IPOB calls out FG, condemns alleged state-sponsored hate poster campaign against Kanu

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has condemned what the self-determination group called “the disgraceful and unlawful display of hate-filled posters across Abuja calling for the extrajudicial punishment of our leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.”

According to the IPOB, the posters, which “bear Kanu’s image alongside a skull-and-crossbones symbol with inflammatory words like ‘NNAMDI KANU MUST PAY FOR KILLING OUR SECURITY AGENTS AND INNOCENT CITIZENS’, are not only false but also dangerously prejudicial to his ongoing trial.”

In a statement issued on Sunday – today, May 18 – by the group’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Comrade Emma Powerful, IPOB warned that “this cowardly propaganda, widely believed to be sponsored or condoned by elements within the Department of State Services (DSS), is a direct attempt to influence the judiciary, intimidate the legal process, and poison public opinion against our leader.”

Accordingly, the pro-Biafra group reminded the public as follows: 1) That Mazi Nnamdi Kanu has never been convicted of any crime anywhere in the world.

2) That no element of the spurious charges brought against him occurred in Abuja, yet he is being tried in this highly hostile jurisdiction.

3) That the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has declared his rendition from Kenya illegal and called for his immediate release.

4) That the seemingly desperate campaign by the Nigerian state against Kanu confirms what IPOB has long warned about, namely, that Abuja is not and cannot be a neutral venue for any legal proceeding involving Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

The group, thus, urged Justice James Omotosho, to recognize that the atmosphere has been irreparably poisoned and either recuse himself from the trial or move the proceedings to a more neutral and legally appropriate venue.

IPOB also called on the international community to condemn “this shameful abuse of legal process”, further urging the government of the United Kingdom (UK) to intervene on behalf of its citizen and ensure that his fundamental rights are protected.

Similarly, IPOB called on the Nigerian judiciary to rise above intimidation and act in accordance with the law.

“Let it be known: We will not be silenced. We will not be intimidated. We will continue to demand justice, freedom, and self-determination,” IPOB surmised in the statement by Powerful.