We didn’t kill any MASSOB member, says Navy

Officers of the Central Naval Command (CNC) have denied killing any members of the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB).
There were conflicting reports that a clash occurred between MASSOB members and some naval officers in Onitsha, Anambra State, and that in the end some members of MASSOB were allegedly killed.
But the Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) the Central Naval Command, Rear Admiral Stanley Ogoigbe, on Saturday denied the alleged killing.
Ogoigbe, who refuted the allegation while speaking with newsmen at the command’s headquarters in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, said it had become imperative for him to personally clear the air on the rumoured killing, describing it as totally untrue.
Ogoigbe, who spoke on Saturday, said it became necessary for him to personally clear the air on the rumoured killing of the MASSOB members, which he described as untrue because his men “did not injure, let alone kill a soul.”
The FOC stated that on the said day of the clash, Naval personnel only shot into the air to scare a large number of MASSOB members, who were on a protest towards the Onitsha head bridge adding that before then the protesting youths had already overrun the policemen on duty.
“To our surprise, MASSOB started claiming that the Navy has killed two of their men. I don’t know what they wish to achieve with this propaganda, fabricating stories against the Navy.

Read also: MASSOB, Dokubo renew self-determination project?

“We just want all well meaning Nigerians to know that no MASSOB member was killed in that area of Anambra State where the Navy was keeping the peace and carrying out their legitimate duties.
“It was not only Navy that was there, the police and other security agencies were also there, and they all confirmed that nobody was killed. I don’t know where MASSOB manufactured their story.
“That is why I am taking the responsibility to clear the air to avoid an unwarranted tension”, the Naval boss said.
The CNC has its headquarters in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, but it also in charge of Anambra, Kogi, Edo, Delta and Bayelsa states.

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