IPOB has threatened to drag the Federal Government to court if it continues to label it a terrorist organisation.
The proscribed group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has informed the Federal Government to discontinue labelling it a terrorist organisation or be ready to defend such a tag in court.
The administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari had designated the secessionist group as a terrorist organisation in 2017 following an ex parte order granted by Justice Abdul Kafarati in September of that year.
Though the pro-Biafran group has severally rejected the appellation on the argument that it's only interested in the breakaway of the Southeast region from the rest of the country, it is forced to carry the tag until a court rules otherwise.
Meanwhile, in a statement by its spokesman, Emma Powerful, on Friday, October 27, 2023, IPOB said the proscription order had been appealed at the appellate court by its legal team since 2018.
However, the group said the Federal Government has refused to appear at the Appeal Court to defend the proscription order and has stuck to using a “slow and warped” justice system to frustrate its hearing.
“Ever since the IPOB’s proscription was appealed, the Federal Government and her compromised Judges have been running away from meeting the IPOB legal team in their court.
“The Federal Government and her Courts are running while the IPOB legal team awaits them in the court to continue what they started.
“The IPOB, ably led by our supreme leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, wondered why the Federal Government is running away from defending their ‘black market’ proscription of IPOB before the Appeal Court.
“This black market proscription order has been appealed in the Appeal Court since 2018 by the IPOB legal team, but the Federal Government of Nigeria keeps using the slow and warped justice system to frustrate the hearing of the Appeal.
“IPOB is a peaceful movement seeking Biafra restoration. IPOB, since its formation, has organised the most peaceful rallies across the world, particularly in Biafra territories. Irrespective of our non-violence approach, the ethnic-biased former President used one of his kinsmen, a judge, to proscribe this peaceful movement.
“Our legal team appealed the proscription in 2018. Since then, we have been waiting for the Federal Government to appear in their court and explain to the world how a peaceful movement seeking freedom became a terrorist organisation,” Powerful said.
The group alleged that either the Federal Government or the judges would refuse to appear in court on every adjournment date.
“Instead of facing IPOB’s legal team in court to prove their proscription of IPOB, the Federal Government capitalised on the illegal terrorist tag on IPOB, using the security forces to abduct, illegally detained, and most times extra-judicially murder unarmed IPOB members.
“African Union, European Union, USA and Russian governments, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and other reputable human rights organisations across the globe should ask the Federal Government and its courts to remove the illegal proscription tag on IPOB or appear in Court to defend their actions,” the statement added.
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