There is no journey without a beginning.
The agitation for Biafra restoration is
heterogeneous today, but has it always
been so? If we track the development of the
movement, we will find out that several
years ago it existed as some other struggle
by the Ogoni and Ijaw people in the coastal
part of Biafra. The absence of the need for
synergy of the various constituents of Biafra
made some of them fight for freedom in
exclusion to others.
Dr. Ken Saro-Wiwa, having replaced his boss,
Dr. Leton - the real manufacturer of
OGBUNIGWE, used by Biafrans in the Civil
War - saw the need for the Ogoni people to
demand fair and better treatment from
Nigeria. The Ogoni Bill of Right became the
product of that clamour, the same agitation
that led to the loss of many lives, including
that of the learned poet, writer, and
environmentalist. All Dr. Kenule Benson Saro-
Wiwa wanted for his people was justice in
terms of the management and control of
their natural endowmment - black gold. He
was guillotined and cremated for that noble
course. But did that end the struggle? Ogoni
people are still in full control of their oil,
thereby denying Nigeria proceeds from it.
How can we forget Dr. Kenule Saro-Wiwa?
We now understand why it was easy for my
team to get a positive nod from Ogoni for
Mazi Nnamdi Kanu of the hinterland part of
Biafra to visit. That visit, according to
Legborsi Emmanuel, an Ogoni son, would
have taken the struggle to the heart of the
UN, since whatever concerns Ogoni
becomes a global concern. Of course, we
know that Nigeria was sanctioned for killing
Dr. Kenule Benson Saro-Wiwa!
Jasper Adaka Boro, an illustrious son of Ijaw
tribe, is another old driver of the current
agitation. He was a student of UNN, Nsukka
who tried to become the SUG president on
the heels of his support from his brothers
and sisters in the East. The story goes that
the easterners were too tribalistic to let him
win, preferring instead their own brother.
Well, this planted a lasting seed of discord in
Boro. He eventually became the students'
pilot, but he never forgot the tribalism.
When he was ready to agitate for freedom,
he directed his attack on the internal
situation of the Eastern Region. Boro, having
been victimised in the past, sought the end
of Igbo and Nigerian domination of the
Niger Delta, with particular reference to the
Ijaw nation. Boro was charged with
treasonable felony by Aguiyi Ironsi, the Head
of State then, and committed to prison. At
the onset of the Civil War, Boro was granted
amnesty by Gowon and used to scuttle the
plans of Biafrans. The tragedy of it all is that
Boro was killed by those that used him.
Both Boro and Saro-Wiwa were potential
allies to Ojukwu, but something was not
right. Boro and Saro-Wiwa cannot take the
blame alone anymore. I used to blame them,
but I can see what they saw. Yes, having
pitched tents with my Igbo brothers and
sisters, even against the advice of great
activists and resource persons in the coastal
region, I think I understand how difficult it
is to work with our hinterland counterpart
to actualise the same goal. I know better
now why Saro-Wiwa and Ojukwu had their
feud and why same affected the struggle
then. I understand why Boro had burning
dislike for the Igbo, after having been
denied a shot at the SUG presidency and
committed to prison by Ironsi.
Sometime ago, I wrote a classicus about the
entrepreneurial mindset of the Igbo, the
IGBO CONCEPT OF NWANNE. The submissions
thereto remain relevant, no doubt, but there
is an observation. The unity we seek today is
replete with discordant reasons, especially
from our Igbo brothers and sisters. There
are those who still think the coastal
component of Biafra constitute the
MINORITY. This is a very dangerous notion
that must die. Here in the coast, we still have
people that fear that the Igbo will dominate
us the way they dominated the Old Eastern
Region. Well, that fear is real, but we must
work hard to kill it. Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, Dr.
Kenule Saro-Wiwa, Jasper Adaka Boro, Dr.
Obi Wali, etc were men of great academic
and economic standing, yet they all faltered.
Zik was carried away by his wild dream to
become the Father of Africa. Saro-Wiwa put
his own people, the Ogoni, first. Ojukwu
brought military mentality into a civil
struggle. Adaka Boro refused to go beyond
his past experiences, and Obi Wali narrowed
down his agitation to the liberation of his
people, the Ikwerre.
Russell Bluejack, Tari Nemi, Legborsi
Emmanuel, Cosmos George Oto'obong, and
several other citizens of the coastal part of
Biafra are much younger than the heroes of
the past, but have decided to see the bigger
picture. Like our heroes of yore, we have
spotted some unbecoming and dispiriting
attitude in our hinterland brothers, but we
are determined to break through it and get
the desired result. For us, what matters is
the liberation of our generation from the
stranglehold of oppression and economic
parasitism. We have noticed to our dismay
the exclusion of our activities by those that
should support us. We have been left to
operate like derelicts because of where we
come from and where we operate from.
Even so, we have resolved to continue to
push for the unity of our regions. We will
not lose our temper like our heroes. We shall
stay the course and get the desired result.
We were supposed to be broadcasting here
in the coast. There was an arrangement for
that. There is no serious media activity of
the IPOB in the South-South. This is wrong.
It simply confirms the fear of domination. Is
someone thinking? If my team had not
taken it upon ourselves to do all we have
been doing, the coast would have remained
barren. This is a very poor strategy. We are
crying out now so that posterity can judge
us when the time comes.
Yes, we complain about the obvious
discrimination we have experienced, but
because we are thinkers divinely ordained
for this task, we have decided to work in
our own way for the salvation of our people.
As a matter of fact, the coastal team have
decided to take the struggle even much
deeper than before. We shall now proceed
to liaise with Asari Dokubo and all the Ijaw
and Ibibio/Efik stakeholders to form a very
solid COMMITTEE OF ELDERS in the South-
South, hoping that the Igbo will do same for
the eventual convocation of both teams for
dialogue. It is time to relive Boro, Saro-Wiwa,
and Wali because they are the GHOSTS IN THE
MACHINE. However, it is time to exceed their
limits by working hard to unite with our
hinterland counterpart against all odds. The
few shenanigans in the East cannot stop our
unity. The spoilers in the coast have all been
dealt with. We must tolerate one another
and work together. When our committees
for the restoration sit and discuss the way
forward, all the fears our people have will be
dealt with through serious documentation.
Our brother, Cosmos George Oto'obong, has
a tripartite agreement that binds the Ibibio/
Efik, Igbo, and Riverine components of
Biafra. It may not be absolute, but it is a
good way to start.
Those with devious intention concerning
this unity project should jettison it because
we know how to guard against all forms of
domination. We are too educated and
tactical to fall into any trap. The kind of
nation we shall build will be too spick-and-
span and progressive for malfeasance. In
Biafra there shall be religious tolerance and
mutual respect for cultural and traditional
disparity. Those of you that truly support the
unity of our regions should do well to
support the publishing of Biafra Network
Newsletter, since it is the coastal region's
contribution to the election boycott. Let the
unity start in earnest. All hail Biafra!
Russell Idatoru Sunju Bluejack writes for and
on behalf the Coastal component of the
South-East/South-South Coalition for Biafra https://mobile.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1345346878903739&id=100002853189376&comment_id=1345391015565992&_rdr

This present Biafra struggle is beyond the divide and rule propaganda, we the present generation is so determined to either achieve this very struggle...


From the Efik and Ibibio, the Izon, the Itshekiri and the Isobo, the Igala and all children of God are determined for this struggle and will achieve it.... iseeeee.

Waiting for the afonjas to come and tell us how the Niger-deltans are planning to kill the Igbo or the other way round