Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has pledged to “fully support” former United States President Donald Trump’s efforts to end what it described as ethno-religious genocide in Nigeria.
This was contained in a statement issued by IPOB’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, on behalf of the group’s U.S. chapter.
The pro-Biafra group urged Nigerians of all ethnic backgrounds residing in the U.S. to resist any alleged attempts by the Nigerian government to “launder its image” following Trump’s recent designation of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC).
IPOB vowed to mobilise Nigerians in the U.S. to stage peaceful protests against a planned meeting between a Federal Government delegation and Trump over the designation.
According to IPOB, reports indicate that a high-level Nigerian delegation is expected in the U.S. on Tuesday to meet Trump in a bid to counter the CPC designation.
In the statement titled “Maximum Voltage Activist Alert,” IPOB accused the Nigerian government of attempting to “deceive world leaders into believing that peace, justice, and religious freedom exist in Nigeria.”
It said: “We say NO! We will not allow the same government presiding over ethnic cleansing, forced displacement, church burnings, abductions, and mass burials of Indigenous Peoples to rewrite the narrative while the victims are still bleeding.
“This is the hour to raise our voices with thunder, in the capital of the free world. We must support President Trump to end ethno-religious genocide in Nigeria.”
The group also said its detained leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, was the first to raise global alarm about “Christian genocide” in Nigeria, alleging that he was persecuted and detained for speaking out.
“For over a decade, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu sounded the alarm about jihadist expansion, land-grabbing, and the systematic extermination targeting Judeo-Christian populations,” the statement added.
“We will honour his sacrifice by taking the truth to Washington, D.C. — loudly.”
IPOB further accused the Federal Government of ignoring widespread terrorist attacks across the country, claiming that “indigenous nations” in Nigeria are being “overrun one after another.”
It listed the affected areas as “Hausa ancestral identity erased; Nupe communities swallowed; Middle Belt villages wiped out; Christian lands in Southern Kaduna soaked in blood; Yoruba communities in Kwara under siege; and Biafraland under constant military occupation.”
The group emphasised that its planned protest in the U.S. would be peaceful but “unmistakably powerful.”
“This is not a violent call. This is NOT a call for confrontation. This is a call for a mass, peaceful, unstoppable display of conscience,” the statement said.
IPOB urged all Nigerians, irrespective of ethnicity or religion, to unite against what it described as genocidal attacks and to join the planned protest.
“No tribe stands alone anymore — unity is our shield. No diplomatic lies can cover mass graves. No lobbying can erase the tears of widows and orphans. No propaganda can bury the truth forever.
“The world must hear the cry of the persecuted. America must stand with the oppressed — not the oppressor.”
