The Headquarters of Operation UDO KA has declared as illegal and provocative a directive issued by the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) asking churches in the South-East and parts of the South-South to hold memorial services in honour of Civil War victims, warning that any activity outside nationally approved commemorations will not be tolerated.
In a press release on Friday signed by Lieutenant Colonel Olabisi Olalekan Ayeni, Acting Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, 82 Division, Nigerian Army, Headquarters Operation UDO KA said it had taken note of the directive and urged the public to disregard it in its entirety.
The statement stressed that while the Nigerian Army and Operation UDO KA empathise with families who lost loved ones during the Civil War and acknowledge their sacrifices for national unity, there are already established national occasions for remembrance, including Armed Forces Remembrance Day, Nigerian Army Day Celebration, and Independence Day.
According to the Army, these official commemorations remain the lawful and appropriate platforms for reflection, unity, and honour of fallen heroes, adding that “true honour lies in unity, peace, and lawful remembrance, not in illegal directives by irredentist groups aimed at sowing division and panic.”
Operation UDO KA further alleged that sympathisers of MASSOB and the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) were behind attempts to issue what it described as an unlawful order capable of creating tension in the region.
It warned that clerics, youths, and other citizens should stay away from such plans, insisting that any gathering outside lawful national commemorations is unacceptable and would not be tolerated.
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The statement assured residents of the South-East that churches and worship centres remain free to conduct their normal activities without fear of intimidation, while cautioning that anyone or group attempting to disrupt public peace or religious activities would face the full weight of the law.
The Nigerian Army reaffirmed that, in collaboration with other security agencies, it remains committed to safeguarding lives and property and sustaining peace across the South-East region.
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