By Chukwuemerie Uduchukwu
Recently in Nnewi, I was in a commercial bus and the conductor was exchanging words with a passenger who had complained that the bus was over speeding. The angry passenger warned the driver that her family would not spare him if she gets injured. In response, the conductor started barking at the young lady and warned her never to expect any help from the zoo legal institutions. Curious, I asked the conductor what he meant by ‘zoo institutions’ and he advised me to tune in to Radio Biafra 102.1 FM at night. Before then, I had heard about the pirate radio station but didn’t know it has commenced transmission on the frequency modulated band. That night, I decided to tune in to the station, and immediately I hit the frequency, I heard the presenter, who addresses himself as Nnamdi Kanu (also, Director), shouting on a caller for addressing Buhari as Nigeria’s president. “Stupid black monkey and baboon, will you end this call if you don’t recognise Buhari as a pedophile, a child rapist and terrorist president of the zoo.” Instantly I recalled my conversation with the bus conductor and understood that the zoo he was talking about is Nigeria, an evil slang he must have picked up from the pirate station presenter, Nnamdi Kanu.
The recent protest of market men and women in Onitsha over the alleged transfer of Boko Haram prisoners to Anambra State was catalysed by a broadcast of the pirate station a day before the protest, in which it alleged that President Buhari has ordered the massive transfer of detained Boko Haram fighters to Anambra State to kill many Igbos.
Another thing I observed on that first day of listening to the station was the overwhelming quantity of falsehoods it propagates. Some of the falsehoods include the continuous aerial bombing of Igbos in Calabar by forces of the Nigerian government and the ordering of joint security forces in Chad to kill Igbos by President Muhammadu Buhari, after his visit to the country.
Subsequent listening to the station revealed it as having agents who regularly call during its live interactive programmes to disseminate false stories. It is really sad that some misinformed people take the falsehoods of the pirate radio station seriously. The recent protest of market men and women in Onitsha over the alleged transfer of Boko Haram prisoners to Anambra State was catalysed by a broadcast of the pirate station a day before the protest, in which it alleged that President Buhari has ordered the massive transfer of detained Boko Haram fighters to Anambra State to kill many Igbos.
…anyone who means well for his brothers and sisters cannot afford to promote violence and bloodshed in his homeland, which if allowed will definitely lead to the massive loss of lives and property. It also baffles me how a person who claims to love his brothers and sisters will come on air and make careless statements that can lead to the destruction of the businesses and livelihoods, shops and property of Igbos outside Igboland. Is he on drugs or insane?
The alarming thing about Radio Biafra is that it is fast gathering the support of less educated Igbos, such as commercial motorcyclists, bus drivers and conductors, as well as local market men and women, who can be easily deceived by the station’s falsehoods. If the station is not urgently checked it can endanger the peace and security of Igbo land and Nigeria in general.
Igbos should note that the greatest enemy they have now is Nnamdi Kanu, who stays far away in well secured London, and delights in inciting his people towards bloodshed, against their fellow compatriots, and the Nigerian state. No sane individual can afford to promote hatred between his brothers and other compatriots in the fundamentally interlinked global village that we live in today. Also, anyone who means well for his brothers and sisters cannot afford to activate violence and bloodshed in his homeland, which if allowed will definitely lead to the massive loss of lives and property. It also baffles me how a person who claims to love his brothers and sisters will come on air and make careless statements that can lead to the destruction of the businesses and livelihoods, shops and property of Igbos outside Igboland. Is he on drugs or insane?
The federal government and the international community should note that the pirate Radio Biafra is a pending disaster and if urgent measures are not taken to end its activities, it can metamorphose into the media wing of a terrorising group…
It is no longer news that Igbos are mostly international business men and women, so a person like Nnamdi Kanu and Radio Biafra advocating for the destruction of Igbo property abroad and the relocation of all Igbos to Igbo land in this era of a global village must be confused. If Nnamdi Kanu believes that no one can make it and prosper outside Igbo land, what is he doing in London? Why can’t he come back to his home state, Abia to ‘progress’? It is unfortunate that some misinformed Igbos are even donating money to him. What a fraud! It is quite clear that the fraudster is fast exploiting misinformed fellows to his benefit. It is even funny that he has disowned all Igbo socio-cultural organisations and appointed himself commander-in-chief. The manner at which he abuses fellow Igbos and blacks, who he regularly calls “black monkeys and baboons”, show that he is nothing other than a racist; if other leaders abuse their followers in such manner, then what sort of leadership will that be?
Igbos should note that Nigeria has come to stay, so instead of wasting their time and energy in a wild goose dream of secession, they should support other nationalities and groups in building a stronger, more united and better Nigeria.
The federal government and the international community should note that the pirate Radio Biafra is a pending disaster and if urgent measures are not taken to end its activities, it can metamorphose into the media wing of a terrorising group sharing an ideology of hatred and bloodshed with the Islamic State (IS).
Igbos should note that Nigeria has come to stay, so instead of wasting their time and energy in a wild goose dream of secession, they should support other nationalities and groups in building a stronger, more united and better Nigeria. The federal government and the international community should also make necessary efforts to track down, arrest and prosecute the director of the pirate radio station, Nnamdi Kanu, for inciting violence, bloodshed and attempting a crime against humanity.
Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria!
Chukwuemerie Uduchukwu writes from Awka, Anambra State. PT