arrested two publishers in Onitsha who were
allegedly printing handbills for the proscribed
Indigenous People of Biafra in respect of
November 18 election boycott in Anambra State.
The Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr.
Garba Umar, disclosed this at a press conference
in his office at Amawbia, Anambra State.
Umar said his command would not tolerate any
IPOB activity in the state in any guise.
He said,
“After a discreet procedure in collating intelligence
on miscreants and members of the proscribed
IPOB, the Onitsha area command raided a printing
press where thousands of posters and handbills
were being printed.”
Some of the fliers read, ‘Call for referendum is
not call for war;’ ‘No election in Anambra State,’
‘Biafrans declare sit at home,’ ‘Anyone who
insists on participating in the Anambra election
will be doing so at his or her own risk,’ and so
on.
IPOB had, in a press statement by its media and
Publicity Secretary, declared sit-at-home on
November 18th, the day for Anambra
governorship election.
The Anambra CP warned that he would not
spare any group or individual who try to disrupt
the peace in the state, while calling on residents
to ensure they report any attempt to cause a
breach of the peace in their area.
Garba said the printers arrested would help the
police in tracking down the IPOB members who
gave them the job.
He said,
“We wish to encourage the people to ignore the
leaflets and the fruitless effort expended in
printing them, but to come out en masse and vote
in the election as the plans of the group was to
instill fear in everyone and cause apathy during
the exercise.
“IPOB is proscribed and there won’t be a hiding
place for them in Anambra State.
“We won’t tolerate any insignia of the group in
this state. If your nickname is IPOB, please
change it now; otherwise, we’ll arrest and
prosecute you.”
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