IPOB ‘hoists’ flag in Benue community

The Indigenous People Of Biafra (IPOB) has allegedly hoisted a flag in Ekile community of Ado Local Government Area in Benue State.

Daily Trust gathered on Monday that the people of Ekile, a rural community bordering Ebonyi State had woken up on Friday to find the IPOB flag standing in their locality.

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Confirming the development, the council chairman of Ado LGA, James Oche, admitted the strange presence of a flag in his domain, saying however that no one was caught hosting the flag and they don’t actually know those responsible for it or their mission.

Oche said that investigation to unravel the identity of those behind the flag has begun.

The council chairman who spoke through his Supervisory Councillor on Social Development, Education and Information, Attah Ede, maintained that they will not cede any part of Ado land to IPOB as he noted that the area only shares boundary with Ebonyi which isn’t a crime in anyway.

In a similar vein, a former chairman of Ado LGA, Otse Otokpa, told newsmen in Makurdi by telephone that it was the third time, the Biafra agitators would be hosting a flag in Ado land, stressing that it happened in 2014 and 2015 respectively.

Otokpa noted that apart from hosting the flags then, they also wrote an inscription on a log of wood and footpaths indicating that the area was Biafra territory.

The ex-chairman said there was a time they also built a house in the place but he was later informed that the Department of State Service (DSS) went to dismantle the structure.

He however informed at the time of this report, that the Ado chairman, Oche had gone with soldiers to assess the area.

Contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) for Benue Command, DSP Catherine Anene, said she was not yet briefed on the matter.