President Muhammadu Buhari
The Presidency has decried a recent “alliance” between the Yoruba Nation agitators and the Indigenous People of Biafra, warning that such a treaty cannot be taken seriously because of the violent antecedents of the IPOB.
In a statement signed by the Special Assistant to the President, Garba Shehu, the presidency warned that the IPOB is a designated terrorist organization that has now “publicly revealed a 50,000 strong paramilitary organization”.
Mr Shehu urged the Yoruba secessionist group to quit its association with IPOB because it “regularly murders security agents and innocent civilians, with a significant uptick of violent attacks this year”.
He further explained that the IPOB is attempting to hold Nigerian states hostage with orders to stay at home under threat of terror.
According to the presidential spokesman, there is no doubt that “Nigerians and the entire world will judge Yoruba Nation by the company it keeps”.
He however, emphasized that it is shocking to see “Yoruba Nation” advocates “unequivocally throw their lot in with Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB)”.
He believes no one can take the Yoruba Nation seriously if it continues its IPOB association, not “when their allies systematically trample human rights”.
These actions, the president’s special assistant argues, “raises sober questions about their claims to uphold the values of the UN”.
He defined the cooperation as a worrying development.
“Actions and associations speak louder than words. Yoruba Nation’s talk of human rights promotion must therefore be ignored,” Mr Shehu opined.
He assured that the Nigerian government will continue its work at the UN – to fight against corruption and illicit financial flows, and international cooperation.