Ifeanyi Ejiofor, lead counsel of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has implored governors of states in the south-east to declare May 30 as public holiday in commemoration of ‘Biafra Day’.
On May 30, 1967, Chukwuemeka Ojukwu, former governor of the eastern region, declared secession of Biafra Republic from Nigeria.
The declaration led to the civil war that started on July 6, 1967, and ended on January 15, 1970.
In a statement issued on Thursday, Ejiofor said the governors of the five states in the south-east should set aside May 30 in honour of fallen Biafran soldiers.
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Ejiofor added that the federal government should “unconditionally release genuine Biafran agitators who are being held in various detention facilities” across the country.
He said this would go a long way in moderating the resentment of the “marginalised Biafrans” and would help restore a sense of reintegration in the Nigerian project.
“May 30th is set aside as a special day to remember and reflect on the death of over five million Biafrans who were genocidally massacred during the three-year Biafra-Nigeria war, which lasted from July 6, 1967 to January 15, 1970,” he said.
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“This day is dedicated to honouring our fallen heroes and heroines, not only to remember the cause for which they were brutally killed but also to reflect on how their deaths have impacted the lives of Biafrans, the lessons learned, and the resolutions made since then.
“I use this moment of sober reflection to call on all south-east governors to dedicate May 30th as a public holiday, as a mark of respect and honour for Biafran fallen heroes.
“It is not asking too much to remember and commemorate Biafran heroes and heroines by declaring this date a public holiday across Biafraland.”
Roads were deserted across the south-east on Thursday, May 30, 2024, after IPOB ordered a sit-at-home in the region.
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