Ohaneze Ndigbo Youth Council tells Buhari to take a cue from Benin who released Igboho and free Kanu

OHANEZE Ndigbo Youth Council has called on Nigeria's federal government to take a cue from the Republic of Benin who recently released Yoruba Nation campaigner Sunday Adeyemo and similarly set free Nnamdi Kanu.

On Monday, the authorities in the Republic of Benin released Chief Sunday Adeyemo popularly known as Sunday Igboho from custody in and handed over to Professor Banji Akintoye the president of Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide. Mr Igboho had been in detention since July last year when he was arrested at Cotonou airport after fleeing from Nigeria.

Over the last week, Mr Igboho filed for bail saying he was facing health challenges and requested release so he can receive medical treatment. In what now appears to be the granting of this request, today, he was handed over to the Yoruba self-determination group Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide.

Reacting to the development, Mazi Okwu Nnabuike, the president of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council Worldwide, said it was now time for the Nigerian government to heed its call for Mr Kanu’s release. He added that the continuous detention of Mr Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipob), was not in anyone’s interest.

Mazi Nnabuike said: "For there to be peace in the southeast, the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government should play the role of a father by freeing Nnamdi Kanu from detention. We have said it time without number that the incarceration of Kanu was adding to the insecurity headache plaguing the nation and the only way out was a political solution.

“The current unrest in the southeast should be a source of concern to everyone and the solution lies largely in the release of Kanu. It is, therefore, necessary at this point that the government releases him and enter into negotiations with the Igbo youths who feel marginalized and sidelined in the scheme of things.”

He urged Igbo leaders to continue an interface with the government for Mr Kanu’s release as quickly as possible. Mazi Nnabuike added that the Ohaneze Ndigbo Youth Council appreciates the efforts of the Igbo leaders, especially members of the National Assembly and urges them not to relent until Mr Kanu is freed.