NnamdiKanuReleaseCalls: Kenneth Okonkwo urges the Federal Government to release IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu, citing prolonged detention and the need for justice.
NnamdiKanuReleaseCalls have intensified as Kenneth Okonkwo, a legal practitioner and chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), publicly urged the Federal Government to release the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu. Okonkwo made this appeal during an interview on ‘Sunrise Daily’, a Channels Television programme.
Nnamdi Kanu has been in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) since his re-arrest in June 2021. Over the years, numerous voices—including Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, and several South-East governors—have repeatedly called for his release.
Renewing these NnamdiKanuReleaseCalls, Okonkwo advocated for a political solution to the ongoing case. He lamented that Kanu has been incarcerated for seven years, criticizing the slow pace of justice and the government’s handling of the matter. Okonkwo highlighted the frustration felt by many Nigerians, emphasizing that Section 36 of the Constitution presumes every citizen innocent until proven guilty.
He stated, “A nation that detains a human being for more than seven years. You have him in your custody and yet you couldn’t even reach a judgment as to the culpability of his crime is a nation that is failing in the dispensation of justice. Justice delayed is justice denied. When it comes to the issue of crime, the Constitution is very clear that the accused or defendant should be judged within a reasonable time. It is very unreasonable to keep a man in detention for almost seven years. What are you judging?”
