The embattled leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has urged people clamouring for his release not to beg for it.
According to Kanu, his fight for self-determination is a constitutionally protected right and not a crime.
While speaking through his lawyer, Aloy Ejimakor, Kanu emphasized that his release is an issue of compliance with existing court orders, not an issue of presidential pardon or clemency.
In a press statement, Ejimakor said: “Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is adamant that nobody should plead or beg anybody on his behalf because he has committed no crime.
“Self-determination, which is the real issue that got twisted to suddenly become a high crime, is an inalienable right guaranteed under Nigerian law, the United Nations, the United Kingdom, and Kenya. The perverse and unlawful criminalization of this right should not be encouraged through misguided appeals for pardon or clemency. Releasing Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is not an act of mercy but a matter of abiding by the rule of law.”
Kanu thanked those genuinely committed to restoration of peace in Igboland and cautioning that appeals for pardon might be misconstrued as legitimizing executive or judicial violations of his rights.
