity of lives and properties in the South-East, the name of Biafra has become odious and abhorrent in the ears of many people including Biafrans and Nigerians. Some Biafran activists have withdrawn from the Struggle because of the frauds and deception associated with the Biafran Struggle. In fact, the Nigerian Authorities now wrongly regard it as a treasonable felony to mention the name of Biafra. - Our first task is to restore the image of the struggle for self-determination of the remnants of Biafra. We shall adopt a new name and new strategies considering the legal impediments on the use of the name of IPOB which the Federal Government of Nigeria proscribed as a terrorist organization. The question is not whether IPOB was wrongly or rightly proscribed as a terrorist organization but the fact that there is an Order of the Court for the proscription duly gazetted by the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Order remains valid until set aside on appeal.
BUILDING ON THE RIGHT FOUNDATION:
Our legal methodology of self-determination consisting of the use of law, politics and diplomacy is the right foundation that cannot be faulted by any reasonable person. The youths were deceived by false propaganda by the person who said that our methodology was too slow and promised to get Biafra for them in 2015. He later promised to achieve Biafra in 2017. We are now in 2024. He has not yet achieved the Biafra of his dream.
Although our legal methodology is slow, it is the surest way to achieve selfdetermination. We have achieved the following things by our methodology:
In 2013, we held a diplomatic meeting with the Government of Australia and sought for recognition by the Australian Government as required by International Law.
In 2014, we were invited to participate in the 2nd ECOSSOC General Assembly Meeting of the African Union in Nairobi Kenya.
Barr Emeka Emekesiri standing with Dr Joseph Chilengi of Zambia, the Chairman of African Union ECOSSOC in 2014. The Chairman of AU is holding Barr Emekesiri’s book, “Biafra or Nigerian Presidency- What the Ibos Want”.
Barr Emeka Emekesiri interacting with leaders and delegates from other countries in the AU Meeting including the countries in North Africa, South Africa, Central Africa, and East Africa (Egypt, Libya, Algeria, Morocco, Kenya, Ethiopia, etc) as he lobbies them for recognition of Biafra as a country in Africa.
From 2013 to 2018, we wrote diplomatic letters and had series of meetings with the Governments of various countries in Europe, America, Asia, and Africa, as we sought their supports, friendship, and recognition. In 2018, we had meetings with the British Government on the issue of the Biafran Independence and they requested our Position Statement in writing.
Consequently, on 13 February 2018, we presented to the British Government our memorandum titled “PERMANENT SOLUTION TO
THE NIGERIA-BIAFRA CONUNDRUM BASED ON THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT POLICY OF 1969” by the authority of the Customary
Government of Indigenous People of Biafra in which we proffered the perfect solution to the political and social instability arising from the Nigeria-Biafra problem.
On 4th May 2018, the Prime Minister of the Great Britain, The Rt Hon Boris Johnson MP, responded and accepted our Position Statement and stated as follows: “The UK welcomes the determination expressed in the Memorandum from the Indigenous People of Biafra to work to resolve any grievances peacefully. We continue to underline the importance of acting in accordance with the rule of law with all parties, including the Nigerian Government”. It is important to note that the “Indigenous People of
Biafra” referred to by the British Government is the original IPOB which submitted the Memorandum by the authority of the Customary Government under the Supreme Council of Elders.
On 8th December 2018, we established the Customary Government of Indigenous People of Biafra under the Nigerian Law by Deed Poll of Customary Governance duly stamped and registered in Nigeria as SDR/No 4720/ABSG pursuant to Section 315 of the Nigerian Constitution which recognised both Sharia Law and Customary Law as existing laws in force before the Nigerian Constitution. By the use of Customary Law, we are able to organise ourselves as a people living in Nigeria. We are
aware that the Houses of Assembly in the North passed the Sharia Government Bill into Law to make it a State organ funded and run by the State. In our own case, the Houses of Assembly in the East did not pass our Customary Government Bill into Law. The difference is that Customary Governance created by Deed Poll comes under Private Law and Customary Law and not Statutory Law. Therefore, it is not a State organ and will not be given any allocation of funds by the State but if the State passes the Bill of Customary Government into law, it becomes a State organ to be funded and run by the State just as the Sharia Government Bill was passed into law by the Houses of Assembly in the North and funded and run by the Governments of the Northern States.
The most important aspect of our Position Statement accepted and supported by the British Government was to restructure Nigeria by devolution of power to the six geo-political regions so that every region would be autonomous and govern itself and grow at its own pace just like the four nations in Britain namely: Scotland, England, Ireland, and Wales. The British Government assured us that they would put pressure on the Nigerian Government to consider the restructuring of the country by
devolution of power but said that it had to go through the National Assembly by due process.
Initially, the Nigerian Government rejected our call for restructuring by devolution of power to the regions. However, through some diplomatic pressures on the Nigerian Government in 2021, the National Assembly decided to amend the Constitution, and placed Restructuring and Devolution of Power as Item No 2 on the list. The public hearing and presentation were in two days in all the 6 geopolitical zones of the country.
Consequently, on 26 May 2021, our political organization known as MOBIN (Movement of Biafrans in Nigeria) presented our Memorandum to the Senate Committee of the National Assembly sitting at Enugu for amendment of the Nigerian Constitution.
There are many sections of the Constitution that we required the National
Assembly to amend. However, on the issue of restructuring and devolution of power, we presented the following amendment:
That Section 2(1) of the Constitution be amended as follows:
“Nigeria is one indivisible and indissoluble Sovereign State to be known by the name of the Federal Republic of Nigeria without prejudice to the fundamental right of the people of any federating unit in the exercise of their right to self-determination by the rule of law through referendum”. By inserting the right to self-determination in the Nigerian Constitution through a referendum it emphasises the right to conduct referendum by the federating units in the exercise of their right to self-determination.
That Section 2(2) of the Constitution be amended as follows: “Nigeria shall be a Federation consisting of Regions and a Federal
Capital Territory”.
That Section 3(1) of the Constitution be amended as follows:
“There shall be six Regions in Nigeria (South East, South West, South-South, North East, North West and North Central) with
thirty-six States as shown in the first column of Part 1 of the First Schedule to this Constitution without prejudice to the right of any
region to create additional States within the Region or merge the existing States into one by a bill passed into law by the House of
Parliament of the Region.”
That an additional section be added as Section 3(7) as follows:
“Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 3(1) and 3(6) of this Constitution, the House of Parliament of every region shall have
the power to organize the region and create such other political units as districts and councils or convert the existing states and
local governments to districts and local councils in accordance with the need of the people”.
In 2022, a member of the House of Representatives moved our Motion to divide Nigeria into six regions, but he was shouted down. The Speaker pretended not to hear the Motion. There was confusion in the House. Nevertheless, the struggle has started in the Parliament. The Motion shall be presented again in due course.
MOVING FORWARD IN THE CURRENT SITUATION:
The current situation has compelled us to re-strategize and move forward with the original vision. It is necessary to emphasise that it is not a treasonable offence to mention the name of Biafra. What ceased to exist after the Biafra-Nigeria war of 1967 – 1970 was the Republic of Biafra and not the individual Biafrans who escaped from the war as the remnants of Biafra. There is no more Republic of Biafra but there are Biafrans living in Nigeria who were not annihilated but accepted by the Nigerian Government and granted Nigerian citizenship.
If the Nigerian Government had annihilated the Biafrans in the same way that the Roman Authorities annihilated the Carthaginians, there would not have been a remnant of the Biafrans today. Fortunately, God Almighty did
not allow them to annihilate us. We are the remnants that escaped from the war. This was the reason the founder and vision bearer of the legal methodology gave us the name as “Indigenous People of Biafra” abbreviated as IPOB which was not meant to be an organization owned by one man but the name of a non-sovereign nation living in Nigeria. Unfortunately, Nnamdi Kanu and his followers changed the concept and caused irreparable damage to the Struggle. We are Biafrans by indigenous identity but Nigerians by citizenship until we regain our independence by due process of law and political diplomacy. This is the same method the people of Scotland are using today in Britain. They are British by citizenship but Scottish by indigenous identity until they gain
independence from Britain.
We have decided to change strategies and move forward. Consequently, the Customary Government of Indigenous People of Biafra shall now be called Customary Government of Biafrans in Nigeria just as our political movement is called Movement of Biafrans in Nigeria (MOBIN). We emphasise our indigenous identity and respect the indigenous peoples of other regions such as the Arewa and the Oduduwa people living in Nigeria.
The Memorandum submitted by MOBIN to the National Assembly for the restructuring of Nigeria by devolution of power to the six geopolitical regions shall be pursued until Nigeria is restructured to six nations in one in accordance with the existing six geopolitical zones. This is the same model in British politics where they have four nations in one namely: England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. We want every region in Nigeria to be autonomous and govern itself and develop at its own pace. This is the starting point in the struggle for self-determination.
NOTICE is hereby given to the general public and the Nigerian Authorities including the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Police, the Army and all the Law Enforcement Officers and Parastatals in Nigeria to respect the Biafrans operating as Movement of Biafrans in Nigeria under the Customary Government.
All the remnants of Biafra living in Nigeria are advised to forget the past disappointments in the Struggle and contact MOBIN by email or
WhatsApp text messages for more information on the way forward.
Dated at Enugu this 1st day of January 2024
Signed:
Barr Dr Emeka Emekesiri (Nzeobi II)
Chairman of the Governing Council,
Customary Government of Biafrans in Nigeria
(Powered by MOBIN).
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