What Biafran Zionist Federation Group Wanted To Do At ESBS Radio/Tv Station

                  

 Photo Caption - Barrister Benjamin Onwuka, leader of Biafra Zionist Federation (BZF)-Left and other members of the group being paraded by police Thursday.

 odogwuemekaodogwu.com reports that the over 20 Members of the Pro-Biafra group, Biafra Zionist Federation (BZF) led by Barrister Benjamin Onwuka,  are lamenting the treatment being given them by the Nigerian Police in Enugu state after they were arrested for  invading the Enugu State Broadcasting Service, ESBS in an alleged attempt to seize the radio and television station for a broadcast.
 

They are angry that policemen are humiliating them even they are peaceful but are treating Boko Haram with kid gloves allegedly.

Odogwuemekaodogwu.com recalled that the group had attacked the Government House, Enugu on March 8, 2014 claiming that it had re-established the Republic of Biafra by hoisting its flag at the Government House.  And shortly after the police declared Onwuka wanted placing a bounty of N5 million on him. That yielded no fruits as two days later he emerged and addressed a press conference.

But for their Thursday’s daring move to make a television and radio broadcast on allegedly taking over of Old Eastern Region unarmed allegedly before they were rounded up by the police and paraded like armature criminals.

They wanted to make an appeal calling out all boys in Obiagu, Ogui and everywhere in Enugu to come out to the streets and chase away all those who will flout their orders asking people to go back home. They also wanted to ask all  students and Kekenapep drivers to go back home. They wanted to order all businesses closed today, all schools to be closed, all markets to be closed and all government officials to surrender all property in their possession before noon on Thursday. They were allegedly in a mission to over run the government in Enugu allegedly.

odogwuemekaodogwu.com was not convinced on the report that a police sergeant and a member of BZF were killed in a shootout while a police inspector who led the team was seriously wounded because had the Biafran Group prepared for war, souls would be wasted on both sides the police and BZF. This was not the first time police will be arresting Onwuka as Onwuka and over 500 of his members were on November 5, 2012 arrested by the police and detained at the Enugu prisons, after the group re-declared the Republic of Biafra.

The BZF leader, Benjamin Onwuka , a United Kingdom-based lawyer and about 19 other members of his group were arrested as they tried to escape from the Tv/Radio station after the clash with the policemen and had undergone interrogation at the Criminal Investigations Department of the State Police Command.
 

They allegedly scaled the fence at about 5.30 am and held the security men and staff on night shift hostage and as well forcefully gained entry into the offices including the studio and made attempts to put on the equipment for a live broadcast by the BZM leader but unknown to them the television had been off air since the past two days while they were unable to have access to the radio station which was broadcasting at the time.

They failed in their mission and escaped through the Universal Hotel road on foot but some mobile policemen drafted to the scene from the Government House, which is about a kilometer away, pursued them into the bush behind some government offices near the State House of Assembly Complex and apprehended them. That was the beginning of the humiliation one of them alleged to odogwuemekaodogwu.com  when they were taken to the state police headquarters.

 A source told odogwuemekaodogwu.com, “While they were struggling with the station’s staff, fourteen policemen who got wind of the invasion by the hoodlums arrived the premises in two patrol cars and moved into the station to confront them. Soon after they got into the building we started hearing gunshots and people were running helter-skelter.

“There was heavy shooting but I don’t know if the BZM members were armed. At the end we saw the corpse of a police sergeant and a member of the group on the floor. The Police Inspector who sustained injuries on his head was immediately taken away by his colleagues”.
 
The State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Ebere Amaraizu confirmed the arrest of Onwuka and his members but he did not give the number of those in custody.

He said that “one police sergeant was killed, one other police officer injured while one died on the side of the hoodlums”, promising to give further details when ongoing enquiry into their activities were concluded.

Unhappy with the effrontery of the Pro Biafran Group , the  State Commissioner of Police, Mr Mohammed Abubakar, told odogwuemekaodogwu.com that said members of the pro-Biafra group that invaded the ESBS Thursday morning were on a mission to take over the government.

He stated this while parading about 13 BZM members including their leader, Barrister Benjamin Igwe Onwuka at the State Police headquarters and he  gave the names of other members of the group being detained with Onwuka as Paulinus Uzoegbu, Michael Oleinya, Ndubuisi Nnamchi, Bethrand Obiekwe, Kelvin Ekeh, Abraham Ugwu, Chukwuma Alogius, Ijaga Sampson, Josephat Nwodo, Nwonu Fidelis and Uduma Uduma.

The commissioner who gave details of what the group did at the station said: “When they went to the ESBS, they got entrance into the studio and wanted them to give them access to make a live broadcast to the people of Nigeria. In the broadcast they have a CD rom where the details of what they wanted to tell members of the public was and in the CD rom, they made a summary of it in a sheet of paper and the highlight of it  are; an appeal calling for all boys in Obiagu to come out, all boys from Ogui to come out, all  boys in Enugu to come out,  they also asked  students to come out, those people with KekeNapep to come out. They wanted to order all businesses closed today, all schools to be closed, all markets to be closed and all government officials to surrender all property in their possession before midday. You can see these people where in a mission of trying to overturn the government and it is something that we will never tolerate”.

odogwuemekaodogwu.com reports further that CP continued, “Recall that in march this year, they had attacked government house, Enugu.  We had earlier declared their leader wanted.  The same group of  Biafran Zionist Federation led by their leader, Benjamin Igwe Onwuka invaded the Enugu State Broadcasting Service with the intention  that after the broadcast, they will set the place ablaze.
 
“They carried  with them a lot of arms, machetes, 25 liters of petrol, 46 empty beer bottles and one Biafran Zionist flag and some CDs. The purpose of going there with petrol and bottles, you know when you put petrol inside a bottle and shake it and throw it into a building, it will inflame. They went there also with guns because when the policemen confronted them, they shot a sergeant and killed him and in the process of trying to prevent them from setting the place ablaze, they also had a casualty, one of them was shot dead.  About thirteen of them were arrested including the leader, Benjamin Onwuka”.

The Commissioner warned any group of persons and individuals planning  to foment trouble in whatever form that will cause breach of peace to desist, saying it will not be tolerated.

Efforts made to speak with the suspects were rebuffed as the commissioner insisted that doing so “will mean giving them opportunity to say what they wanted to announce in the live broadcast”.

The BZM had laid siege to the Enugu State Government House in the early hours of March 8, 2014 and hoisted the flags and banners of the defunct republic of the Republic of Biafra.

Three days later, Onwuka and two of his officials appeared at the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ Press Centre, Enugu and addressed a news conference claiming responsibility for the invasion of the Government House. He said that they successfully occupied the Enugu State seat of power for over four hours and accomplished their mission.

odogwuemekaodogwu.com quotes Onwuka as saying then:   “I want to let you know what happened on March 8 at the Government House Enugu. This is to confirm the true report about what happened. You know very well that since January 12, 1970, the flag of Biafra has never rested on the Government House in Enugu which is the centre power of the Biafra people.

“What we did on the 8th is to reconfirm the independence of the Republic of Biafra which we successfully did.

“We didn’t attack the Government House, but we captured it back for the Biafra people. We captured it for four hours and there was a battle between the Biafrans and the Nigerians and by 7a.m., we retreated because we didn’t have any weapons in our hand, to avoid any loss of life.

“The reason we did it was to show the Biafra people that the hope for Biafra is still alive and that nothing shall quench the aspiration of the Biafra people to be independent. That independence has been resurrected. So the Biafran flag was raised at the Government House on the 8th of March, 2014 and I, Benjamin Igwe Onwuka led the operation.

“It wasn’t an armed attack on the Government House, it wasn’t kidnappers as the police have said. It was Biafran people and the Biafra Zionist Federation led it and I, Benjamin Onwuka was the man that pioneered it. It wasn’t an attack on any- one, but for the restoration of the independence of the Republic of Biafra.

“As I said, the raising of the flag at the Government House is a symbol of the resurrection of the Republic of Biafra which we did on the 8th of March 2014. “

Continuing, Onwuka said: “I want the Biafra people to know and the entire world that the Biafra has been resurrected and no force of arm could hinder this aspiration for Biafra.

“Let me make it clear. the states that will make up  Biafra now are Benue, Kogi, Delta, Edo, Bayelsa, Rivers, Cross Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi, Anambra, Enugu, Imo and Abia and Southern Ondo.

“I thank God for this press conference to set the record straight that the Biafra is independent now, because that flag that has been raised at the Government House, Enugu.”

odogwuemekaodogwu.com reminded that, the State Police Command declared Onwuka wanted for the invasion of the Government House but he could not be seen in the state until he reappeared at the state radio house Thursday.

Earlier before CP spoke, the State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Ebere Amaraizu confirmed the arrest of Onwuka and his members but did not give the number of those in custody.

According to him, “one police sergeant was killed, one other police officer injured while one died on the side of the hoodlums”, promising to give further details when ongoing enquiry into their activities were concluded.