Elder Ekefre tells Biafran agitators to leave Akwa Ibom alone as they treated Phillip Effiong with disdain

ALL Progressives Congress (APC) leader in Akwa Ibom State Elder Enefiok Ekefre  has urged those campaigning for the south-south to be included in Biafra to desist from doing so as the defunct republic's former number General Philip Effiong was treated with disdain.

General Effiong, who was from modern day Akwa Ibom State, was Odumegwu Ojukwu's deputy when Biafra existed between July 1967 and January 1970 and it was he who offered the formal surrender to the federal forces. A mild-mannered professional soldier who joined the Nigerian Army as a private, General Effiong is widely respected for having the courage to end the war after Ojukwu fled to Ivory Coast.

Over the last two years, there have been calls for the resuscitation of the defunct republic led by the Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipob), whose leader Nnamdi Kanu is garnering support across southeast Nigeria. Like all the other secessionist groups, Ipob has included Akwa Ibom State and other parts of the southeast in their maps of Biafra, which Elder Ekefre said was totally unacceptable.

He chided Ndigbo for abandoning General Effiong, the vice president of Biafra who died in 2003 without a federal government amnesty that was accorded to Ojukwu. In addition, Elder Ekefre regretted that Ndigbo are expecting support for Biafra again, forgetting that they all looked the other way and allowed General Effiong who made the historic declaration that ended the civil war to live and die a Biafran rebel while Ojukwu died a Nigerian Army general.

Elder Ekefre said: “General Philip Effiong, an Ibiono Ibom man, was the vice president to Ojukwu, Mr MU Akpan, the secretary to the Government of Biafra was also from Ibiono. General Effiong signed the instrument  of  surrender but when the Igbo were talking of payment of gratuity and pension, they only presented General Ojukwu and refused to mention General Effiong.

“He lived and died a Biafran military officer but Ojukwu’s rank was restored with salaries and gratuity paid from 1966. Today, the Igbo are complaining of marginalisation and oppression, forgetting that justice and injustice should not be selective.”

Regretting this Elder Ekefre appealed to the federal government to make adequate compensation for the family of the late General Effiong, noting that in the spirit of true reconciliation and justice, what was done to Ojukwu should be done to him too. On the current agitation by Ipob, Elder Ekefre said it was ill-timed, stressing that Ndigbo had President Goodluck Jonathan from the south-south, the senate president from the southeast, the secretary to the government of the federation, the finance minister and General Azubike Ihejirika as chief of army staff.

He asked thy they could not demand their republic then. In addition, Elder Ekefre  lamented that the south-south, southeast and southwest are not united which is why they all went to the National Conference with different agendas.