Negotiations to gain the release of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), are reportedly ongoing, according to Benjamin Kalu, the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives.
When Kanu was first taken into custody on October 14, 2015, he was charged with eleven felonies, including treason, managing an illegal society, and illegal firearm ownership. In 2017, he entered a not guilty plea and was given bail. But Kanu left Nigeria after his family’s home was invaded by the military.
After that, the Federal Government requested that his bail be revoked, and in 2019 Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja granted their request. Additionally, the court ordered Kanu’s arrest, which resulted in his apprehension and forced deportation to Nigeria by a combined team of security agents and international police.
‘No Peace in South-East Without The Release of Nnamdi Kanu’ – Amobi Ogah
Kanu was re-arrested on a revised 15-count accusation upon his return, most of which bordered on treasonable criminality. Lead by constitutional attorney Mike Ozekhome, Kanu’s legal team contended that the illegality of the procedure used to bring him into the country rendered the accusation defective and deprived the court of jurisdiction.
After then, the court decided to drop eight of the fifteen counts and mandated that Kanu face trial for the remaining allegations. Kanu, dissatisfied, went to the appeal court to contest the ruling, which prompted the federal government to request remedy from the Supreme Court. On December 15, the Supreme Court ordered Kanu’s retrial and overturned the appeal court’s decision.
Speaking on FLO FM’s “South East Political Roundtable,” a current affairs programme in Umuahia, Kalu affirmed that negotiations to release Kanu were still taking on. He counselled young people in the South East to abandon the IPOB’s sit-at-home campaign since it was deterring investors from investing in the area.
Aloy Ejimakor Reaveals Who Is Behind Nnamdi Kanu’s Detention
Kalu said, “We can’t put all our programmes and plans on social media. He’s my brother. Is he in the mix of what we are trying to do? Yes! It’s one of our agendas to ensure he’s released. Who wants their brother to be in jail? We are working underground. There’s a detailed strategy. It’s not by violence, you can’t coerce the government through violence. It has never worked and won’t work. Let’s be wiser. The wisdom is in peace. Let’s quench the violence. If it’s chaotic, it won’t work. Let’s cool down. Let the man see that you’ve recognised he didn’t contribute to locking him up and that he has not done anything to the South East. We should support him and his government and not attack him. I’m standing firmly against the voice of violence, preaching peace. That is what I’m here for, this voice of peace will echo through the Villa and he will come out. Mr President was happy with what happened in Bende and that the whole country could gather together and support this project.”
Speaking about the recently launched Peace In South East Project in Bende Local Government Area of Abia State, Kalu also urged those in possession of weapons to give them up and support the initiative’s non-kinetic approach to putting an end to security issues and other popular agitations.
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