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| MASSOB Members |
As we approach March 28 presidential
and National Assembly elections, some groups, including the Oodua Peoples
Congress (OPC), plan to hold a massive protest in Lagos on Monday against the
continued stay in office of the chairman of the Independent National Electoral
Commission (INEC), Professor Attahiru Jega.
The Movement for the Actualisation
of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) had carried out similar protests
which rocked Rivers, Delta and all the five South East states, on Friday by
members who turned out in their thousands.
The planned protest in Lagos, it was
gathered, is being carefully organised to achieve maximum impact against
certain decisions of INEC on the coming polls.
It was not clear on Friday who is
financing the demonstrations, but some of the organisers, including OPC’s
national coordinator, Chief Gani Adams, who confirmed the plan to Saturday
Tribune on Friday, are supporters of the re-election of President Goodluck
Jonathan of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The different groups behind the plan
have since begun to mobilise their members to turn up for the protest
which, according to the organisers, will “shake the entire South-West.”
Chief Adams, while confirming
the participation of his group in the planned protest, however, pointed out
that it is not being organised solely by his group but by a coalition of
concerned Nigerians who have no confidence in Jega continuing as the chairman
of INEC.
Adams, while reeling out Jega’s
alleged sins, wondered why the war-ridden north-eastern part of Nigeria would
get more Permanent Voters Cards than other regions.
He also questioned the insistence of
Jega to conduct elections in the over 30,000 new polling centres “despite
the criticisms and rejection of same by a majority of Nigerians.”
Protests in S/East, S/South
Meanwhile, massive protests were
staged across the South-East and in some South-South states, on Friday, by
members of MASSOB for the sack of Jega.
It was learnt that the anti-Jega
protests were held simultaneously across the five states of the South-East
geopolitical zone, namely, Abia, Anambra, Enugu, Ebonyi and Imo.
Protesters stormed the streets of
the state capitals early in the morning chanting anti-Jega slogans and calling
on the authorities to sack him.
Enugu (Enugu State)
In Enugu, the protesters marched in
their hundreds through Edinburgh Road, Zik’s Avenue and other major streets of
the Coal City with placards bearing different inscriptions calling for Jega’s
removal.
Although the demonstration was
peaceful, it hindered vehicular movements.
The move for Jega’s removal by
MASSOB was first made public last week by the leader of the Igbo group, Chief
Ralph Uwazuruike, when he vowed to stop the conduct of the general elections in
the southern part of the country if Jega remained the boss of the national
electoral body.
Apparently determined to carry out
his threat, Uwazuruike, in a telephone interview, on Friday said: “We are
organising the protests against Jega because he is biased and cannot conduct
credible elections for Nigerians.
“We know that he is in favour
of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and if allowed to conduct the elections,
he will definitely favour the party and when that happens, there will be crisis
and people will die.
“The crisis will, and can, even lead
to a war and we don’t want bloodshed. We are not hiding the fact that we are
supporting (President) Jonathan because of the burial he gave our leader,
(Chief Emeka Odumegwu) Ojukwu and, therefore, we are sure that if the election
is free and fair, Jonathan will win.”
Owerri (Imo State)
Similarly, in Owerri, the Imo State
capital, the MASSOB members numbering about 200 marched through Rotibi and
other streets, also with placards.
A release signed by the Owerri, Orlu
and Okigwe zonal leaders of the group, Chief Okechukwu Nwaogu, Chief Emma
Akabekwe and Chief Kingsley Ezeugo, respectively, accused Jega of bias in his
official
conducts.
The statement called for Nigerians’
support for Jega’s ouster in the interest of peace in the country.
“Nigeria is a country standing
on a tripod, therefore, any attempt by any section of the country to decide
what happens in the nation amounts to injustice and should be condemned by the
rest of the nation.
“The insistence of the North that
Jega must conduct the 2015 general election even when his time to go on
terminal leave is around the corner shows that they have skeleton in their
cupboard and it may spell doom for the nation if Jega is not removed.
“In fact, it is no longer a hidden
agenda that the North’s insistence to use Jega is for them to name his
preferred candidate as the winner,” the group said.
It questioned the introduction of
card readers, saying this was a way for Northerners to perfect their purported
plan.
“All Nigerians should stand up and
reject the introduction of the card readers because this is detrimental to the
peace of the nation and capable of truncating democracy,” the statement added.
Abakaliki (Ebonyi State)
In Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State
capital, no fewer than 5,000 members converged on Spera, at Deo Junction, as
early as 7.00 a.m., where they were addressed by leaders of the group and other
speakers.
However, security personnel drafted
to the area tear-gassed the protesters, resulting in a pandemonium.
In his address to the protesters,
the Ebonyi North zonal leader of the group, Mr Gideon Iloke, accused Jega
of nursing a northern agenda and attending secret meetings geared towards the
installation of a northern president.
He said MASSOB did not belong to any
political party but was interested in the welfare of the Igbo race and the
country in general.
“We are not members of PDP (Peoples
Democratic Party), APC (All Progressives Congress) or APGA (All Progressives
Grand Alliance) or any other political party, but we believe in equity and
justice and that is why we are protesting.
“Jonathan has done well and should
be allowed to rule Nigeria again, especially if we consider the number of years
the North has governed this country. Now, we have somebody from the South who
has been piloting the affairs of this country well and Jega and the North want
to stop him by working against his re-election.
“We will not allow this to happen
and that is why we are calling for Jega’s sack, and he must go. There must be
transparent election in this country and it is only when Jega is removed that
the nation can have free and fair election. Jega has a northern agenda and he
has been holding secret meetings with northern leaders against Jonathan,” he
said.
Onitsha (Anambra State)
In Onitsha, Anambra State, the
rally, which started at about 7.30 in the morning, saw the MASSOB members march
through the major streets of the commercial city and ended at Old Market Road,
a press conference was held.
The leader of the group in Ayamelum
Local Government Area, Chris Mocha, called on President Jonathan to remove Jega
for “incompetence” and show of bias to rig the election in favour of his
“kinsmen.”
He contended that the recent
increase of polling units in the North by Jega and distribution of permanent
voters cards to favour the North, as well as move to impose the use of card
readers on Nigerians were against the yearnings and aspirations of Nigerians
and the Igbo in particular “at this time of our political history.”
The MASSOB chief warned that the
group would resist any attempt by anybody to disenfranchise the Ndigbo under
any guise or through use of “reader machine.”
Mocha said, “Jega has shown that he
is incapable of conducting a free, fair and credible election on March 28 and
April 11 and as such, should be given marching orders immediately or be
disgraced out of office.”
He expressed regrets that three
members of the group were arrested at the DMGS Roundabout during their protest
march by men from Inland Town Police Station.
He said the members conducted
themselves well during the protest, wondering why they would be embarrassed by
the police.
When contacted, the Divisional
Police Officer for Inland Town Police Station, Mr Cosmas Eze, directed Saturday
Tribune to the Area Commander who, he claimed, directed the operation but
efforts to contact the Area Commander failed.
Policemen were seen with Armoured
Personnel Carriers and other utility vehicles patrolling the streets of Onitsha
as the MASSOB members protested.
Asaba (Delta State)
The MASSOB members also protested at
Ibusa Junction, by Nnebisi Road, in Asaba, Delta State.
They claimed that the INEC boss was
incapable of conducting the forthcoming elections.
The zonal administrator and
coordinator of the group in Delta North, Mr Emeka Okafor, appealed to the
Federal Government and the National Assembly to ensure Jega’a removal before
the elections for the sake of peace.
Carrying placards with different
inscriptions, the protesters alleged that Jega allotted 90 per cent of Permanent
Voters Cards to northerners and only 10 per cent to southerners, saying, “in
view of this, he is not capable of conducting the 2015 general elections.”
Okafor appealed to Jega to vacate
office to avoid crisis.
The MASSOB chief asked President
Jonathan to continue so as to complete his transformation agenda.
On the use of card readers at the
polls, he said that last Saturday’s test showed that the card readers would
cause chaos at polling units.
Port Harcourt (Rivers State)
The Igbo community in Rivers State
has also called on Professor Jega to resign from office before the March 28
presidential election.
Staging a peaceful protest in some
parts of the state, on Friday, the Ndigbo threatened to boycott the elections
if Jega insisted on going ahead with them.
Operating under the aegis of MASSOB,
the protesters cited failure to get their PVCs as their grouse against the INEC
chairman.
They expressed fear of possible
outbreak of political war in the country should the INEC chairman insist on
staying in office, saying they would not want a repeat of the civil war.
The protesters walked from Mbano
Camp in Oyibo through Oyibo Market/Afam junction, displaying placards and
chanting anti-Jega songs.
The protest was peaceful as security
agents, including policemen and men from the Directorate of State Service
(DSS), were on hand to prevent any breakdown of law and order.
A leader of the protesters, Mr
Sunday Kalu, said the protest took place so as to express lack of confidence in
the INEC chairman.
He alleged that there was an obvious
plan by Jega to disenfranchise the majority of the Ndigbo during the elections.
“A lot of eligible Ndigbo have not
received their Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) and Jega is insisting on
conducting the elections, using the PVC and the card reader.
“What this means is that if he thus
continues with the conduct of the elections, majority of Ndigbo will be
disenfranchised. This can lead to resistance, violence and possible full-blown
war.
“To avoid this, therefore, is
for him to take a gentleman’s approach of resigning honourably before the
elections. MASSOB is a non-violent, non-partisan association. That is why we
want to nip the impending danger of war in the bud.
“Jega has betrayed the trust given
to him for the noble position by the way he is going about the electoral
process. He has failed to satisfy the mandate given to him by Nigerians and,
therefore, should step down.
Also speaking, the MOSSOB
administrator in Rivers East zone, Chukwu Solomon, said, “Today, we are telling
the country that MASSOB will not participate in the 2015 elections if Jega
continues to stay in office.
“We are not happy that Jega is
dining with the opposition party in this country. That shows that he will not
conduct free and fair elections in this country,” he said.
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