The Nigerian Constitution which provides that Nigeria shall be
indivisible and indissoluble has been overridden by the Powers of the Judiciary as it could not stop Bakassi from being removed from Nigeria. The Map of Nigeria has been redrawn and reduced in size by reason of the removal of Bakassi Peninsula from Nigeria. Just as Bakassi Peninsula was removed from Nigeria by judicial power, it is our strong legal opinion that Biafra shall also be removed from Nigeria by judicial power.
Regarding the legal issue of capacity to refer a matter to the International Court of Justice in The Hague, there is an exception to the general rule that only sovereign nations are clothed with international legal personality to bring actions in the International Court of Justice (ICJ). International Law permits National Liberation Movements recognised by the UN and International Human Rights Organizations to bring actions in the International Court of Justice on behalf of the people they represent otherwise the oppressed people would not have access to justice contrary to human rights law. It is an elementary principle of law that in everylaw there must be an exception. A simple example is the traffic law that forbids you to beat the traffic light or drive in the opposite direction but permits
emergency ambulance services to violate the rule because somebody’s life is at stake. In the same way, there is an exception to the general rule of international legal personality that permits national liberation movements and international human rights organizations to bring actions in the ICJ.
The rule of law on international legal personality allows national liberation
movements recognised by the UN to bring actions in the International Court of Justice. The Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) is not a country but an organization recognised by the UN with the right under international law to bring action in the ICJ on behalf of the Palestinians just as Bilie Human Rights Initiative has been recognised by the UN with power to represent the Biafrans. By the rule of international law, if the Biafrans do not obtain justice within the Nigerian jurisdiction, they have the right to appeal to the International Court of Justice.
We have said that our intention is not to destroy Nigeria but
to be free from Nigeria. We have cited numerous examples of countries that got independence without destroying their host countries. Starting from the Bible history, Israel came out from Egypt without destroying Egypt. In modern times, Eritrea came out from Ethiopia without destroying Ethiopia. Bangladesh and Pakistan came out from India without destroying India. In 2011, South Sudan came out from Sudan without destroying Sudan. In the same way, we the Biafrans want to leave Nigeria without destroying Nigeria. If a Biafran wants to maintain dual citizenship and retain his Nigerian citizenship, it is his fundamental human right. There are many Nigerians that are also British and American citizens.
The Nigerian law provides for the right of self-determination to indigenous
peoples of the land enforceable by the Judiciary. The Biafran Lawyers obtained evidence from the British Authorities showing the Treaties signed between the British Government and the ancestors of Biafraland from 1884 – 1892 which authorised the British people to enter upon our land for the purpose of trading only. This evidence is before the Federal High Court Owerri. As at that time,there was no Nigeria but there was Biafra. The ancient Map of Africa 1662 showed the three kingdoms in Africa from where Nigeria was carved out in 1914, namely, the Kingdom of Biafra in the East, the Kingdom of Benin in the West and the Kingdom of Zamfara in the North.
A typical provision at Page 24 of the Treaty Documents signed between the ancestors of Biafraland and the British people placed an obligation on the
British Government in the following words: “To respect all native laws and
customs of the country, and not to interfere with the existing rights of any of the natives without first obtaining their consent”. This provision was made because the British people came for trade under the name of the Royal Niger Company Ltd and our ancestors granted them license to trade in our land but not to interfere with the government of our country then in existence. There was acountry called Biafra shown in the Ancient Map of Africa 1492 – 1843.
We have proved from the Ancient Map of Africa that the Biafrans are some of the indigenous peoples of the lands where Nigeria exists today. This fact of history therefore engages Articles 19 – 24, Cap 10, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990, which guarantees the rights of indigenous peoples of the land to self-determination. The Biafrans therefore decided to use the third option. For this reason, we commenced the action in the Federal High Court Owerri and embarked upon national and international diplomacy for the Independence of Biafra. .
Apart from the rule of international law that a people seeking for independence must commence the action from their domestic jurisdiction, it was also necessary to commence the suit in Nigeria in order to create momentum and synergy and gather the Biafrans together under the Customary Government so that we could establish a de facto government under Customary Law on the ground and satisfy the requirements of international law for recognition without committing the offence of treason.
The rule is that a people seeking for independence must show that they are governable under a leadership structure to avoid anarchy, lawlessness and bloodshed. Though the Customary Government headed by the Supreme Council of Elders is not sovereign, it provides an internal command structure to hold the people together should anything happen to Nigeria. By the rule of customary law, it is the duty of theelders of the land to gather their children together in times of crisis. Therefore,
Justice Eze Ozobu’s Customary Government is an alternative platform for the
Biafrans to fall back to in case of crisis but does not oppose the Nigerian
Government.
The advantages of using legal method to achieve independence are many. If
independence is achieved by due process of law, all your investments and
properties in all parts of Nigeria will remain yours. The only difference is that
you will pay the taxes and rates to the government in whose jurisdiction your
properties are located. It is just like owning properties in London or America.
Again, everybody has the fundamental human rights to have dual citizenship. If
a Biafran wants to have dual citizenships, he can still retain his Nigerian
citizenship. It is your human rights to acquire multiple citizenships. I know
some Biafran activists who have dual and triple citizenships. Most importantly,
the use of legal method has attracted the Biafran elder statesmen into the
Biafran Struggle and given the Struggle much respect and legitimacy. It has
also attracted international diplomats to visit Biafraland and observe the court
proceedings in the Federal High Court and see our level of preparedness for
independence. The Biafran Struggle is no longer in the hands of charlatans and
fraudsters but now in the hands of Biafran intellectuals, strategists, royal fathers
and diplomats. Nevertheless, we emphasise that everybody is important in the
Struggle but every person must know and do what he is best talented to do. The
big men and small men are all important and needed in the Biafran Struggle.
The Intellectuals, Technocrats, Politicians and Businessmen are all important.
Our women, children and students are all important in the Struggle. But every
person should wear the shoes of his size. The level we have reached now in the
Biafran Struggle is as a result of using the experts in their areas of expertise.
What the Claimants are expected to do as the case progresses:
We have noted that the hatred, persecution and attacks on the Biafrans are still
going on in various parts of Nigeria. At the moment, due to the rejection of
Biafra by many people in the South-South, the word “Biafrans” is now
synonymous with the word “Ibos” even though the Igbo People are not the
only Biafrans. Nevertheless, to the people of the North, all the Easterners are
the same whether they are from the South-East or South-South. We have also
noticed that despite the hatred, persecution and attacks on the Easterners in the
North and West, the Ibos especially have continued to invest heavily in the
regions where they are hated. Below is the photograph of a public rejection of
the Igbo People in Lagos State:
In the North, the Ibos are killed and butchered like rams and goats without any
Government speaking on their behalf. This is the most important reason for the
restoration of the Biafran sovereignty. It is a sovereign country that can join
issues with another sovereign country in a diplomatic war over the lives of its
citizens. If a British citizen or American citizen is killed in Nigeria, the British
Government or American Government will take up the case for its citizen with
the Nigerian Government and ensure that justice prevails. From what we have
seen so far, we conclude that Nigeria does not regard the lives of the Biafrans.
The Northern Governments have stated unequivocally that theirs is a Shariah
Law Territory. The region is governed under Shariah Law and therefore any
person living in their territory must be willing to obey the Shariah Law or move
out of the region. However, the killing of the Ibos is not because they disobey
any Shariah Law but because of their enterprising spirit in commerce and
industries and the rapidity with which they acquire wealth in the land of their
sojourn by dint of hard work while the owners of the land become poorer in
comparison. Below is the photograph of the Ibo trader they recently macheted
to death like a ram:
The attacks, hatred and persecution are perpetrated by both the elite and the
masses of the North and West. The Oba of Lagos insulted the Ibos and
threatened to drown them in the lagoon if they failed to vote for his candidate.
On receiving severe criticisms from the public, he turned around and said that
he was drunk when he made the threat! On Monday 20 April 2015, it was
reported all over the internet and shown on the Facebook page of Dr Abraham
Ariyo, Medical Doctor, American-based Cardiologist, a Yoruba man, calling
for the elimination of the Ibos as he alleged that God might have put a curse on
the Ibos as they are hated everywhere they go, using the massacre of the Ibos in
South Africa as an example. He said that the Yoruba would continue to “bus
them to Onitsha” referring to the deportation of the Ibos from Lagos to Onitsha
as done by the Governor of Lagos State.
SOURCE :BARR EMEKA EMEKESRI