The South-East Governors Forum has resolved to visit President Bola Tinubu to discuss securing the release of Nnamdi Kanu, the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB). This decision was made during a meeting in Enugu on Tuesday, attended by all five South-East governors: Peter Mbah (Enugu), Alex Otti (Abia), Prof. Charles Soludo (Anambra), Francis Nwifuru (Ebonyi), and Senator Hope Uzodimma (Imo).
In a five-point communiqué jointly signed by the governors, the forum emphasized the need for actionable plans to implement the recommendations from the South-East Security and Economic Summit held in Owerri in September 2023.
“The Forum resolved to visit Mr. President to discuss pressing issues concerning the South-East region,” the communiqué read. “The Forum also resolved to interface with the Federal Government to secure the release of Mr. Nnamdi Kanu.”
The governors expressed their condolences over the death of Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, former Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, and the first civilian governor of Abia State, who passed away on April 11, 2024, at the age of 73.
“The Forum commiserated with the government and people of Abia State, Ebonyi State, Imo State, South-East Nigeria, and Chief Ogbonnaya Onu’s family on the demise of His Excellency, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu.”
The meeting also included a solidarity visit from former President Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, and His Royal Majesty Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe, Obi of Onitsha.
The forum reviewed and agreed to implement parts of the South-East Security and Economic Summit’s report, focusing on security and economic integration.
Nnamdi Kanu was initially arrested in 2015 under former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration for his secessionist activities. Charged with treason, he was detained until 2017 when he was released on bail. Following a military invasion of his home in Umuahia, he fled the country, only to be recaptured in Kenya in 2021. Kanu has remained in the Department of State Services’ detention since, as the court has refused to grant him bail again.
Many believe that Kanu’s release could help mitigate the heightened insecurity in the South-East, which has been exacerbated by IPOB’s secessionist activities.
