The leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu’s lead lawyer, Ifeanyi Ejiofor has slammed President Muhammadu Buhari for negotiating with terrorists while the IPOB separatist agitator languishes in the custody of the security agencies.
Ejiofor, on Sunday, said this in reaction to the revelation by the Presidential media aide, Garba Shehu that the terrorists who attacked the Abuja-Kaduna train in March fooled his principal.
Shehu disclosed in an interview with BBC Hausa that the Nigerian government negotiated with the bandits, and met their demand but the assailants failed to release the hostages as promised.
In his reaction, Kanu’s lawyer in a statement titled, ‘Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s freedom is sacrosanct’ said his client has the right to call for self-determination, but the government punishes him, whereas terrorists are playing on the intelligence of the government.
Ejiofor said, “The Federal Government is still in its business of negotiating with, and settling terrorists, while the same government unleashes terror and mayhem on innocent citizens merely exercising their constitutionally guaranteed rights to self-determination.”
The lawyer quoted Shehu who said: “‘Don’t forget that right from the start of it, the leader of the terrorists demanded that his pregnant wife should be released from captivity.
‘The federal government took the woman to the hospital where she gave birth to twins, and after she gave birth, he was shown that both his wife and children were in good health condition and then they were handed over to his parents.
‘After handing them over, they came up with a different issue that there are about six or seven of their children in Yola, Adamawa, who the government sent a plane to pick up.
‘We expected that if we gave them the children, they would release all the victims in their custody. Then, they demanded money.’”
Ejiofor then said, “Mazi Nnamdi Kanu was abducted from Kenya and extraordinarily renditioned because he called for a referendum, in a legitimate exercise of his right to self-determination, and he has been in solitary confinement for over a year now.
“Meanwhile, the Federal Government is dining with and giving executive/presidential treatment to terrorists. Do you still wonder why kidnapping and “banditry” is a thriving business in Nigeria? Ndi eriri eri!
“Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is a Political Prisoner/Prisoner of Conscience, and must be released unconditionally.”
Credit: THE VANGUARD.
