30TH MAY, WE MOURN BUT WE CELEBRATE

We mourn the loss of our fathers, brothers, sisters, aunts and uncles who gave their lives so we can live and have a voice among the living but we celebrate their courage to do so.

The enemies came to Odi in Bayelsa state, 1999, killed us, bombed us, raped our sisters and mothers. They didn't spare the young neither did they spare the old. From my community Odoni (which is about 15mins boat drive from Odi), we heard the sound of guns and bombs as they rain on Odi just like it was during the Nigeria/Biafra war.

Just like it was during that devil darkness war where Biafrans floated on our waters, so bodies floated on the waters as Odi indigenes suffered massacre you can call genocide.

As at 2000 when I visited my village and passed through Odi, I saw how every house was burnt down to ashes. The evil government didn't intend for any life to continue to exist in that space. No house was left; all was burnt except government institutions. That was the first time I felt the wickedness of the zoo called Nigeria.

When people talk about Asaba massacre in the 1960s' I could only relate to it with my experience of Odi. Odi was just one community but Nigeria government used all the power house of her military to pound on a single town not minding the innocent citizens which included children and women. They crushed everything that came their way.

Some boys stood to defend the weak but lost their lives in the process, we will not forget. We mourn their deaths and losses but we celebrate their bravery and courage. On 30th May, we shall mourn those who died before the war, during the War and after the war.

We shall mourn those who died protecting our leader when the vampires came to steal him from us for if they hadn't been brave we wouldn't have had our leader today. We can't thank them enough. We mourn but we celebrate their courage.

What about those killed in their farms by the Fulani militia otherwise called herdsmen? We mourn the losses. It is painful but we can't bring them back to life. We mourn all those who have lost their lives during series of protests for Biafra's freedom and the zoo called Nigeria army and police, opens fire on the peaceful agitators and many fell. We mourn the losses but we celebrate their bravery.

We mourn those killed by stray bullets during the zoo bloody Selections they called Elections. We mourn the Prince of Iriebe community, Ndoki, Rivers state and his people killed by Fulani bandits backed by the zoo police.

Biafra will never forget. As long as men live we will never forget your sacrifices and labour of love. The only justice we owe you is the restoration of Biafra where no one will die unnecessary deaths anymore but everyone will live with dignity and patriotism. A country where human will be paramount not oil.

Rest on brothers and sisters cause very soon Biafra shall stand a sovereign nation and your sacrifice will be complete. We shall not give up until that is achieved.

Written by:

Tari Nemi

For: Lagos State Media

Edited by:

Ngozichukwu Ada-Dav

For: Lagos State Media

Published by:

Chibuike John Nebeokike

For: Lagos State Media