Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the foremost Igbo sociocultural group, has urged Northern authorities and former militant leader Asari Dokubo to pardon pro-Biafra agitator Nnamdi Kanu and campaign for his release.
In response to Kanu’s declaration that he will never beg the Federal Government and President Bola Tinubu for his freedom, Ohanaeze made the request.
Kanu said that if he begged for his release, it would be an insult to the affectionate memories of Pa Mbazulike Amaechi, who passed away in 2022 at the age of 91.
Recall that when the Appeal Court ordered the release of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) leader, a delegation of Igbo elders asked for his release.
Ohanaeze, however, thinks that Northerners and Dokubo are still working to put pressure on the Federal Government to reject the request for Kanu’s release.
Okechukwu Isiguzoro, the factional secretary-general of Ohanaeze, said in a statement that Kanu’s announcement was appropriate and that people should cease pleading for his release.
Isiguzoro argued that the Appeal Court’s decision regarding Kanu’s release is still binding and that the Supreme Court should schedule a hearing for the government’s appeal against Kanu’s release.
The group urged the Federal Government to uphold the law and free Kanu immediately because of the length of time that he has been held without complying with court rulings.
The statement reads:
“Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the apex Igbo socio-cultural organization, is believed to have played a significant role in the earlier release of Nnamdi Kanu in 2017, the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
“The organization is said to have sent a delegation to the North and prominent Nigerians to pacify them and seek their support for Kanu’s release.
“This time around, Ohanaeze Ndigbo is likely to adopt a similar strategy, focusing on underground networking with critical stakeholders and appealing to those who were aggrieved by Kanu’s broadcasts in the past.
“The organization may also seek the assistance of Igbo billionaire business moguls and the leadership of the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra, MASSOB, who played a significant role in the previous release of Kanu in 2017.
“However, the current situation is more challenging due to the lack of diplomatic underground work and the need to pacify some friends of the government, especially some Northern leadership and groups and Asari Dokubo, a former Niger Delta militant.
“The violent sit-at-home protests have also not brought any desired outcome, leading Igbos to change tactics in their efforts to secure Kanu’s release.”