The family of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has expressed their deep disappointment over President Ahmed Bola Tinubu failure to honor an alleged agreement between his son, Seyi, and the family prior to the 2023 general election.
Kanu’s younger brother, Prince Emmanuel Kanu, issued a statement claiming that Seyi, with the approval of his father, personally met with him in Abuja shortly before the election. During this meeting, both parties allegedly reached an agreement concerning Kanu’s release.
According to Prince Emmanuel, the agreement was that IPOB would not boycott the elections on the condition that Tinubu, if elected President, would facilitate Kanu’s release. He expressed frustration that nearly two years after Tinubu’s election, his brother continues to languish in detention, despite the fact that the presiding judge, Justice Binta Nyako, had recused herself from the case.
Prince Emmanuel said it was particularly disappointing that those who claim to be honorable failed to keep their promises.
The statement reads: “Before the last election, I received a message from an ex-governor that Seyi, the son of President Tinubu, wanted to see me. I agreed to meet with him on the condition that the overriding priority and hence the fulcrum of our discussion will be the release of my brother. The meeting was held in Abuja in the presence of another individual whom I asked along to witness the deliberations and if need be provide independent verification should the need arise.”
“Seyi confirmed to me that his father sanctioned the meeting and that I should consider any agreement we reach as binding on the then candidate Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”
“In good faith, we agreed that I shall relay the outcome to my brother to reinforce the long-held tradition of IPOB not interfering with the conduct of elections, either through boycott or any other form of civil disobedience. This understanding was duly communicated to my brother and he reaffirmed his commitment not to stop the elections or order any boycott.”
“When President Tinubu as a candidate visited Owerri during his campaign, he too reiterated his commitment to facilitate the release of my brother if elected. We took his public statement as a tacit reaffirmation of the understanding I reached with his son Seyi.”
“At the end, IPOB did not call for an election boycott despite having the capacity to do so. IPOB also made sure that discordant voices urging an election boycott were overcome because election boycotts would not reflect well on the reputation of a global movement that prides itself on adherence to democratic tenets.”
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“It therefore defies logic that nearly two years after President Tinubu assumed the mantle of leadership in Nigeria, my brother is still in detention despite not having any charge against him. It’s been over three months now that Justice Binta Nyako recused herself from the case yet no new judge has been assigned the case.”
“This is on top of the fact that the Appeal Court had earlier discharged him of the sham charges and ordered his release, which the previous regime of Buhari declined to obey.”
“The Supreme Court determination that his bail ought not to have been revoked has been ignored by the courts and the government. The latest insult is that Abuja courts of all persuasions are no longer willing to determine the case of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu on merit but are rather relying on ludicrous and inapplicable technicalities to stall the timely determination of his cases.”
“The truth is that Nigerian courts cannot, will not and do not have both the substantive and procedural jurisdiction to try him. His detention is without the backing of any known law in Nigeria or elsewhere in the world.”
“It’s a shame that those who claim to be men of honor cannot honor their word.”
