.Biafra saga: Atani national coordinator murdered
Atani branch national coordinator of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in Arochukwu Local Government Area of Abia State, Mr. John Chidi Ivekwe, has been murdered.
An eyewitness account disclosed that the 52years old Atani leader of the much agitated Biafra in the South-Eastern region of Nigeria, was found dead on August 14, 2016, in a nearby village called Obikinta, few hours after he was allegedly adopted by a combine force of the Nigerian police at his residence in Atani.
The witness who pleaded anonymity, recalled that Mr. Ivekwe had went into hiding after the police had declared him and his son, John Ihueze Ivekwe, wanted barely eight weeks after the peacefully planned IPOB Remembrance Day that went soured on 30th of May, 2016.
His words, “Mr. Ivekwe was a truck driver whom we have great respect for being a humble leader. But became wanted by the police for being the IPOB leader in Arochukwu Local Government in Abia State while his son, Ihueze, was named as his accomplice.
“May 30, 2016, we the IPOB members converged at National High School in Aba, to commemorate our IPOB remembrance day peacefully in a procession with candle lights and lifting of our Biafra flags, but to our greatest surprise, the military together with the police stormed the venue and immediately opened gunshots in a bid to disassemble us.
“The remembrance day was a special day for the IPOB to commemorate the more than million people who died in the war and famine in the late 1960’s.
“However, the attack led to the killing of many members, some escaped with bullet wounds and injuries and many were arrested.
“As we speak now, we don’t know the whereabout of his 13years old son who is a teenage footballer at Port-harcourt City Academy, John Ihueze Ivekwe. If he is dead too or alive, we do not know. However, we call on the international organizations to come and assist us in getting justice on the gruesome murder of Mr. John Chidi Ivekwe among others by men of the security agencies in Nigeria,” the witness added.
