A frontline Igbo politician and Chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, has stressed that President Muhammadu Buhari’s government made the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu a hero by detaining him.
Iwuanyanwu’s comment is coming at a time Kanu, who is facing charges of treason before an Abuja Federal High Court was released from Kuje prison after spending about 18 months.
Speaking at Amokwe in Udi local government area of Enugu state, the Publisher of Champions Newspaper faulted the treason charges levelled against Kanu, stressing that the IPOB leader only expressed his public opinion, which is not an offence.
Iwuanyanwu, who declared that nobody can wish Biafra away maintained that he is a Biafran by virtue of being an Igbo man.
He said, “I have always said that was no reason for detaining Nnamdi Kanu. Kanu didn’t commit any treason. Treason is when you take up arms against the government, he didn’t take up any arms, there was no reason whatsoever for detaining him, because everybody have the right to say I want Biafra, everybody have the right to say I want Biafra. For God’s sake, I’ve made it clear to people that Biafra is for the Igbo. Hausas are Arewas, Yorubas are Oduduwas and we are Biafrans.
“There is a problem we have because Biafra fought a war and people are ashamed to say they are Biafrans but I am not afraid to say I am a Biafran. Biafra is part of Nigeria, Arewa is part of Nigeria, Oduduwa is part of Nigeria; all of us are there.
“If a person from Odududuwa takes up arms to secede from Nigeria, its treason but if one is just saying by words of mouth, it just an ordinary expression of public opinion. There is no law that makes such a person get convicted by just saying we want to secede, it’s a right of expression.
“But if somebody from Oduduwa is amassing arms to topple the government to secede, its treason. If somebody from Arewa is amassing arms to topple the government, its treason, if somebody from Biafra, because all of us are from Biafra I am from Biafra, to topple government, its treason.
“But if I come and say I want Biafra, it’s no offence. To the best of my knowledge Kanu didn’t have any violent means; all he said was that he wanted Biafra. He shouldn’t have been detained in the first place, I said it long ago. I said the government is making him a hero but people misquoted me and said I said government should jail him.
“No, I said that getting an innocent person, putting him in prison, they are making him a hero. So what Nnamdi Kanu is now is a hero because of all these. So he has not committed any offence and shouldn’t have been in detention in the first place.
“But there are also some parts of Igbo, who since after the war, they don’t want to talk about Biafra. You cannot wish away Biafra, Biafra is there just like you can’t wish away Oduduwa or Arewa.”
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