PRESS RELEASE!

Tuesday, July 29, 2003

 Remembering His Excellency, Head-of-State and Supreme Military Commander

                                       Late General J. T. U. Aguiyi-Ironsi

On the 37^th anniversary of the assassination of General J. T. U. Aguiyi-Ironsi by Arewa Muslim Nation, Biafra National Union (BIANU), a group dedicated to the actualization and resurrection of the Sovereign State of Biafra through the promotion of unity and progress of all Biafrans, remembers with great sadness the gruesome murder of a great son of Igboland and one of Africa’s greatest military leaders. BIANU mourns this dastardly murder for two main reasons: (1) it led to the perpetration on the Igbo, of the second worst genocide of the 20^th century and has continued to bring unimaginable pain and suffering on the Igbo nation. Today the massacres of the Igbo continue in Igboland and in other parts of Nigeria always with full Nigeria government collaboration. It has led to the dispersion of about 50% of Igbo population to exile. (2) Unfortunately, the lessons of the Ironsi assassination have not been learned by those Igbo who, like Ironsi, still believe in the myth of one Nigeria and that this most corrupt and most Igbophobic country in the world could be salvaged.

There is no doubt that the falsehood of the unfortunate 1914 amalgamation of Nigeria continue to manifest daily. The real interested parties about Nigeria have been the ones who only care for what OIL can give. These selfish and greedy stakeholders are part of the reasons for Nigeria downfall. Many patriotic individuals and groups who believed in Nigeria without oil interest never lasted. General J. T. U. Ironsi, an unsung hero Head of State, remains such an individual. His assassination is an unforgettable and sad experience. Up until now that we are writing, there is still no admittance of guilt by the perpetrators, no apology to his family and tribe, and not even a formal burying ceremony to immortalize his memory and to rest his spirit. In short, thirty-seven years after wasting his life, Nigeria and their advisors are still in denial that they did anyone wrong, including the millions of General Ironsi’s fellow ethnic people they sent to their early graves.

Today, in the year 2003, the planners and the advisors of the genocide on Biafra - the Jury, the Judges, and the Executioners, continue to inflict more pain on Biafrans without remorse. The executioners brag about the atrocities they commit on daily basis as part of their birthright with blessings from Allah. That Allah permits them to kill anyone that disagrees with their ways of life. However, Biafrans have Jehovah that our ancestors worshipped from time immemorial. We believe that our Jehovah does not take life, but rather a giver of life. We believe with time, there will be settlement of differences between Allah and Jehovah.

During his short reign as head-of-state and as an interim government of necessity, we remember how General Ironsi mobilized his men to abort the revolution in Lagos. He trusted Lt. Col. Yakubu Gowon to investigate rumors of an impending mutiny but received a clean security report by the later. At the height of the ethnic tension, he braved himself to embark on a tour for dialogue towards solving Nigeria’s political problems. That same dialogue to avert an impending doom is still being denied the people today. We remember how the assailants abducted and murdered him in cold blood without a fair chance. The good reason they ever advanced was his ethnic orientation.

Just as Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, General “Iron side” Ironsi was first a Nigerian before an Igbo. Today, a Yoruba, an Hausa, and a Fulani must first be his tribe before considering being a Nigerian. Hence, the politics of ethnic nationalism remains the norm; practically snubbing national integration for forty-three years now. Even a blind man can see a reason why this country called Nigeria is a failed experiment that never yielded any good results. Nothing could be further from the truth. Nigeria is as DEAD AS THE DODO AND CAN NEVER BE RESURRECTED.

We believe Nigeria, its advisors, and Arewa Muslim Nation merely wasted General Ironsi’s physical body but his spirit lives. We believe the almighty God that our ancestors worshipped and called CHUKWU/OBASI lives. We believe his death and the millions of his people are not in vain. No condition is ever permanent for whatever goes up, must surely come down. Adios your Excellency!

Signed:

          Peter Akoma

          National Publicity Secretary, Biafra National Union

          Washington DC

          Nnanna “Osionwu” Uma

          National Coordinator, Biafra National Union

          Washington DC

Contact:

Biafra National Union (BIANU)

P.O. Box 8874

Langley Park, MD 20787-8874

www.bianu@bianu.com

Phone: 804-852-1574/ 202-529-0303