A human rights activist and the counsel for the Indigenous People of Biafra, Sir Ifeanyi Ejiofor, has condemned the abduction of a social critic and civil rights activist, Emmanuel Okoh, popularly called “Okwuluorah”.
Okwuluorah, from Enugu State, was reportedly abducted in Umuaka, Orlu Local Government Area of Imo State, a few kilometres away from a military checkpoint.
Reacting to the incident in a press statement on Friday, Ejiofor said “Okwuluorah” was not abducted by strangers but by those who live within, adding that South-East region is bleeding and it’s wounds are self-inflicting.
He said, “Some moments jolt the conscience of a people, moments that refuse to be ignored, moments that force a nation to look itself in the mirror.
“One such moment is the chilling ordeal of ‘Okwuluora’, the respected social critic and voice of conscience, who was recently abducted in Umuaka, Orlu Local Government Area of Imo State.
“But this was no random abduction. It was a symbolic tragedy, a revealing crack in the very soul of Ala Igbo. Okwuluora was not taken by strangers.
“He was not a victim of foreign invaders. He was kidnapped, blindfolded, tortured, and nearly executed by his own people; men who spoke his language, knew his background, and shared his roots.
“And perhaps the most horrifying part? His captivity occurred only a few meters away from a military and police checkpoint.
“How did we get here? How did a land once famed for its unity, industry, and resilience descend to this level of internal rot, where fear now reigns and terror is homemade?
“We have spent too many years blaming external aggressors and distant enemies. But today, the most urgent enemy resides among us, and sometimes, within us.”
According to him, “Okwuluora’s” near-death experience confirms what many have quietly suspected, adding, “That a faction of our own kith and kin have turned Igbo land into a hunting ground, desecrating its sacred spaces and sacrificing our communal peace on the altar of greed, anarchy, and lawlessness.”
He said Okwuluora’s story is not isolated, it is a warning, a prophecy in real time, adding that if the region do not confront the rot from within, then the silence shall one day be judged as betrayal.
“Today, entire communities in Imo State live under siege. Markets are silenced. Traditional rulers are driven underground. Young men, once the pride of their clans, now morph into nightmarish militias.
“And all this unfolds under the passive gaze, or perhaps complicit nod, of those sworn to uphold security and order.
“Make no mistake: Imo State is bleeding. Igbo land is bleeding. And the wounds are no longer from external blows. They are self-inflicted, cut deep by betrayal, silence, fear, and complicity.
“But this is not the first time our land has groaned under the weight of anguish. In the wake of the 1966 pogroms, Ndigbo fled the North in droves, carrying nothing but their dignity and the bones of their dead. They came home, and from the ashes, birthed Biafra: a defiant declaration of self-worth. Though crushed by war, the Igbo spirit endured. We rebuilt. We thrived.
“But now, what war failed to destroy, internal decay threatens to finish. So we must ask: Where is that same spirit of unity and defiance? What happened to the moral spine that refused to bow in the face of injustice? How did we go from guardians of our homeland to architects of its ruin?
“For indeed, Ala Igbo is bleeding. But where there is life, there is hope. And where there is unity, there is healing. As we step into this new month of August, may the God of our ancestors arise for Ala Igbo.
“May He restore peace in our land. May every agent of bloodshed and destruction be exposed, uprooted, and judged. May our land, once soaked in the tears of the innocent, become again a fountain of prosperity, dignity, and unity,” the statement concluded.
Source: Punchng
