Before the pro-Biafra protests go awry

For some time now, several cities in the South East and South South geo-political zones of the country has been rocked by pro-Biafra protests, eliciting varied reactions from stakeholders in the Nigerian project. Except for one or two incidents, the protests carried out by the members of the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) and the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) have been largely peaceful. The protests were sparked off by the continued detention of the Director of Radio Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, by the Department of State Services (DSS) despite a court order that he be freed.
He is accused of operating an illegal radio station, Radio Biafra, and using same to subvert the Nigerian state. The Radio Biafra director’s continued detention appears to have been what emboldened the MASSOB and IPOB loyalists as they in addition to demanding his release added a separate Biafra republic as another demand. Both demands have now brought the protesters on collision course with the Federal Government with President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday warning the agitators to have a rethink, saying the Federal Government would not fold its hands and allow anyone plunge the country into crisis. Also, the Nigerian Army recently warned in strong terms its resolve to resort to use of minimum force if called upon to do so.
Clearly, the Federal Government and the Military are duty bound to ensure maintenance of public order in any part of the country, including defending Nigeria’s territorial integrity. However, in doing this, there is need for caution in the use of force to confront the protesters who till date are not armed. The protesters on their side should learn to express their grievance or disaffection using peaceful and democratic means since the government is not averse to such.