From Jude Chinedu, Enugu
The Government of Enugu State has warned the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) against disrupting the ongoing West African Examination Council (WAEC) examination on May 30.
Commissioner for Information and Communication, Aka Eze Aka, gave the warning in a statement, yesterday.
Aka, who warned that the state would not tolerate the illegal activities of IPOB in the state, urged students to go about their exams and normal activities on May 30, assuring them of adequate security.
He said the state government noted with deep concern the statement credited to IPOB directing WAEC to postpone the General Mathematics examinations scheduled for May 30, the day IPOB designated as “Biafra Heroes Day.”
“We note with particular concern IPOB’s statement that the WAEC board should not endanger the lives of students because the day is not safe for any individual in Biafra territory.
“This is unacceptable to us, not just because of the well-known position of the Enugu State Government on illegal sit-at-home orders, which have dealt a great blow on the socio-economic life and fortunes of the South East region, but because of the far-reaching consequences of a whole generation of Enugu children failing to sit for a fundamental subject such as mathematics in one year,” Aka said.
The commissioner stressed that the Igbo excel on the wings of industry, education, and human capital development, saying that any pronouncement or action that tends to deny the children their rights to education, which is their ticket to the future, is offensive.
“Most of the architects of such an unjust and evil agenda live in the comfort of civilised societies, where they go to work and their children go to school every workday.
“The Enugu State Government recognises the sacrifices of our gallant forebears, who gave their all, including their lives, to defend Igboland.
“But, we also recognise that we may not just have life, but have the best of it, which can only come from developing our human capital to be able to excel in all that we do as individuals, and collectively, as a people.
“The government will not sit by and watch the future of our children aborted by such ill-conceived pronouncements intended to keep them at home.
“WAEC, as the name implies, is a regional body not just in Nigeria, but across West Africa. The subregion will certainly not wait for us.”
He said the state government, therefore, advised candidates sitting for the ongoing WAEC exams in Enugu State to feel free to go to their respective centres to sit for their papers on May 30, without any fear.