The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has declared solidarity with the Hausa people and other ethnic nationalities in northern Nigeria, saying their aspirations for freedom, justice and self-determination are not incompatible with the Biafran struggle.
The group said its position followed a reported solidarity declaration by northern youths and the Northern Nigeria Rescue Movement (NNRM), which it welcomed as a sign of growing political awareness among people seeking an end to what it described as oppression and injustice.
In a statement issued on Friday by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Comrade Emma Powerful, on the directive of its Directorate of State (DOS), IPOB said its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, had consistently maintained that the pursuit of freedom by one group should not be interpreted as hostility towards another.
“Onyendu’s message is clear, consistent, and universal: the pursuit of freedom for one people must never be interpreted as hatred for another,” the statement said.
The group said it rejected attempts to exploit ethnic identity, religious differences and regional divisions to create hostility among Nigerians with common aspirations for dignity, freedom and justice.
IPOB also rejected what it described as attempts to portray Kanu as hostile to northern ethnic nationalities, arguing that such claims were intended to divide oppressed communities and preserve the existing political structure.
According to the group, Kanu had consistently spoken in his Radio Biafra broadcasts about the need for the Hausa people to regain their political agency, cultural confidence and historical dignity.
“His message has never needed to be reduced to hostility between ethnic nationalities,” IPOB said, adding that the freedom of Biafrans and the emancipation of the Hausa nation were not mutually exclusive aspirations.
“The freedom of Biafrans and the emancipation of the Hausa nation are not mutually exclusive aspirations. No people should have to remain subordinate for another people to be free,” the statement added.
The group said northern youths had demonstrated independent political judgment by identifying what it described as the country’s oppressive political structure, rather than blaming the Igbo people for their challenges.
IPOB maintained that ordinary citizens across ethnic and regional lines shared concerns about poverty, injustice and political subjugation.
It further argued that the right to self-determination should extend to all indigenous ethnic nationalities, regardless of their population sizes.
Among the groups it listed were the Hausa, Kanuri, Tiv, Berom, Nupe, Igala, Jukun, Angas, Bachama, Idoma, Zuru, Ebira, Gbagyi, Tangale and Borgu communities.
“Population density does not dictate human dignity,” the statement said, adding that every ethnic nationality should have a voice in determining how it wished to be governed.
On the way forward, IPOB reiterated its support for a peaceful, internationally supervised referendum as a democratic means of allowing people to determine their political futures.
The group said such a process could also allow smaller ethnic nationalities to negotiate voluntary alliances, federations or regional governance arrangements that protect their interests.
It referenced the 2014 National Conference convened under former President Goodluck Jonathan, citing its proposals on restructuring and regional autonomy as principles that could inform discussions about alternative governance arrangements.
IPOB also invoked former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s criticism of imported governance models, arguing that African countries should develop political systems suited to their circumstances.
The group called on other ethnic nationalities across Nigeria to reconsider their positions on self-determination and what it described as the country’s existing political arrangement.
It said it remained committed to working alongside other communities pursuing what it described as genuine liberation, peace and mutual respect.
“Freedom is the most precious gift Almighty God gave to humanity, and no human being or artificial colonial arrangement should deny any people that right,” the statement said.
