IN an apparent planned re-enactment of the bloody show at the Eagle Square, Abuja, venue of the Golden Jubilee celebration of Nigeria on October 1 last year, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) has said it will plant and detonate explosives within the vicinity of the Eagle Square again, to coincide with the Independence celebration on Saturday.
In an online statement dispatched by the group’s spokesman, Jomo Gbomo, MEND, which noted that 51 years of nationhood is yet to offer anything worth celebrating to Nigerians, however said this would be its only and last warning about its plan to hit on Saturday.
The three-paragraph statement that was delivered to the Nigerian Tribune at about 9.15 p.m on Wednesday, did not state any categorical reason or demand for the latest threat.
“On October 1, 2011, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) intends to place bombs within and in the immediate vicinity of Eagle Square, venue of the proposed 2011 Independence anniversary celebrations.
After 51 years of independence, Nigerians still have nothing to celebrate.
“The general public is strongly advised to consider this as a first and final warning. No additional warnings will be issued subsequent to deployment or detonation of these devices which will be novel in nature,” the statement said.
It will be recalled that last year's Independence celebration attack claimed several lives, with the following investigations into it pointing at the South Africa-based Niger Delta militant leader, Henry Okah and his cohorts as masterminds.
Okah and some other persons found culpable are still standing trial in South Africa and Nigeria respectively, in connection to the attack.
