The Indigenous People of Biafra has asked the leaders in the South-East to stop begging President Bola Tinubu for the release of its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, but rather should demand his unconditional release.
The pro-Biafran group condemned what it described as a “shameful spectacle” of the leaders of the region, who go “cap in hand” with pleas and beggarly appeals before the President over Kanu’s release.
In a press statement released on Tuesday, the IPOB Spokesman, Emma Powerful, berated Jude Idimogu for asking the President to release Kanu as a political favour to boost the chances of the All Progressives Congress’s 2027 fortunes and revive the South-East economy, adding that it reeks of self-serving opportunism and betrayal.
The statement read in part, “The IPOB, under the leadership of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, categorically rejects and condemns the shameful spectacle of Igbo figures, including the likes of Jude Idimogu, grovelling before President Bola Tinubu with pleas and beggarly appeals for our leader’s ‘pardon’” or “release.”
“Such cowardly submissions, as seen in Idimogu’s recent public grovelling, where he begged Tinubu to free Kanu as a political favour to boost APC’s 2027 fortunes and revive the South-East economy, reek of self-serving opportunism and betrayal.
“They insult the intelligence of the Biafran people, undermine the rule of law, and perpetuate the false narrative that Mazi Nnamdi Kanu has committed any crime warranting mercy from a regime built on impunity.
“Let us be unequivocally clear: Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is not a criminal in need of pardon. He is a prisoner of conscience, unlawfully abducted from Kenya on June 27, 2021, in blatant violation of Kenyan sovereignty, Nigeria’s Extradition Act 2004, and international treaties including the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
“Both Kenyan and Nigerian courts have affirmed this criminal abduction: the Kenyan High Court ruled it illegal, and Nigeria’s Court of Appeal, in its subsisting judgment of October 13, 2022, discharged Mazi Nnamdi Kanu outright, declaring no Nigerian court has jurisdiction to try him due to the jurisdictional nullity caused by his rendition.
“This appellate discharge, grounded in fundamental defects, stands as a final acquittal under Nigerian jurisprudence, irrevocable unless explicitly stated “without prejudice,” which it was not (Suleman v. FRN, 2018; Mohammed v. State, 2017).”
According to the group, the Supreme Court’s December 15, 2023, ruling, remitting the case for trial, is a per incuriam travesty, a nullity that cannot override the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended). Section 36(9) enshrines ironclad protection against double jeopardy: no person discharged by a court of competent jurisdiction shall be tried again for the same offence
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The group said the highest law in Nigeria is the Constitution, not the Supreme Court, and any judgment flouting constitutional safeguards is dead on arrival.
“Furthermore, the charges rely on repealed laws (Terrorism Prevention Act 2011/2013), extinguished under Section 6(3) of the Interpretation Act 2004, with no savings clause to revive them (A.G. Federation v. A.G. Abia State, 2002; Okeke v. State, 2019).
“The de novo trial before Justice Omotosho, commencing March 29, 2025, where Mazi Nnamdi Kanu was forced to plead not guilty anew, is an absolute nullity, void ab initio for lacking jurisdiction.
“Begging Tinubu reinforces dictatorship and autocracy, portraying Nigeria as a lawless fiefdom where executive whims trump judicial finality. It signals weakness to our oppressors, implying Kanu is guilty when the law has exonerated him.
IPOB warns all well-meaning individuals, Igbo leaders, and the public: Cease this degrading pleading immediately. It does not bode well for the rule of law; it smacks of complicity in state-sponsored terrorism and judicial banditry.
“Henceforth, we demand, yes, demand, the immediate and unconditional release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. He has been discharged and acquitted; no court, not even the Supreme Court, can subvert this without offending the Constitution and inviting anarchy.
“We call on all Biafrans, freedom-loving Nigerians, and the international community to amplify this demand: Obey the law, respect the Constitution, and free Kanu now! Failure to do so exposes the Tinubu regime’s contempt for justice and accelerates the inevitable collapse of this contrived contraption called Nigeria.
“IPOB will not fold its arms while our leader is intimidated into an unjust trial. We urge mass mobilisation: protests, legal actions, and global advocacy to enforce the Court of Appeal’s verdict.
“Those who continue begging will be seen as enablers of oppression—history will judge you harshly,” the statement concluded
Ikenna Obianeri
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