MASSOB members arrested, road show aborted

No fewer than 50 members of the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sov­ereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) were on Monday arrested for holding road show in Owerri, the Imo State capital to commemo­rate their anniversary.

Mr Okechukwu Nwogu, a stal­wart of MASSOB, who spoke to journalists in Owerri regret­ted the arrest of members of the group whom he said were on a peaceful march to commemorate the 49th anniversary of Biafra and 17th anniversary of MAS­SOB.

MASSOB, a pro-Biafra agita­tion group was formed in the year 1999 by Chief Ralph Uwa­zuruike, as a non-violent group to continue failed secession at­tempt championed by the late Dim Chukwuemeka Ojukwu in 1967.

MASSOB members had kicked off their road show at Waterside Primary School Owerri from where they moved to Rotibi Street into Oguamana Street be­fore linking Douglas road where heavily armed security men threw teargas at them at the Ama JK end.

Speaking, Okechukwu Nwogu lamented saying, “What Nigerian Government is doing to us is very unfair. MASSOB is a non-violent group moving without arms in remembrance of our history. If Nigeria’s security is well armed and ready for war, they should go to Sambisa forest and fight the Boko Haram insurgents who are out to fight and not Biafra.” He added that the group had achieved great results despite the challenges and sup­pression faced by the members from secu­rity forces in different parts of the country.