Oh, Nigeria! A land where the government claims to protect its citizens but seems more interested in protecting the invaders. In this theater of absurdity, the Eastern Security Network (ESN) emerges as the villai or so the Nigerian state would have you believe. But for the millions of Biafrans who can now sleep with both eyes closed, the ESN is nothing short of a lifesaving miracle.
Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of IPOB and the architect of this audacious initiative, once said: “If you wait for the Nigerian government to protect you, you will die waiting. We must secure ourselves or perish.” This statement, though harsh, mirrors the truth of a nation where security is more of a mirage than a reality.
The Nigerian government, masters of selective amnesia, have never been so irked. How dare anyone step in to protect their people when the state’s own security forces are busy doing… well, not much? The same government that lets herdsmen roam free with AK-47s now condemns the ESN for daring to resist this brazen lawlessness.
In a country where bandits hold press conferences and terrorists are rehabilitated as “repentant brothers,” the ESN’s crime is that they won’t bow to the status quo. While the Nigerian military spends more time harassing unarmed civilians than tackling insecurity, the ESN is combing forests, flushing out criminals, and returning peace to communities. How shameful for a group to actually do what the government should be doing!
The government’s disdain for the ESN becomes laughable when you consider the facts. When farmers cried out for help as their lands were invaded, the state responded with silence. When herdsmen unleashed terror on villages, the state offered condolences instead of solutions. But the moment the ESN rose to defend Biafraland, they became public enemy number one.
As Mazi Nnamdi Kanu aptly put it: “We are not the aggressors. We do not carry our cows to other people’s lands to destroy their crops. We are defenders, and for this, we are hunted.”
Nigeria’s leadership, it seems, is more comfortable with chaos than order. They fear the ESN not because it threatens peace but because it exposes the government’s ineptitude. A functioning security network that actually works? Heaven forbid! It shames a government that has turned insecurity into an industry.
Meanwhile, the media parrots the government’s narrative, labeling ESN members as “troublemakers” while conveniently ignoring the marauders who slaughter innocent people. But the people of Biafraland know the truth. They see the ESN for what it is: a shield against oppression and a protector of their dignity.
The more the government rails against the ESN, the clearer it becomes who is truly fighting for the people. In a land where justice is as rare as steady electricity, the ESN stands as a beacon of hope. For every villager who has returned to their farm, for every family who can now sleep without fear, the ESN is proof that security is not a privilege but a right.
As Biafrans celebrate the anniversary of the ESN, let us remember the words of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu: “We are not here to destroy; we are here to preserve. Biafraland will never again be overrun by invaders. This is our land, and we will defend it.”
To those who oppose the ESN, your outrage is noted and irrelevant. Because in Biafraland, the ESN is here to stay, whether the Nigerian government likes it or not.
Family Writers Press International
