The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Peter Obi, has renewed his call for the release of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, insisting that his continued imprisonment is unjustified.
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Obi said keeping Kanu in custody would not resolve the grievances and agitations in parts of the country, particularly in the South East.
The former Anambra State governor spoke during an interactive session with Nigerians in Washington, D.C., United States, where he maintained that his position on Kanu’s case had remained consistent.
His comments came as Kanu continues his legal battle against the life sentence imposed on him by the Federal High Court in Abuja after his conviction on terrorism-related charges in November 2025.
The court had found Kanu guilty on multiple counts linked to incitement, membership of a proscribed organisation and activities connected with separatist operations in the South East.
Kanu, however, rejected the judgment and filed an appeal seeking to overturn both his conviction and sentence. His lawyers have also continued to argue that the proceedings were unfair.
Despite the conviction, Obi insisted that there was no sufficient reason to keep the IPOB leader in custody, arguing that controversial speech, criticism or verbal attacks should not automatically be treated as criminal conduct.
“I said it repeatedly that there’s no reason for keeping Nnamdi Kanu. As far as I’m concerned, there’s no reason, no reason whatsoever,” Obi said.
“You cannot arrest somebody because he was speaking on the radio or calling people’s names. It doesn’t make sense,” he added.
Obi said politicians are regularly criticised, abused and called names by members of the public, but such criticism should not become the basis for criminal prosecution.
“I’m a politician. People call me all sorts of names. And I don’t think calling me names has anything to do with it. It’s not an offence,” he said.
The NDC presidential candidate also said that if given the opportunity to lead, he would adopt dialogue and engagement in dealing with separatist groups and other aggrieved persons across the country.
According to him, governments must first understand the reasons behind agitations before attempting to resolve them.
“Even all agitators, if I’m in government today, I will discuss with them. I will engage with them. I will consult with them,” Obi said.
He added that engagement remains the best way to understand grievances and find lasting solutions.
“Because I believe that they have a reason for whatever they want to do. It’s only by engaging them that we’ll learn and see how we can solve it,” he said.
Kanu’s continued detention and conviction remain subjects of intense public and political debate, especially in the South East, where many political, religious and traditional leaders have repeatedly called for a political resolution of the matter.
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