Amnesty For Kanu: IPOB Says Buhari Is Playing With Fire

By James Orji

President Muhammadu Buhari will set the country on fire over his decision not to release the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB Nnamdi Kanu, the group has said.

The warning came barely 72 hours after the apex Igbo socio-cultural group, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, yesterday, accused the Arewa Consultative Forum, ACF and Northern Elders Forum, NEF are behind President Muhammadu Buhari’s refusal to release detained secessionist leader

Kanu is standing trial for treason and many other charges following his arrest in Kenya last July. All efforts by South east leaders to secure his freedom from detention has proved abortive.

Last week in an interview with a national television, President Buhari nailed Kanu’s fate after when he revealed there was no plan to grant him amnesty, adding that he will not intervene with ongoing trial of the IPOB leader, who is billed to appear in court later this month.

Obviously, the president’s decision did not go down well with separatist group who claimed that the president’s decision was based on pressure by some vested interests in the country who did not want Kanu release from detention.

IPOB spoke on Sunday in a statement by its spokesman, Emma Powerful, noting that President Buhari had reneged on his earlier promise to consider amnesty for Kanu.

The statement reads in part: “our attention has been drawn to the statement by President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria that he will not release our Leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

“We know that this position by Buhari after he had earlier promised a delegation of Igbo leaders that he would consider their appeal to consider a political solution for Kanu, was not unconnected with the visit by some foreign-based traitors and enemies of our struggle.

“Our intelligence captured what transpired in a meeting between these saboteurs and their host in Aso Rock. In the evil meeting, the saboteurs and traitors concluded with the presidency that Mazi Nnamdi Kanu should not be released, claiming erroneously thought, that IPOB and ESN have been defeated which is lies.

“But we want to tell Buhari and his cohorts that he is going to make a mistake capable of consuming Nigeria should he fail to release Nnamdi Kanu because these bunch of criminals he had a meeting with were not giving him correct information about IPOB and ESN outfit.”

The group further noted that their leader has remained in detention while bandits and terrorists are being released by the Buhari’s government.

IPOB said: “why should the federal government be releasing bandits and terrorists wreaking havoc across the country but fail to release freedom seekers.

“Federal government should not be deceived by blacklegs and sacked members of the movement who are feeding it with fake information about IPOB and ESN outfit for pecuniary interests.

“IPOB is too big for them to comprehend and they could not fantom IPOB and its operational strategy when they were in IPOB, we don’t want to mention their names.

“The people who visited him promised to help him crush IPOB and ESN but unfortunately they cannot achieve that, actually they will be disappointed.”

Ohanaeze had said in a statement last week that the ACF and NEF were intent to disorganized the country on by advising President Buhari not grant Kanu amnesty.