Post-election violence: Egbesu, OPC, others threaten reprisal if…

By Abdulwahab Abdulah
The Supreme Egbesu Assembly, SEA, in collaborations with five ethnic nationality groups yesterday warned those behind the killings in the Northern part of the country to put a stop to it or face the music forthwith.

At a world press briefing in Lagos by the leader of SEA, Sgt. Werinipre Noel Digifa in company of the Oodua Peoples Congress, OPC, founder, Dr Frederick Fasehun; Igbo Youth Congress, IYC, Bright Ezeocha; Yoruba Human Rights Research Centre, Sola Olatunde; Federation for Yoruba Consciousness and Culture, FYCC, and the Oodua Liberation Movement, Sunday Akinnusi, the groups said unless the Federal Government do something urgent to stop the killings and destruction of property that trailed the announcement of the presidential election, there might be counter reactions from their followers.

To this end, they gave six conditions for immediate implementation by the government to restore their confidence about the unity of Nigeria.

Egbesu leader, who said his group hardly make public their decision over national issues, said recent events in the country forced them to organised the media briefing to let Nigerians know that they are no more ready to tolerate any killings of their people in any part of the country.

They demanded that “President Goodluck Jonathan and the National Assembly must act speedily to halt the killings in the core North and those behind the carnage, high or low, rich or poor, must be brought to justice and full weight of the law hammered on them.”

They called on General Mohammed Buhari and Ibrahim Babangida to “apologise to the country and the families of those killed during the mayhem through the active conduct of their supporters in Northern parts of the country.”

Also, they called on the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’d Abubakar to bring his religious and moral authority to bear on the people of the region to abate the ongoing killings in the part of the country.

Apart from this, they urged the security agents to work together as a team to stem the tide of violence, or else the country is at the brink of disintegration.

“It added, we assure that the Ijaw people will assert its self-determination as stipulated by Article 27 of the United Nations Congress, by defending itself if nothing tangible is done.

The Egbesu leader said he was aware of “desperate moves by the pro-Taliban forces to set Nigeria ablaze and pull the trigger for turmoil. They are anxious to do this for one thing- they cannot live under the reality that a South-South indigene is now president of Nigeria. On this note, we warn very strongly, that the Ijaw people, in collaboration with other progressive nationalities, will resist any attempt being made to destabilise the current democratic experience.”