Sunday Igboho calls on federal government to release Sunday Igboho from detention

YORUBA Nation agitator Chief Sunday Adeyemo popularly known as Sunday Igboho has called on the federal government to release Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipob) leader Nnamdi Kanu as he is only fighting for the rights of his people.

Earlier this month, Sunday Igboho returned to Nigeria from his self-imposed exile which started off with the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari attempting to arrest him in Ibadan in 2021. On July 1 2021, men of the Nigerian Department of State Security (DSS) raided Mr Adeyemo's Ibadan home, killing two of his aides and arresting 13 others, forcing him to flee into exile.

Mr Igboho fled to the Republic of Benin and was arrested at Cotonou airport on July 18 2021 while trying to board a plane to Germany. However, the Nigerian authorities put pressure on their Beninoise counterparts to get Mr Igboho deported but as no formal charges were presented in court, all Benin Republic could do was keep him in detention.

On March 7 2022, the Beninoise authorities released Mr Igboho from custody and handed him over to Professor Banji Akintoye the president of Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide. Mt Igboho as now finally returned to Nigeria, accusing former President Buhari of attempting to assassinate him, saying he sent the DSS and soldiers to kill him in his house.

In a widely circulated video on social media, Mr Igboho emphasized that Mr Kanu, like himself, is merely a proponent advocating for the interests of his region. He thus urged President Bola Tinubu to put an end to all the political manoeuvres and release Mr Kanu.

Mr Igboho said: “Release Nnamdi Kanu. Let go of the political games as this individual has not committed any crime. Today is the 27th of February 2024, I say release him and allow him to reunite with his family.

"He is simply fighting for his people in the southeast, just as I am fighting for the Yoruba people. Release him, let him go home, please release him.”

Mr Kanu has been in the custody of the Department of State Services since July 2021, following his extradition to Nigeria from Kenya by the federal government. He was abducted by freelance operators and returned to Nigeria and despite securing a court judgement ordering his release, the federal government has refused to let him go.