Lawyers representing the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, have called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to have a private meeting with the incarcerated IPOB leader to resolve the issue of his agitation.
They called on Tinubu to show statesmanship in handling the IPOB leader’s matter in the national interest.
In a statement signed by Barrister Nnaemeka Ejiofor for Mazi Kanu‘s legal team and made available to journalists yesterday in Abuja, they noted President Tinubu’s past reputation during the NADECO days as a freedom fighter in the June 12 struggle during the military regime of General Sani Abacha for which he later went into exile during the period and said Kanu’s cause is no different.
“Even during the civilian administrations of President Olusegun Obasanjo and President Goodluck Jonathan, Tinubu stood out for championing causes that brought him in direct conflict with the federal might, both on the issue of local government administration and the vexed issue of petrol subsidy removal.
“The same democratic tendencies are also possessed by Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, who has been in detention at the Department of State Services (DSS) Headquarters in Abuja since June 2021 when he was captured in Kenya through extralegal means,”he wrote.
The statement recalled that while in detention, high profile leaders of the South-East have visited him in detention and were amazed at his stunning intellectual mind and his zeal to ensure that Nigeria functions well.
He went on, “Nnamdi Kanu might be perceived to be the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) but inwardly he is a detribalised Nigeria who has helped to pay the fines of prisoners of various tribes, especially northerners when he was detained at Kuje Correctional Centre, Abuja. This amiable humanity in him is what many people are not unaccustomed to because of the persona built up around him, some of which are wide off the mark.
„Anybody who has had a one-on-one encounter with him will see that he has a great passion for a turnaround of Nigeria‘s fortune as well as to against fight corruption and other forms of social ills in the country so that Nigerians can have a better future.
„Consequently, it is imperative that President Tinubu holds private meeting with Kanu so that he can hear from the man his theories of how Nigeria can forge ahead.“
The statement noted that before his death, Ohanaeze Ndigbo leader, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyawu had met with Kanu in the DSS detention facility and emerged from the meeting in amazement of Kanu‘s keen intellect and clear-headedness, which led the elder statesman to vow to meet President Tinubu to appeal for his release.
And even before Tinubu‘s regime, some South-East elder statesmen led by the late Chief Amaechi Mbazuluike (a first Republic minister) had visited then President Muhammadu Buhari to appeal for the release of Kanu.
Buhari out of respect for Mbazuluike promised to consider the request but, unfortunately, both ex-president Buhari and President Tinubu failed to act until the Igbo leaders died without their requests being granted.
The lawyers‘ noted that the call for Kanu‘s release had gained more traction as Tinubu‘s government has chosen a peaceful path with other agitators like Omoyele Sowore, Sunday Igboho and Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, Bello Bodejo , who were similarly charged with offences against the state.
„The conciliatory attitude of the government to Boko Haram terrorists who killed, kidnapped and raped Nigerians during Kanu‘s incarceration, coupled with the fact that several courts had ordered his release, all make a compelling case for a reconsideration of Kanu‘s case.
„Additionally, Kanu‘s release, as most knowledgeable people have argued, will help to end the carnage of ESN in the South East and improve the peace and security in the region.
„We encourage the Tinubu administration to show statesmanship in the handling of the Mazi Nnamdi Kanu phenomenon.
„If Chief Chukwemeka Odimegwu Ojukwu who led the Biafrans during the Civil War and Chief Raphael Uwazurike did the same under the MASSOB and today Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is doing the same under the name, IPOB, then as a democrat, President Ahmed Tinubu needs to dig deep into the root cause of the IPOB agitation and find a solution. Silencing IPOB now is sweeping the dirt under the carpet. Find the root cause Mr President and solve it in collaboration with Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.“
