After the Minister of Information Lai Muhammed revealed on Wednesday that President Muhammadu Buhari has begun the proscription of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) secessionist group, Google search engine saw a spike in searches for the meaning of ‘proscription.’

Quite understandably, the word ‘proscription’ is more or less a legal jargon and may be difficult for a layman to understand. We try to break it down a little bit more.

The most basic definition of proscription is the act of forbidding or banning something by law.

In the case of Nigeria vs IPOB, the government could not legally declare the separatist group ‘a terrorist organisation’ without a formal proscription by a court of law.

That is why the army on Tuesday had to go back on its statement, saying it only “pronounced” and did not “declare” IPOB a terrorist group.

But things have changed, with the recent developments in the legalities of proscribing the group, hence, the now-legal declaration of IPOB as a terrorist group.

Here’s how the proscription process went down:

• President Buhari signed a presidential proclamation, which officially proscribed the pro-Biafra group, on Sunday before jetting off to New York for the 72nd United Nations General Assembly. This was in accordance with the provisions of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act, 2011.

• The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, on Wednesday, filed and moved the order to proscribe the group, according to a report by ThisDay.

• The acting Chief Judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja, Justice Abdul Adamu Kafarati, granted the order to proscribe the group.

• To give you a better perspective, here’s what the Judge said: “It is hereby ordered as follows: That the application is granted as prayed.“That an order declaring that the activities of the respondent (IPOB) in any part of Nigeria, especially in the South-east and South-south regions of Nigeria, amount to acts of terrorism and illegality, is granted.”

And that’s how the proscription by the president led to the declaration of IPOB as a terrorist group.

Samuel Okike