http://www.biafraland.com/NewsAnalysis.htm
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This is the News Analysis segment of the Voice of Biafra International (VOBI) broadcasts
For January 7th, 2006
You have heard the news; now, the analysis…
Fellow Biafrans:
These are the tasks which we shall accomplish this year, 2006. First, our vision this year is the actualized independent Sovereign Nation of Biafra: hold this vision in your mind, in your meditations and in your prayer—always. Share this vision with all around you. For, the substance and the goal, the motivation and the outcome of our efforts and pursuits in all our tasks shall be Biafra actualized.
As such, and second, we will work tireless for the release of
Benedict Alakwem, Ambrose Anyaso, Augustine Ihuoma, Chibuike Nwosu, Chimankpa Okorocha, and Kelechi Ubabuike;
for as long as it takes, no matter what it takes. Details and specific actions will be announced when appropriate. Because, MASSOB agenda is the agenda of the masses for the liberation of Biafra; MASSOB is us and we are MASSOB.
Third, we must boycott any census exercise by Nigeria. Here, let us restate the reasons:
1) Falsification of Census Figures
The Nigerian census results will be rigged by Nigeria. The rigging will assign false and inflated figures to Northern Nigeria and Western Nigeria, while at the same time, deliberately slashing the count of Eastern Nigeria, where the Igbo form the core. This is a consistent pattern for censuses conducted in Nigeria since 1962: it is a historical fact. The fact that the last election in Nigeria, in 2003, was rigged publicly, even with International observers present, and the fact that plans to rig and manipulate the planned 2007 elections are brazenly being carried out at this time, leave little doubt but that any census by Nigeria will be rigged.
2) Forced Legitimization of Rigged Census Results
Once the rigged census results are published by Nigeria, any challenge is ignored and is futile. These published fraudulent figures will be forced on Nigeria and adopted by the rest of the world without further questioning.
We became alarmed because Mr. Tezapsidis, the EU representative to Nigeria on the census project, has already signaled and telegraphed his intention to accept and adopt whatever census results are published by Nigeria. Thus, we conclude that the EU will legitimize the fraudulent census results cooked up by Nigeria, and therefore, make the false figures respectable and acceptable to the rest of the world. This is a tragedy which has the effect of doing incalculable harm to the different peoples living in Nigeria, but especially, to the ethnic group singled out by Nigeria to be cheated—the Igbo. It is especially this reason which motivates our protest.
3) Deliberate Omission of Crucial Demographic Data
The Nigerian authorities have deliberately removed Ethnicity of Origin and Religious Affiliation from data to be collected during the census, without public debate and or assent, after bowing to unilateral pressure by the Northern Nigerian Muslim leadership to eliminate such data. Public outcry, Nigerian Media opposition, collective Christian religion resistance against such omission, coupled with unanimous public support and rationale for the inclusion of these natural parameters of censuses, have all been ignored by the agency responsible for the census, the NPC (National Population Council), and by the Nigerian government. When the complaint was raised in a press interview earlier, Mr. Tezapsidis, the EU Census representative to Nigeria, played down the seriousness of the deliberate omission and rather, asked the peoples of Nigeria to overlook it. This was a most disturbing contribution, coming from the EU representative, a representative of Europe where no one and no country would allow such a deliberate and manipulatively incomplete census exercise.
Any census conducted in a "country" like Nigeria which fails to include Ethnicity Data and Religious Affiliation Data is hopelessly incomplete and most likely, functionally meaningless. When such an omission is deliberate and is done in spite of, and against the will of, the rest of the population because of the unilateral imposition of the will of a particular segment of Nigeria, then, the "country" is being set up for implosion. When the EU supports this setup, then, the EU, in open hypocrisy, has become an integral part of the problem. We should not trust such a set-up or entrust our welfare to the hypocritical hands of such a union of dishonesty. That’s why we must not participate in the census.
4) Restriction of Movement to Places of Origin, Pre-Census
The NPC and the Nigerian government have indicated their plan to discourage and stop persons from returning to their places of origin to be counted therein during the census. While they argue that this distorts demographic distribution picture, we counter that all that it would take to correct the picture is a question asking where the person to be counted usually resides for work. It is clear that this policy by the NPC is a deliberate effort to prevent persons from being counted in their own regions of origin, which usually equates to their Ethnicity, and also, roughly to their Religious affiliation.
5) Calculated Cheating and Undercounting of a Particular Ethnicity
The design of the census by Nigeria is a deliberate calculation to under-count the Igbo and other Easterners living in Nigeria. The Igbo are the most dispersed ethnic nationality in Nigeria. In every area in Nigeria, next to the indigenes, the Igbo as a group form the next largest population. When Nigeria conducts its census without Ethnicity Data, it is the Igbo that are impacted the most—negatively. Resource allocations will be made according to the census figures, according to Nigeria’s plans, reiterated by the NPC. Not only will those figures be rigged to disfavor the Igbo, now, they will also under-count the Igbo living in Igboland and add the deficit to non-Igbo areas of Nigeria where Igbo reside in huge numbers. It would be utterly crazy, were it not foolish and suicidal in the first instance, for a nation to allow itself to be so cheated as the Igbo are being set up to be cheated by this census as planned by Nigeria.
6) "Political Expediency"--the working paradigm of NPC / Nigeria regarding the census.
Finally, every official and public statement by the Chair and leadership of the NPC regarding the planned Nigeria census emphasizes "political expediency" as the working guideline for the conduct and result of the census. This is the strongest (in fact, the only) reason given by NPC in rejecting the inclusion of Ethnic and Religious data elements in the Census. Do you understand the meaning of the term, "expediency"? By qualifying this term with "political", the NPC is really saying that the conduct and results of the census will be bound not by facts, not by accuracy, not by fairness, not by honesty, but only by what is politically acceptable! Who and what is the politics of Nigeria? Who holds trumping political power in Nigeria? Does this not validate the previous points we made about this census? How has that political power been applied in previous census exercises? Definitely to cheat the Igbo.
Our only choice: Census Boycott
Every effort will be made to see that the Igbo and other ethnic groups from Eastern Nigeria, comprising Biafra, boycott the planned Nigeria census of 2006, if it holds. Out of self-preservation, no normal human group would allow itself to be the victims of such an obvious and deliberate, well-telegraphed cheating exercise. Especially since this cheating goes on with every census in Nigeria, as far back as in 1922 and as recently as the last census of 1991. Especially since Nigeria plans to use the deliberately biased figures to calculate resource allocation. Especially when 95% of those same resources are derived from the cheated region. And especially, since the NPC leadership itself has repeatedly implied that “political expediency” is the only thing which will determine the conduct and results of the census—that is, the census conduct and results must be made to be “politically acceptable.” Whose politics?
Of course, as Biafrans, we would never want to be counted in Nigeria and as Nigerians.
Our fourth task this year is the preparations for the boycott of the 2007 Nigeria elections—assuming that Nigeria will survive until then, or even hold that election, anyway.
We will also begin a formal “shunning and ostracism” program this year to be applied against any Igbo or Biafran who is clearly hurting our people or deliberately standing in the way of our getting Biafra. Examples of culprits are Orji Uzor Kalu and Joe Achuzie. In a future broadcast, we will discuss this program further and expand the list.
2006 is a year of tremendous opportunity for Biafra / Biafra actualization, and a year of serious action by us Biafrans. We walk with God Who points us to the Promised Land, Biafra.
Biafra alive! Biafra is the answer. 2006 brings us Biafra actualized—Amen. For, God makes it so.
That’s the News Analysis for the week.
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God bless and keep Biafra, and you, until our next broadcast. Voice of Biafra International (VOBI) broadcast continues (http://www.biafraland.com/vobi.htm), now with the summary of the News Analysis in Igbo language.
Ndi Biafra, ekele e o-o! Anyi e kelee unu.
Nkea wu akuko nke anyi na a kpo News Analysis si na Voice of Biafra International Radio, di na Washington DC, na ala America, na a bia ra unu na abali a.
O wu uzo ihe ano ka anyi ga e me na afo 2006. Nke mbu wu i buru obodo Biafra kwuru la onwe ya, na a chi onwe ya, na ime obi anyi, na oge dum, na a hu ya na ohu na na nro, ma anyi na e te ete ma anyi no na ura. I gbaputa umu nne anyi ndi Nigeria ji na nkporo ndi Nigeria so na nweta Biafra. Na ihi nkea, ihe nke abuo anyi ga e me na afo ya wu i gbaputa ndi anyi ndea:
Benedict Alakwem, Ambrose Anyaso, Augustine Ihuoma, Chibuike Nwosu, Chimankpa Okorocha, na Kelechi Ubabuike;
Ihe nke ato anyi ga e me wu i ju na a ga a gu anyi onu-isi census nde Nigeria. Anyi a gaghi e so Nigeria e me census ha maka Nigeria e ji la aghugho, na ugha, na wuru-wuru, me ya ka ha megbue Ndi Igbo na otu ha ga e si a gu onu-isi ya. Anyi a gaghi e kwe ka e mee anyi udi ihe mmegbu di otua: na ihi nkea onye a gughi kwa la anyi; anyi a choghi onye owula i gu anyi onu-isi census Nigeria. Anyi a gaghi e kwe ka a guo anyi.
Nke ano na ihe nde anyi ga e me na 2006 wu na anyi ga a ju i me election ndi Nigeria na afo 2007; ka anyi jirizie afo ya, 2006, kwado chaa otu anyi ga e si e me ka anyi i ju election ya nwee isi. Unu ma a ma na election ndi Nigeria, o wu naani aghugho na ugha na wuru-wuru ka a na a eji e me ya. Ezi-okwu a dighi na ya. Ma anyi wu ndi Biafra: anyi a wughi ndi Nigeria. Ndi Nigeria gaa me be ihe aru ha, onye ma, ma o nwere ike Nigeria agbasasia a gbasasia tupu 2007.
Ihe ozo anyi ga e bido na afo ya, anyi ga a tule ya ngaa na oge na a bia abia. Ihe ahu wu otu anyi ga e si bia gbawa ndi efulefu ndi Igbo ndi Biafra nkiti, na atughifuru ha onu, ha wu ndi na e me ihe ga e meru ndi Igbo ndi Biafra ahu, ma owu ndi na a nochiri anyi uzo anyi si a cho nweta Biafra. Nde di ka Orji uzor Kalu na Joe Achuzie, na ndi ozo anyi ga a kpo aha mgbe anyi loghachiri i le ba ihea anya.
Ndi Igbo, ndi Biafra: jikwara kwa unu o! Anyi ga a ru si oru Biafra ike na afo ya; anyi ga a eme ihe ga a kpa ire ba nyere nweta Biafra na afo ya. Chukwu ga na e du anyi i ga na ala Biafra, obodo O kwere anyi na nkwa.
Biafra, ndu gi! Biafra, ndu gi!! Biafra, ndu gi!!!—na ndu anyi kwa. Maka Chineke nonyere la gi—nonyere kwa ra anyi!
Ndewo unu.
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Voice of Biafra International (VOBI) broadcast continues
Voice of Biafra International (VOBI)
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