Igbo Leaders Demand Nnamdi Kanu’s Release, National Renegotiation

By 𝔸bdulrazak Tomiwa

Igbo leaders have backed Igwe Lawrence Agubuzu’s call for President Bola Tinubu to release IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu. During an Abuja summit, the monarch argued that Kanu’s continued detention is an injustice, especially as other regional agitators have been granted freedom.

The monarch highlighted a double standard, noting that while Yoruba activist Sunday Igboho was pardoned, Kanu remains imprisoned. He urged the President to take decisive action, stating, “Bring this man out. If we don’t want him in Nigeria, return him to Kenya or London where they took him from.”

Chief Damian Okeke-Ogene and Nze Tony-Uche Ezekwelu praised the monarch for speaking truth to power. They contended that Kanu’s non-violent advocacy is treated more harshly than the actions of Boko Haram and bandits, who have often received amnesty despite their violent crimes.

Ezekwelu warned that rising separatist sentiments in the Middle Belt and North prove that Nigeria’s current structure is failing.

He urged the government to bring all secessionist groups to a roundtable to renegotiate the country’s unity before the situation becomes uncontrollable.

Campaign for Democracy Chairman Dede Uzor A. Uzor lamented the systemic marginalization of the South East. He pointed to the region’s exclusion from national rail projects and its limited number of states as evidence that the federal government does not value the Igbo people.

Uzor concluded that unity should not be forced, comparing the national union to a marriage that requires mutual consent. He argued that if marginalization persists, a referendum should be granted to allow the South East to determine its own political future.