GOODBYE NIGERIA

Biafrans were used to saying goodbye at the International Airport.  If you were lucky to find a two weeks visa to anywhere in Europe or America, it looked like you had found a ticket to heaven, you were sure you were not coming back here.  A lot of our dreams were hope that was cut because most of us could not succeed after series of interviews at the glorious embassies which looked like the gates of heaven.

Gone were the days when our people, after packing their bags, saying goodbye to family and friends tried the embassies while some who knew the cost of visa and air ticket never tried it at all yet could not endure the pain of coming back to face the horror at home so they resorted to other means and some vices.  Some took laws into their own hands and some broke boarders.  The walking long distance through the desert to find the route to Libya became an express way to voluntary slavery into the hands of human traffickers.

Running away seemed only to be a temporal solution to the real fight for an identity.  What was your real worth out there as a Nigerian? How have you been faring my brothers and sisters in Diaspora? It is true that a good number of our people out there have really been successful by being zealous but what about the millions that are still struggling to survive and how does it feel to be deported?

The Biafran history has been the bone of contention. One that the world powers have pretended not to know and looked away from as if the United Nations were meant for presidents who do not care about the right of innocent Biafrans. The young Biafran nation led by the great Biafran war lord, Odumegwu Ojukwu short lived and was suppressed by some unimaginable world powers and the Arab world that stood to support Nigeria in oppressing and suppressing Biafra.

The war ended with a slogan of one Nigeria at gun point and economic blockade that resulted into the malnutrition and death of Biafrans. The survivors suffered more psychologically and economically when all the monies of Biafrans were turned to 20 pounds.  At that time, Biafra was brought down into the next levels of torture marginalization and oppression.  The generation after really experienced the darkest moments in the centre of the tunnel and I think it was the darkest moment in the history of Biafra.

Life in Nigeria was a make or break affair.  Fighting for survival in Nigeria is like swimming against the tide.  Biafra were never expected to survive in Nigeria. Having placed a blockade against Biafra, Nigeria expected Biafrans to die out gradually and systematically.

Nigeria felt it had succeeded by removing Biafra from the map and tactically removed the teaching that reminds us the history from the curriculum of education and when Ojukwu died they concluded that Biafra has been buried but Biafra survived.  Biafra is alive and Biafra lives again.

Then, came, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu the Supreme leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, the special creation of Chiokike Abiama and the gift to the Biafrans, the man so loved and cherished by more than 70 million Biafrans, a born prince from the palace of Eze Kanu of Afara Ukwu Ibeku, world changer and universal star who came to change the narratives.  He came to lead millions of armless Indigenous People of Biafra and the Nigerian government through the army went after his life, on that day, the 14th of September, the world was dark for a moment and the earth quake, bullets rained and there was a river of blood at the home of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra but the Nigerian Army failed to openly declare the whereabouts of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

Mazi Nnamdi Kanu has been the bone in the neck of the tyrannical Nigerian government; he is the man whose passion for Biafra has restored confidence to Biafrans all over the world. The world powers cannot pretend not to know about the Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and his demand for Biafran referendum. The Nigerian government to a standstill while he is simply asking for a United Nations supervised referendum to determine the future of Biafrans.  His method of peaceful agitation attracted supporters and friends in Biafra land and abroad. He became the man to be much envied by the enslaved Nigerian politicians. He was honoured with lots of traditional titles and above I was moved with passion the day it was reported that he received Dede Mbakwe’s 40 years historic wine.

The bottle of wine spoke for itself and the Biafran restoration agenda attracted much jealousy.  Though it looked like Muhammadu Buhari stopped Mbakwe’s generation but at the right time Chiokike Abiama has raised a generation who stood to say goodbye Nigeria.

Biafrans have demonstrated at various times that more than 99% of the people of the old eastern region do not want Nigeria. The success of the 30th May 2017 sit at home declared by Mazi Nnamdi Kanu was fully obeyed and to make it so official in a civilized and democratic system Biafrans boycotted the November 18 Anambra election tagged “The Ofe Nsala Day”

November 18 was the historic day and Biafrans joyfully said goodbye Nigeria with the historic Ofe-Nsala day celebration. The moment we rejected the Nigerian government was the moment we stepped into the realities of Biafran freedom and the real work begins.  The Biafran referendum is loading and will certainly validate the will of all Biafrans.

We have regained our boldness and ready to rebuild our identity.  We said no to one Nigerian even at gun point and today we have continued to say goodbye Nigeria and welcome Biafra.

Biafra is beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel. To look back is to remember the life in the dark tunnel all through the horrible night of thick darkness.  We survived as a people coming out of a dark age. A people who survived a dark age were never the same people who were lured into the darkness.  We have lost a great deal while in the land of darkness and so many of us really made it with a hart rubbed dark from the heart of darkness where we came from.  We must realize things are never the same. 

One of our fathers, Chinua Achebe, who as a child saw the light from the other end of the tunnel, narrated how Things Fall Apart, it becomes out duty to learn to discover things that really fell apart. Our values were destroyed, our walls were broken down and our land defiled most of our people no longer reason like Biafrans.  Things really fell apart and we must find the centre of our values, rebuild our broken walls and clean up our land.

We must begin to think like Biafrans because the journey begins in our minds. We are Biafrans and not British so we must develop the originality of the Biafran identity.  The traditional education must become a priority to developing our curriculum of education and our family life must begin to take the number one priority which must reflect in our political system, Biafra is our religion and Chiokike Abiama is the maker of our world.  Every Biafran has the responsibility of asking the fundamental question how do I defend Biafran identity because we are Biafrans and it is our duty to defend Biafra everywhere from now on.

Written By:

Mazi Bright Oriaku

For: Biafra State Media