On Wednesday, the Indigenous People of Biafra claimed that if its arrested leader, Nnamdi Kanu, “falls into the hands of Nigeria, then Nigeria and her leaders will fall into the hands of Biafra.”
The pro-Biafran group, through its spokesman, Emma Powerful, expressed disappointment in the United Nations, European Union, African Union, and ECOWAS for remaining silent while its leader was held by the Federal Government for nearly two years.
The organization accused the Supreme Court of bias in handling Kanu’s case, alleging that the apex court was colluding with the Federal Government, which “wants our leader to die in detention,” given his ailing condition.
“It is also possible that the DSS has given him (Kanu) a slow-acting poison, which is why his health keeps deteriorating to eventually kill him.”
“In all these human rights and court abuses, there seems to be a conspiratory silence among international organizations and her affiliate human rights organizations.”
“As the health of our leader continues to deteriorate and the Federal Government refuses to obey lawful orders and the world maintains this criminal silence, IPOB will do all within our power to ensure that our leader does not die in detention. Freedom for Kanu is the freedom of the entire black race. Kanu is not a criminal. He is not a terrorist, nor has he been associated with Nigeria treasury looting, which Nigerian politicians are known for.”
“In what we consider a conspiracy to kill our leader, the Nigeria Supreme Court, the constitutional court refused to entertain an appeal from Kanu’s lawyers over his deteriorating health. Instead, the apex court gave a wicked long adjournment of four months in the case of an innocent man that appeal court Justices have discharged and acquitted.”
“We are telling the international community and African Union in particular not to blame IPOB for whatever becomes the aftermath of Nigeria’s continuous disobedience to both local and international laws in the case of Nnamdi Kanu now.”
“We want the world to understand that IPOB is peaceful but understands our right of self-defense. The gentleness of a tiger should not be taken as cowardice. Those who make peaceful revolution impossible make violent revolution inevitable. Our prayers are that the Nigerian government will do what is needed on time because if our leader falls in the hands of Nigeria, then Nigeria and her leaders will fall in the hands of Biafra,” IPOB said.
When one of our correspondents asked the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, for comments, he declined to speak on the issue.
