Nnamdi Kanu: Buhari’s grave silence has caused tension and animosity in the South-East

Many Nigerians, particularly in the South East, are beginning to show symptoms of uncertainty and simmering discontent over the government of President Muhammadu Buhari’s decision to withhold Nnamdi Kanu’s release, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, or IPOB.

His freedom is not in reach days after the IPOB leader was released by the Appeal Court’s decision.

The South-East is currently experiencing worry as a result of the court judgement, which was initially met with elation.

According to PulseNets, the case between the Federal Government and Kanu, which involved allegations of terrorism, took a dramatic turn last week when the Appeal Court cleared him of all the accusations.

According to Pulsenets, Kanu had applied to the Appeal Court in Abuja to have the Federal Government’s allegations against him dropped after being unhappy with Justice Binta Nyako’s decision to require him to answer seven of the 15 counts of terrorism against him.

All remaining accusations against Mr. Kanu were dismissed by the Court of Appeal panel, which was chaired by Jummai Sankey, on the grounds that the lower court “lacks the jurisdiction to entertain the complaint.”

The court determined that Mr. Kanu’s extradition from Kenya to Nigeria in June 2021 violated both the IPOB leader’s fundamental human rights and Nigeria’s extradition treaty in a flagrant manner.

As was expected, different Nigerians’ reactions to the ruling were divided.

According to PulseNets, the majority of Nigerians celebrated the Court of Appeal’s decision, especially in Kanu’s native South East, where there were reports of huge celebrations in all of the Zone’s cities.

However, the Federal Government did not appear to be pleased with the Appellate Court’s decision to free Kanu and has since made no secret of its displeasure.

Following the decision, the Attorney General of the Federation, AGF, Abubakar Malami, claimed that the IPOB commander had merely been released by the Court of Appeal, not cleared.

Umar Gwandu, Malami’s spokesperson, released a statement that summarised Malami’s response. It made no promises about the separatist leader’s release from custody as stipulated by the Appeal Court.

“The Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice has received the news of the decision of the Court of Appeal concerning the trial of Nnamdi Kanu. For the avoidance of doubt and by the verdict of the Court, Kanu was only discharged and not acquitted.

“Consequently, the appropriate legal options before the authorities will be exploited and communicated accordingly to the public,” he wrote.

Contrary to the Federal Government’s response, numerous well-known Igbo leaders and politicians have urged the Federal Government to release Kanu in accordance with the court’s ruling.

They contend that it will ease tension and bring about a return to normalcy in the Five South-Eastern States, which have suffered the most as a result of Kanu’s wrongful detention, notwithstanding the court’s ruling to the contrary.

A prominent voice behind this call was Chukwuemeka Ezeife, a former governor of Anambra State.

In a recent appearance on the Arise TV Morning Show, Ezeife declared that Kanu’s release would make him want to bow or prostrate before Buhari.

“If President Buhari wants me to kneel down, I will kneel down. If he wants me to prostrate, I’ll prostrate just for Nnamdi Kanu to be released. Going to the Supreme Court is a waste of time. Everyone in Nigeria is looking for a new Nigeria,” he said.

The release of the separatist leader has also been strongly demanded by the traditional leaders and head of religious groups in the South East region.

Days following the Appeal Court ruling, however, the Federal Government has maintained a low profile and been silent throughout, keeping the entire country in the dark and creating a sense of suspense.

The General-Secretary of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro, expressed concern over the Federal Government’s response to the court ruling in a statement to the PulseNets. He urged the Federal Government to consider engaging in dialogue and regretted that Kanu’s imprisonment had contributed to the insecurity currently felt in the South East.

The chief scribe of the most important Igbo sociocultural group spoke in a cordial manner.

“The position of the Igbo at this moment is that the Federal Government should assist the people of the South East and the Igbo speaking area of the South-South, including all the Southern Nigeria, to help end the tension that we are experiencing in the South East as regards to the incarceration of Nnamdi Kanu.

“The Federal Government should consider the option of dialogue and not appeal that judgment. We thank God that the Federal Government said it was going to weigh all the available options on the table, and we know that one of the available options is not to appeal and to seek a political solution as regards to the incarceration of Nnamdi kanu. With that, the Federal Government will not waste resources to ensure that peace returns to the South East.

“Whether they accept it or not, whether they believe it or not, the incarceration of Nnamdi Kanu contributed to the insecurity we are having in the South-east, and many criminals and criminal elements have taken the advantage of the genuine aspiration of some people who believe they are agitators, who feel that they are sympathetic to the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB’s incarceration.

“So his release will douse the tension and help the Igbo people to find out who are the real perpetrators of these insecurity challenges we are having, that was imported, because it was alien to us. We never expected this in this country, where the South East, which was the safest place in Nigeria, would turn out to be another version of Afghanistan.

“So we are telling the Federal Government, rather than mapping billions of naira in the budget to fight insecurity, they should opt for dialogue, a peaceful way to resolve it without spending billions of naira”, he concluded.