Heavy Protest Grounds Abia Over Continuous Detention Of Nnamdi Kanu

Following the continued detention of the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, several residents on Friday stormed major roads in Abia State, condemning the incarceration of the separatist leader despite a court verdict for his discharge.

Kanu has been in the custody of the Department of Security Service (DSS) in Abuja since he was arrested in Kenya and brought back to Nigeria in June 2021.

The Court of Appeal had on October 13, ordered the IPOB leader’s release, having dismissed the remaining six-count charge levelled against him by the federal government.

The federal government had asked the Court of Appeal to stay the execution of the judgment discharging Kanu, pending the resolution of an appeal it filed at the Supreme Court.

The protesters, mainly youths, demanded the immediate release of Kanu, describing his arrest and detention as uncalled for and totally unacceptable.

They chanted songs to express their grievances and displayed placards that bore various inscriptions such as “Freedom for Biafra, free Nnamdi Kanu”, “We are not terrorists, we are freedom fighters”, “We are tired of intimidation and harassment by the Nigerian Government”, “Biafra on the move.”