Ministers dismiss Asari's new customary Biafran government as a theatre of the absurd

NIGERIAN government officials have dismissed the recent move by Ijaw activist Alhaji Asari Dokubo in which he declared that he had formed a Biafra Customary Government as the actions of a joker who is just seeking attention.

Over the weekend, Alhaji Dokubo, the leader of the Niger Delta Peoples Salvation Force, announced himself as the leader of the new Biafra Customary Government. He also named some of the members of his cabinet, including one Uche Mefor, who claimed will be its head of information and communications.

However, dismissing the move as nothing more than the theatre of the absurd, Nigeria's information minister Alhaji Lai Mohammed said President Muhammadu Buhari's regime will not be distracted by the absurdity. Alhaji Dokubo had cited injustice and marginalisation of Nigeria's Igbo people as the reason behind his move.

Alhaji Mohammed dismissed it saying: “I am sure you have heard of the theatre of the absurd, that is the best way I can describe it. If Asari Dokubo wants to form and run a fathom government, I think he is free to do so.

“This administration will not be distracted because we still have a lot to do. We are not ready to give any attention or time to a joker like Dokubo who is just looking for attention.

“We will just take it as one of these entertainment things. The beauty about Nigeria is that it is never a dull country, you must have one thing or the other to entertain you."

In this new customary government, one George Onyibe will serve as the secretary to the new regime, while Emeka Esiri would be in charge of legal matters. Alhaji Dokubo vowed that the de facto government would take care of the current insecurity challenges faced by the Igbo as well as focusing on science and technology to make life easier for the people.

However, he added that in the attempt to achieve the set goals, his government shall never go into war with anybody. Asari Dokubo listed the proposed government’s paramount agenda as comprising security by securing the lives and properties of the people.

Alhaji Dokubo said: "We are going to invest everything we have in science and technology to increase the scientific and technological discoveries, fabrications and making life easier for our people through science and technology. We are going to pursue rigorously the education of our people and we are going to make sure that we feed ourselves.

"You are all aware of the recent plot where they decided to stop food from the north but they failed woefully and they will continue to fail. The government of Biafra States will look to make sure that we only eat what we can produce.

“Nobody can stop us, nobody can blockade us as they did in the first war. We’re not going to fight any war with anybody, we’re walking to freedom and we will not shoot any gun with them.

"They will prepare their weapon but they will have nobody to kill with their weapon. We as a people have resolved that as Biafra, it’s time for us to take our destiny in our hands and bring freedom to ourselves and our children and the generation of Biafrans yet unborn."