ONITSHA – Security agents comprising soldiers, policemen and DSS operatives in the early hours of Sunday reportedly invaded the house of a lawyer to the Indigenous People of Biafra, Ifeanyi Ejiofor, in Oraifite in the Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra State.
According to human rights group, Intersociety in a statement it released Sunday morning, the lawyer’s house was invaded around 2.30am.
The source said,” Barr Ejiofor’s house been invaded by soldiers now and they went to eliminate him, the world must hear the evil Nigeria and her security agencies are committing.”
The IPOB Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, confirmed the incident.
Powerful said, “This is 2.30am, the time they surrounded his country home. Is it an offence for someone to defend IPOB. Barr. Ejiofor is doing his job as a lawyer. Where in the world would a legal paractioner be harassed because he represents an organisation.
“The Nigerian Army invaded and burnt his house on 2nd December 20 19 and killed more than 10 people. Since then, they are still trailing and harassing him. The whole world must hear this because Nigeria government must get what they are looking for from IPOB”.
Intersociety’s full statement reads:
The International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law has received distress calls from lawyers working in the Law Firm of Barr Ifeanyi Ejiofor (I.C. Ejiofor and Co), Abuja, informing us that the combined team of armed soldiers, SSS and Police have surrounded the Oraifite nuclear and extended Family Houses of Barr ‘Onowu’ Ifeanyi Ejiofor and his siblings; and condoned off the entire exits and entries and placed the whole area under siege. The latest armed violence from the Government of Nigeria started some minutes before 3am early morning of today being Sunday, 6th June 2021 and Intersociety was alerted around some minutes before 4am, leading to issuance of this urgent statement.
We also managed to reach Barr Ifeanyi Ejiofor on phone and he confirmed the attack, saying that “soldiers, joined by Police and SSS operatives are shooting in different directions and are about breaking into his main compound”. He also said that “he heard the distress voices of his village neighbors panicking and crying, indicating that they must have been abducted and they are likely to include early morning neighborhood sales attendants and those returning from church vigils, etc”. The activist Lawyer also suspected that some members of his family including siblings, security and domestic aides might have been abducted and that he had returned home for weekend yesterday evening and only informed the Oraifite Area Commander (ACP Afolabi) and few others that he was around.
It must be recalled that Barr Ifeanyi Ejiofor, his siblings and their family houses in Oraifite, Ekwusigo, Anambra State were ferociously attacked on 2nd Dec 2019. His heavily pregnant wife narrowly escaped having miscarriage and later delivered miraculously. The attacks had taken place on the said 2nd Dec 2019 immediately after the family’s outing church service held for his late brother, a priest of the Anglican Church. Barr Ejiofor also narrowly escaped being killed by soldiers and police. In the end, five persons including his domestic aides were shot and killed and scores of others injured. The irate youths of the Community protested angrily near the Community’s Market Square leading to loss of two principal police officers. The Nigerian Government swiftly deployed troops and burnt down 22 properties including a dozen family houses and ten sales stores. Following the ferocious attacks, Barr Ifeanyi Ejiofor, went underground for months and shut down his law offices in Abuja, Nnewi, etc.
We therefore call on Nigerian Government and the country’s Muslim dominated and controlled security forces to stop this madness and crudity. By these crudities, the Nigerian Government is setting the country on fire the more and this is what Intersociety, as an expert rights group, has kept telling the Nigerian Government since 2016. The crude method by Government of Nigeria including invasion of citizens’ homes at ungodly hours especially the dwelling homes of respected and legally recognisable persons and brazen violation of their rights to privacy and family is universally unheard of, despicable and condemnable. Barr Ifeanyi Ejiofor as a respected member of the Nigerian Bar Association and licensed legal practitioner is above board and beyond being treated as a duly investigated and indicted common criminal on the run.
Also under Nigeria’s extant laws, applicable globally, Barr Ifeanyi Ejiofor and other licensed legal practitioners have right and duty to represent and defend any citizen or citizens or national or nationals irrespective of gravity of crime(s) alleged to have been committed. The security forces of Nigeria are hereby called upon to withdraw and discontinue their siege and follow due process. If Barr Ifeanyi Ejiofor is legitimately wanted for any crime, due processes must be followed to the letter. This is more so when he called and informed the chief police officer in the area (ACP Afolabi) of his being around for a weekend rest. Therefore, if anything untoward happened to the Lawyer and his family or properties including his family hose and law offices, the world is being put on notice to hold the Nigerian Government responsible.
Signed
Emeka Umeagbalasi, M.Sc., Board Chair
