The family of Nnamdi Kanu, the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has said that the continued incarceration of their son despite appeals and several court orders to release him is a humiliation to not just their son but the entire Igbo race.
The family, reacting to the recent refusal of the Federal High Court in Abuja to grant Kanu’s bail application, expressed fury over the court’s ruling and their son’s fate.
In a statement on behalf of the family, Kanu’s younger brother, Prince Emmanuel Kanu, alleged that some selfish politicians benefiting from the insecurity in the South East are behind Kanu’s continued detention.
He wondered why it had become so difficult for the Igbo political elite and leaders to book an appointment with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to discuss Kanu’s matter nearly one year after the President took over power.
He said: “How be it that nobody among Igbo political leaders has reached out to Tinubu to discuss Nnamdi Kanu’s release almost a year after he came to power?
“Is it not deliberate? Have they not been gaining access to the President concerning other issues? It’s a shame that Kanu is being punished for asking for the freedom of Ndigbo and the leaders have abandoned him to die in DSS custody.
” Kanu is terribly sick and nobody cares. His health is deteriorating every day. He has not changed his clothes. Why has the court continued to hold him in DSS custody instead of the Correctional Centre?”
Kanu’s family insisted that some people are benefiting from his continued incarceration, hence the apparent apathy on the part of the political elite to engage the President for his release.
The family said: “Why can’t they go for his release if they truly love the South East? Something is definitely wrong somewhere. They are benefiting from his continued detention, and that’s why they are not making any serious moves to engage Mr President. Don’t forget that some people sponsored his abduction and extraordinary rendition.
” Why should he be abandoned for asking for the freedom of Biafra? He didn’t take up arms against the government, but he was tagged as a terrorist. Yet the same government is busy releasing terrorists from detention.”
The IPOB leader’s family threatened to expose the beneficiaries of their son’s continued incarceration and the insecurity in the Southeast region.
According to their statement: “If they fail to act, Ndigbo and Biafrans at large must hold them responsible. And it may get to a point where the masses may no longer be held back.
” Nobody dies with any secret. Very soon, all those behind Kanu’s continued detention will be exposed. Those benefiting from the insecurity in the South East are the ones enjoying his continued stay in detention. But nothing lasts forever. One day they will be out of power.”
Kanu’s family further expressed sadness over the refusal of Justice Binta Nyako to grant him bail, wondering if the trial judge had taken time to go through the certified true copy of the Supreme Court judgement on the matter, which held that the Federal High Court ought not to have revoked Kanu’s bail in the first place.
The family argued that if the trial judge had digested the certified true copy of the Supreme Court judgement, the court would not have denied him his bail application at the last hearing on Monday.
Kanu’s family also argued that the IPOB leader “is never afraid of standing trial” and regretted that “the conditions they subjected him to do not guarantee justice.”
According to the family’s statement: “Why can’t they allow him to change his clothes? Why will they keep him in DSS custody for years instead of sending him to Kuje Correctional Centre, where he can have access to his doctors?
” Has the court bothered to know if its orders are obeyed by the DSS? The way Kanu is being humiliated and handled does not show fairness. The court should not create the impression that it’s acting a script.”
Daily Post