Former Governor of Anambra State and immediate past Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, has appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to release the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, citing worsening insecurity and economic hardship in the South East.
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Speaking in Abuja on Wednesday, Ngige said the prolonged detention of Kanu has crippled economic activities in the region, particularly due to the sustained Monday sit-at-home protests, and called for a political solution to the matter.
He expressed disappointment that former President Muhammadu Buhari failed to heed similar pleas during his tenure, despite persistent efforts by prominent Igbo leaders to secure Kanu’s release.
“Yes, I was disappointed and I told him,” Ngige said, referring to Buhari. “In 2022, I facilitated a meeting between him and a delegation of respected Igbo leaders including the late Chief Mbazulike Amaechi, the late Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, Bishop Onuoha, Chief Uwazurike, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, and myself.”
According to Ngige, during the meeting, Chief Mbazulike Amaechi had passionately requested that Kanu be released into the custody of the delegation, but Buhari described the request as “difficult,” though he appeared emotionally moved by the appeal.
“He told us it was a difficult request, and you could see the pain on his face. But he granted access to Kanu for members of the delegation,” Ngige recalled.
Ngige further disclosed that he later returned to Buhari privately to press for the invocation of the constitutional prerogative of mercy, which empowers a sitting president to pardon individuals either convicted or undergoing trial. However, he said Buhari cited the involvement of the judiciary and national security agencies as constraints.
“Even till today, I believe that the issue of Nnamdi Kanu needs a political solution,” Ngige maintained. “The President of the country should be seen to show magnanimity, especially now that the economy of the South East is being threatened by the continued sit-at-home protests.”
Ngige noted that the economic loss caused by shutting down activities every Monday has deepened poverty in the region, particularly among informal sector workers and self-employed youths.
“A lot of young men in the South East are idle, and they often justify it by pointing to Kanu’s incarceration,” he said. “Some even quote court rulings both local and foreign declaring his apprehension and extradition illegal.”
He urged President Tinubu to intervene in the spirit of national healing and unity. “I am appealing to Mr. President, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to grant us this gesture and allow young people in the South East to begin rebuilding their lives,” Ngige said.
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