The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB)

  • Nnamdi Kanu’s family to Buratai: You told court cheap lies

    Nnamdi Kanu’s family to Buratai: You told court cheap lies

    The family of leader of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu has berated the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen Tukur Buratai over what it said was the cheap, blatant and childish lies the army boss told an Abuja Court Friday in respect of the invasion of their house by soldiers at Afara Ukwu, Umuahia, Abia State.

    Gen Bruatai had in a counter-affidavit he filed in reaction to a suit in Kanu’s name before the Federal High Court, Abuja instituted by his lawyer, Ifeanyi Ejiofor said soldiers chased a truck laden with weapons into a house said to belong to the leader of IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu’s father in Afara Ukwu.

    Speaking on behalf of the IPOB leader’s family, his younger brother, Prince Emmanuel Kanu said it was unfortunate the Chief of Army Staff could condescend so low to tell such cheap, childish and unbridled lies.

    “What is General Buratai talking about? The question I am asking is why should Justice Binta Nyako listen to such lies? If she fails to jail Bruatai, that means the judicial system in this country should not be trusted for any reason, he should be jailed for telling such cheap and childish lies, this is shameful, not when we have evidences.

    Prince Kanu said by denying the military did not invade their house not once but twice, Buratai was disputing what the Minister of Defence, Mansur Mohammed Dan Ali said that he actually authorized that invasion.

    “If the Minister of Defence said in a Television programme that he authorised the invasion, how could Buratai come out to say something different? If after the invasion on September 14 and on September 16 there was a press state by Abia State commissioner of police admitting they recovered some ammunitions from our house why then is the COAS on November 16 is denying they never invaded the house. If there was no invasion of the house, how come that the whole place was riddled with bullets? How come that people were killed including our dog and the Eagle bird we kept in the house?”

    Kanu going further said “All of them are confused, they don’t even know what they are saying, there is even no sense of direction since the Minister of Defence will say something different and the Chief of Army Staff will also say something different, they should coordinate their lies.

    “The truth remains that soldiers invaded our home without any course and they took so many people away including Nnamdi Kanu; either they’ve killed him or still keeping him somewhere. So, how come they are lying; are they lying against the local media or the international media which have visited the house and found out there was an invasion? So, who is deceiving who here? From the look of things everyone now knows that Nnamdi Kanu was either killed or taken away by the military.”

    The IPOB leader’s younger brother said if the army had traced someone who had truck load of ammunition to their house, that the COAS should tell the world who the person was, when it happened and the evidence to show that they traced someone with dangerous weapons to their house.

    “If the truck laden with the so called dangerous weapons was blown up by the driver as claimed by Bruatai, where is the charred body of the lorry or the ashes? The bottom line of everything is that there was no truck laden with weapons that was found near our house; the army invaded our house without any just course and as a matter of fact, Buratai knows where Nnamdi Kanu is and he should produce him.”

    To further buttress his point that there house was invaded by soldiers, Kanu alleged that during the invasion, “they (soldiers) took away our personal belongings, generator sets, food items, shot the eagle bird in our house, the dog and took away boxes containing our mother’s clothing and vandalized vehicles in our compound after riddling it with bullets.”

    He appealed on the international community to prevail on Buratai to order his men to return their personal belongings particularly his mother’s boxes they took away on September 16 or they will face the wrath of Briafra land.

  • Court to decide suit over IPOB leader’s whereabouts Dec. 13

    Court to decide suit over IPOB leader’s whereabouts Dec. 13

     

     

    A Federal High Court in Abuja has scheduled its decision for December 13 in a suit seeking to compel the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buaratai to account for the whereabouts of the leader of the proscribed pro-Biafra group, Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.

    In the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/908/20017 filed in Abuja in Kanu’s name by his lawyer, Ifeanyi Ejiofor, the plaintiff claimed among others, that the soldiers, who allegedly invaded Kanu’s father’s house on September 14 this year, took him away, a claim Buratai denied.

    The trial judge, Justice Binta Nyako chose the date for the court’s decision in the case after entertaining the final submissions from parties yesterday.

    Arguing his client’s case Friday, Ejiofor stated that contrary to Buratai’s denial, the soldiers that stormed Kanu’s father’s house had a direct contact with him on September 14.

    He said the soldiers that were in Kanu’s hometown for ‘Operation Python Dance II’, a military exercise aimed at quelling separatist agitation in the South-East, had the last contact with him.

    He exhibited photographs, which he claimed showed scenes of destruction at Kanu’s house during the purported invasion by the soldiers. He urged the court to “invoke the doctrine of last seen” to compel the Chief of Army Staff to produce Kanu.

    Ejiofor added: “The exhibits before the court point to the fact that the personnel of the respondent (the Chief of Army Staff) had the last contact with the applicant (Kanu). It is clear that the army had the last contact with the applicant.”

    He contended that the grounds, on which the COAS hinged his notice of preliminary objection, to urged the court to decline jurisdiction to hear the suit was unfounded in law.

    Ejiofor said the issue of locus standi raised by the respondent on the basis of speculation that Kanu was dead was of no moment in a suit for an order ofhabeas corpus.

    Responding, lawyer to Buratai, Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN) prayed the court to dismiss the suit on the grounds that it was “riddled with conjecture, speculation, assumption and unfounded opinions”.

    Kehinde said: “We urge your lordship not to spend judicial time on hearing the application on merit and to dismiss it. My lord is not allowed to act on conjecture and speculation which the application is founded on.”

    The Senior Advocate contended that contrary to the plaintiff’s argument, soldiers never had any contact with the IPOB leader.

    Kehinde further contended that the plaintiff was wrong to have initiated the suit via a writ of habeas corpus, because such process could not be deployed, under the law,  by the plaintiff, who is not certain that Kanu was in the custody of the Nigerian Army.

    According to him, “The writ of habeas corpus is only used when it is certain that the applicant is in the custody of the respondent; not in this instance case when the application is speculating that the applicant is the custody of the applicant or that the applicant has not been seen.”

    Citing part of the plaintiff’s affidavit supporting the suit, Kehinde noted that plaintiff admitted that the search for Kanu conducted by family members had not yielded fruit.

    Kehinde added: “That is to buttress the fact that there is no certainty. The army never conceded that he is in their custody and the onus has shifted to and remained with the applicant to prove that he is in their custody.

    “When there is doubt as to the custody of the applicant, the writ of habeas corpus is not applicable.”

    According to Kehinde, the court could only invoke the doctrine of “last seen” in a criminal trial involving murder or culpable homicide whereby the court would impose duty on the accused persons to account for the death of the deceased.

  • Police reads riot act to IPOB, other troublemakers

    Police reads riot act to IPOB, other troublemakers

    The Police have read the riot act to trouble-makers in Anambra State, vowing to deal decisively with anyone who attempts to disrupt Saturday’s election.

    For several months, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) had been issuing threats that there would no election in Anambra.

    A video also circulated online warning voters to “vote and die”.

    But the Police have reassured voters that there is no cause for alarm.

    Along with other security agencies, they embarked on a show of force around the state, telling residents there was nothing to fear.

    The police have deployed 21,084 men from various states for the exercise, to join those already in the state.

    Members of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES), including the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, among others, have also deployed their men.

    This is as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) gave assurances that the election would be hitch-free, free and fair.

    At the state police and INEC headquarters, armored personnel careers were stationed. Sniffer dogs were seen patrolling the commission’s premises. Adjourning roads were restricted to only those on official duties.

    Sensitive materials were collected from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and distributed on Thursday.

    The Deputy Inspector-General of Police (DIG) Joshak Habila, in charge of the election, said adequate security arrangements have been made.

    On possible threats, he said: “We did a threat analysis a long time ago. We did physical threat analysis. Some possible security challenges and threats were analysed. We came to the conclusion that we need to watch the 4,680 polling units closely.

    “We’ll also pay close attention to the 326 wards and local government collation centres, the INEC headquarters and other places. We’ve already deployed security to those places. We have a standby unit.”

    Habila said all the officers have been deployed, with allowances paid upfront to keep the men motivated.

    “Even those who are to security the Awka polling units have all gone. The sensitive materials have been successfully distributed.

    “I assure voters that the directive given to me by the Inspector-General of Police is that we should be transparent and create a level playing ground in terms of security.

    “He also directed us to deal with any situation that tends to dent the image or compromise the process of this election, that we should address that squarely. And that’s what we’re going to do.”

    The police chief said all black spots have been identified and would be well policed.

    He urged voters to ignore IPOB’s threats, saying they were empty bullying.

    “We have held a meeting with the ICCES. We’re working with some of the templates that they have developed. We’ve gone on a show of force. The military came out in large numbers. We asked them to lead. We all followed..

    “We dominated Onitsha and we assured the public that it is very, very safe, and they should come out and exercise their franchise. We went to Nnewi and other places.

    “They will vote and live. You will vote and live to reap the dividends of democracy. We’ve changed the ‘vote and die’ threat to ‘vote and live’. And I see no threats at all,” he said.

    According to him, the police was determined to get it right.

    “This election is standing alone. It will be used to assess the performance of the police in terms of security provision across board. We’ll not compromise. We’ll follow the rules of the game.

    “We’ll provide a conducive atmosphere for people to cast their votes. We’ll ensure security of materials and of the officials, observers, and the electorate. We’ll demonstrate that responsibility on Saturday (today),” he said.

    On the welfare of his men, Habila said the officers deployed for election duties had been paid up front.

    Addressing a reserve team of hundreds of officers at the State Police Command Headquarters in Awka on Thursday night, Habila had asked those yet to receive alerts to raise their hands. Only a few did.

    “Among the reserve at the headquarters, only about three or four raised their hands to say they had not received an alert. It’s possible they supplied a wrong number or there are issues with their alert system.

    “Everyone else confirmed that allowances have been paid and that their money has dropped,” he said.

    He urged the officers to be responsible and not harass innocent voters.

    Addressing them, he said: “We don’t want you to go and take Igbo (Marijuana) or Burukutu (a local liquor). Don’t harass any voter. If you see innocent persons and you fire them, you will also be dealt with.

    “But if you see anybody armed and going around to cause trouble, demobilise the person,” he told the officers.

    INEC: We’re ready

    The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) Dr Nkwachukwu Orji said efforts would were to ensure that voting materials got to the units on time.

    “We have 23,000 ad-hoc staff recruited,” he said, adding that they comprised National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members, tertiary school students and some government workers.

    On logistics, he said: “A lot of planning has gone into the election. We have adequate arrangement for transportation. The Electoral Officers will be in charge of moving the materials from the Local Government to Registration Area Centres and to the polling units.

    “In the past we had situations where we were ready to move, but the Police was not ready to accompany us. This time, they have given us assurance that they would work in line with our time-line.”

    Orji said the card readers have been tested, adding there was enough reserve to replace malfunctioning ones.

    “We have tested them in terms of battery efficiency. We’ve made provisions to deploy a reserve to all the Local Governments. We have reserve at the state office. Any malfunctioning card reader will be quickly replaced,” he said.

    He gave assurances that the election would be credible, urging voters to exercise their franchise.

    “The ballot papers are customised on local government basis. So you cannot use the ballot for one in another. There’s going to be a long ballot paper because of the many candidates.

    “We expect they will be handled with care. We invited all the party agents to our state office, observers and the media to monitor the distribution of the sensitive materials,” he said.

    On security arrangements, Orji said: “We have been working closely with security agencies. We collaborate with all agencies. They have provided us with security to escort the materials to the polling units.

    “We made arrangement for effective security at all the collation centres, both at the ward level and the local government level.

    “The Presiding Officer is in charge of the poling unit. It is their duty to hand over to the police anyone in contravention of polling unit operations. We expect the police will discharge their duties effectively.”

    Meanwhile, the Civil Society Situation Room on the Anambra State Governorship Election, a coalition of civil society groups, in its preliminary statement, praised the Police for deploying its personnel.

    It, however, expressed concern about the massive redeployment of Police personnel from the state.

    “These redeployments ostensibly brings in new Police personnel who are put out as non-partisan, but raises questions about whether they have new loyalties that could undermine the impartiality of the Police,” it said.

    The group said it would observe INEC’s administration of the electoral process with regards to distribution of materials, deployment of personnel, timeliness, compliance with election procedures, the voting process, collation and results tabulation process, among others.

    Situation Room urged all eligible voters to come out and freely exercise their franchise.

    It called on INEC to deliver on its promise of conducting credible elections in line with its Constitutional responsibility.

    It urged the Police to demonstrate a high level of professionalism and non-partisanship.

    “While Situation Room recognises the threat posed by calls for election boycott by some groups, we believe that this should not necessarily provide the excuse for over-policing aimed at discouraging unhindered and free exercise of votes by citizens.

    “Situation Room also calls on the Nigeria Police to exercise restraint in dealing with voters and avoid acts of intimidation, inappropriate use of force and other acts capable of undermining the electoral process,” the group said.

    It further urged political parties to conduct themselves in a manner that does not encourage violence by their supporters, as they will be held liable.

  • Abia CP urges residents to ignore IPOB threats to shut down Aba

    Abia CP urges residents to ignore IPOB threats to shut down Aba

    Masked men suspected to be members of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) on Thursday stormed popular Powerline sections of the Ariaria International Market, Aba, Abia State, sharing Anti-Anambra Saturday poll.

    The presence of the masked men, The Nation gathered caused panic among visitors and shoppers in the market.

    According to a flyer made available to our correspondent, their message is that people shouldn’t participate in Anambra election come Saturday.

    They also urged shop owners in Ariaria not to open shops for business come Saturday in solidarity to their counterparts in Anambra who they said were not going to be part of the voting process of choosing who governs Anambra in the next four years.

    Our correspondent gathered that the sharing of the flyers have created panic among traders of Ariaria on whether the market will be opening for business on Saturday or not.

    Some of the traders however, expressed fears of coming to the market on Saturday to avoid being caught in the web of any possible crisis between the masked men and security agencies.

    The Chairman of Ariaria, Mr. Emeka Igara could not be reached for comments on the threat by the masked men.

    But the Commissioner of Police in Abia State, Mr. Anthony Ogbizi in a press briefing urged Abia residents and traders at the Ariaria international market to disregard the threats by members of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra to shut down the markets in the state on Saturday November 18th, 2017.

    Ogbizi said the State Police command acting on intelligence gathered that IPOB members has been circulating leaflets aimed at intimidating law abiding citizens from doing their lawful business.

    The Police boss, who spoke at the command headquarters in Umuahia stated that members of the group in show of support to their counterparts in Anambra State were spreading false information that the Saturday governorship election will not hold in Anambra State.

    He disclosed that the intent of IPOB members, who no longer wear the outlawed Biafra insignia or hoisting Biafra flags, is to cause confusion and disrupt the peace and security of the State.

    He dismissed the misinformation and propaganda of IPOB members as baseless, urging members of the public to disregard them.

    He said, “The Police here by wish to inform the general public that the Anambra State election will on November 18, 2017 as selected. We advise all law abiding citizens in Anambra state to go out and exercise their civic duty on Saturday.

    “The Police also assure the general public, particularly all people in Abia State of adequate protection of their lives and properties”.

    Ogbizi maintained that the police will deal decisively with any person or persons operating under whatever guise to spread rumor and confusion in the State.

    He disclosed that Police officers have been deployed to Start stop and search operation on all borders between Abia and Anambra State from Friday November 17 to November 19, 2017.

    He urged all businessmen operating in Ariria or any other part of the state, to co-operate with the Police and other security agencies by promptly providing information on any gathering of any outlawed group for necessary action.

  • The International day for tolerance

    The International day for tolerance

    “Law alone cannot secure freedom of expression, in order that every man presents his views without penalty, there must be spirit of tolerance in the entire society.” – Anonymous.

    The International day for tolerance is a time for people to learn about recognizing and respecting the rights and beliefs of others. It is also a time of reflection and debates on the negative effects of intolerance globally.

    Live discussions and debates take place across the world focusing on how various forms of injustice, oppression, racism and unfair discrimination have negative impacts on the society.

    Many educators use the theme of today to help students understand issues centered on tolerance, human rights and nonviolence.

    This day can be traced back to the 50th anniversary of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization ( UNESCO ) on November 16 1995. Member States adopted a Declaration of Principles on Tolerance.

    The Declaration affirms that tolerance is neither indulgence nor indifference. It is respect and appreciation of the rich variety of our world’s cultures, our forms of expression and ways of being human.

    Tolerance recognizes the universal human rights and fundamental freedoms of others.

    Driving home the essential values and condiments of the International day for tolerance, it is pertinent that as a people we see the strength in our diversity regardless of the upheaval in various parts of the country; the agitations of the Indigenous People of Biafra ( IPOB ), the Niger Delta militants or even the devilish sect – Boko Haram in the North.

    We share a collective destiny as a people, therefore, let us join hand together and create a congenial country that posterity will be proud of.

    People are naturally diverse; only tolerance can ensure the survival of mixed communities in every region of the globe.

    This day is an opportunity to speak out on human rights, laws, especially with regard to banning and punishing crimes and discrimination among minorities.

    Finally, today is committed to strengthening tolerance by fostering mutual understanding among cultures and people and this is more important than ever in this era of rising and violent extremism and widening conflicts that are characterized by a fundamental disregard for human life.

  • Court to rule on order seeking to quash IPOB proscription Jan. 17

    Court to rule on order seeking to quash IPOB proscription Jan. 17

    The Federal High Court, Abuja, has fixed Jan. 17, 2018 to rule on an application seeking to vacate an order of the court which proscribed the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), describing it as a terrorist group.

    The Acting Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Abdul Kafarati, fixed the date to give his ruling after taking arguments from counsel.

    Arguing on behalf of the Federal Government, Mr Dayo Apata, the Solicitor-General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice, urged the court to dismiss the application.

    Apata based his argument on the grounds that the activities of IPOB were such that no  sane government would overlook it.

    “The problem of Rwanda started with some people calling others cockroaches, and here is a group calling Nigeria a zoo, should the government wait and allow things to get out of hand before taking an action?”

    Counsel to IPOB, Mr Ifeanyi Ejiofor, on his part, prayed the court to vacate the order on the grounds that the order was granted in error.

    “The order was granted in error and fundamentally, we also discovered that the approval, as provided under Section 21 of the Terrorism Prevention Act, to be granted by the President of the country was not given in the first place.

    “The Chief of Staff to the President cannot sign a letter on behalf of the President and the Terrorism Prevention Act is very clear on that, that the President cannot delegate such powers to anybody.

    “So by the virtue of the fact that the approval which was purportedly granted by the President was signed by the Chief of Staff, it has rendered that process invalid and an order emanating therefrom should be null and void,” Ejiofor said.

    According to Ejiofor, the process for securing the order is fundamentally defective in law and the order should be vacated.

    On the argument by the government that IPOB imported illegal arms into Nigeria, Ejiofor said that there was no place in the documents front loaded before the court that linked his client to the arms.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Federal High Court had on Sept. 20, granted an order declaring IPOB as a terrorist organisation.

    The order which was sequel to an ex-parte motion filed by the Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr Abubakar Malami, also proscribed the existence of IPOB throughout Nigeria.

    IPOB, through its counsel, filed an application challenging the order obtained by the government and also asked the court to quash the order.

  • We must vote to avoid state of emergency in Anambra – Oduah

    We must vote to avoid state of emergency in Anambra – Oduah

    Sen. Stella Oduah (Anambra North) has urged the people of Anambra to come out en masse to vote in next Saturday’s governorship election to avoid creating a vacuum of governance in the state.

    Speaking with journalists in Abuja on Sunday, Oduah said that if the people failed to vote, they would be giving room for a possible declaration of a state of emergency.

    She explained that the Constitution did not allow for a vacuum in any state and as such if the current term lapses and a governor had not been elected, then an administrator would be appointed.

    “Therefore if we fail to cast our votes, if we fail to come out to vote and have a new governor, what will happen is that the Federal Government will provide an administrator and declare a state of emergency.

    “That is not what we want. It means that democracy will elude us, who is governing us would not be who we voted for or who we desired.

    “This is not about which party I belong to. It is about saving our state, it is about making sure that our youths, our women, our children have a peaceful and enabling environment where good governance and policies will strive.

    “Therefore we must make sure that we come out on the 18th and vote,” she said.

    The PDP lawmaker also charged political leaders in the state to call on their followers to come out and vote at the November 18 exercise.

    The proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra ( IPOB ) had threatened Anambra voters with death if they vote at the election.

    They also vowed to disrupt the poll.

    But in a swift reaction, the Anambra State Police Command asked residents of the state to go out en masse to exercise their franchise on the day of the election.

    Giving more reasons why Anambra people must vote, Oduah said that the state had enjoyed peace, stability and investments had started accruing.

    “What Anambra needs now more than anything is peace, we need peace for progress, we need peace for security, we need peace for the development that is coming and that has come.

    “We do not need violence, we have had enough killings, thank God we have security in Anambra more than most states, we must ensure that is sustained.

    “Most importantly our basic human right that is enshrined in the constitution that gives us the right to choose who governs us must not be denied us.

    “We will be denying ourselves that if we fail to come out and vote and protect our votes.

    “I am pleading that all leaders come out and tell their followers to ensure that they come out and vote come 18th of November.

    “We must not stay at home on the 18th, we must exercise our civic rights,” she said.

    NAN

  • Abia generates N1.4bn from Made-in-Nigeria products

    Abia generates N1.4bn from Made-in-Nigeria products

    Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia said on Thursday that the state had generated N1.4 billion from the sale of Made-in-Nigeria goods, since the campaign began.

    The governor disclosed this while addressing state House Correspondents in Abuja after conferring with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on the proposed committee on the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises ( MSME ) Council.

    “Part of the direct fall out of our campaign since the past 24 months is that today some parts of Ariaria market, where the shoe making enterprise is flourishing, has enjoyed steady power for three weeks now.

    “It is on a pilot scheme courtesy of the agency in charge of rural power supply.

    “Beyond that we are interfacing and having better relationship with funding agencies now.

    “And we were able to attract about N1.3billion or N1.4 billion on direct sales from the Made-in-Aba shoes, made in Abia dresses and all that,’’ he said.

    The governor stated that besides the investments the Made-in-Aba fashion show was held in Abuja and another one was held in New York where they (manufacturers) came face to face with world class designers “and we did not do badly at all’’.

    “The Made-in-Nigeria campaign has assumed international dimension now,’’ he added.

    He said the visit to the Vice President was because, “we are trying to set up a committee for the MSME Council and I am a critical stakeholder in that because Abia state is the SME hub of Nigeria today.

    “We are actually interested in what happens; the patronage of Made-in-Nigeria products in Abia is going up,’’ Ikpeazu explained.

    On what the state had done to encourage local industries, the governor stated that having direct sales of N1.4 billion was not a joke and ensuring that there was constant and uninterrupted power supply for three weeks was not also a mean feat.

    According to the governor, exposing them to fairs as far as to New York is not something you sweep under the carpet.

    “Confidence is returned; everybody now places“ Proudly Aba, Proudly Nigeria’’ on his ware.

    “If our youths are happy doing what they are doing then we have started something.

    Ikpeazu stated that his administration had been working on infrastructure steadily including roads, electricity, security as all of them were part of enablers that would drive the vision.

    According to him, this government has completed about 45 roads and about 25 of those roads are in Aba.

    “We are doing the first flyover in the entire Abia state in Aba and the cement roads we are doing; our roads have survived three rainy seasons now and they are standing.’’

    On Nnamdi Kanu’s whereabouts, the governor described him as his brother but noted that Kanu was not in the custody of Abia government.

    “Those who are looking for him may have a better knowledge and have the capacity to determine the location of anyone in Nigeria.

    “There are people who are trained to track people and it is their responsibility not mine,’’ the governor stated.

    Kanu was the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra ( IPOB ).

    NAN

  • Court orders Abaribe, others to produce Kanu

    Court orders Abaribe, others to produce Kanu

    The Federal High Court, Abuja on Tuesday ordered Senator Eyninnaya Abaribe, and two others standing as guarantors for the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra ( IPOB ), Nnamdi Kanu, to explain his whereabouts.

    It can be recalled that Nnamdi Kanu was granted bail by Justice Binta Nyako on April 24, 2017. However, Kanu did not show up for his trial which was billed to commence on Tuesday.

    However, Kanu’s co-defendants appeared in court.

    Out of the three sureties to Kanu, only Abaribe was present in court with his lawyer. Immanuel Shalum Okabenmabu and Tochukwu Uchendu were not only absent, but did not have legal representations.

    Mr. Ogechi Ogunna, who is the counsel to Abaribe said ‎his client had filed a motion seeking to be discharged as Kanu’s surety.

    The court stressed that Abaribe’s motion to be discharged as Kanu’s surety could not be heard until Nnamdi Kanu appeared in court.

    Justice Nyako presented Abaribe with three (3) options:

    1. Abaribe is to produce Nnamdi Kanu in court before he can apply to be discharged as a surety.
    2. He should be ready to forfeit his N100m bail bond.
    3. Lastly, he should request to be given time to produce the defendant in court.

    In response, Abaribe’s lawyer said that his client was in no position to do any of the above stated conditions.

    He however opted for the third option, which is to be given time to produce the defendant in court, after the judge insisted that his client must opt for one of the options.

    The trial was adjourned till November 20.

  • Police planted arms recovered from our home, says Nnamdi Kanu’s family

    Police planted arms recovered from our home, says Nnamdi Kanu’s family

    The family of leader of proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) Nnamdi Kanu has faulted claims by the police of recovering lethal weapons during a raid on its compound at Afara Ukwu on October 8.

    Abia State Commissioner of Police Anthony Ogbizi claimed at a press briefing in Umuahia last Thursday that lethal weapons including petrol bombs and one double-barrel gun were recovered during the raid carried out with soldiers from 14 Brigade, Ohafia.

    Read:Where is Nnamdi Kanu?

    But the spokesman of the IPOB’s leader’s family, Prince Emmanuel Kanu, in a telephone chat with journalists denied the family had any gun in the house.

    He said if the police found any gun, it was planted by them during the first raid.

    The family said: “This new CP was the same man who came to our house two days after the September 14 invasion with two Hilux vans and his Prado SUV and pulled down the car porch and destroyed the vehicles parked outside.

    “This same CP hurriedly after the invasion on the October 8 issued a press release telling the whole world that they discovered bombs in my house.

    “The army, on the other hand, denied that there was no invasion and that they never went to my house, what a contradiction.”

    Kanu added: “A house that does not have any person inside except our guard who we asked to look after the house, all of a sudden they invaded the house and came back to say they found a den gun, double barrel gun and petrol bomb. Who manufactured them? Who kept them there? That is the question to ask.”

    He accused the police of fabricating the story to justify what he described as illegal raiding of the compound.

    The younger Kanu said what the police came to do in the home was to remove the CCTV which he claimed had been recording what the military and police had been doing in the premises.

    “The policemen came to our house and ransacked the entire compound including my mum and my father’s rooms, removing my mum’s boxes, our TV and generator sets, bags of rice and many personal belongings without knowing that we had a CCTV recording their activities in the house.

    “But when they got clue about the CCTV and to concoct whatever that they would present to the public to label our family bad, they came back and removed the CCTV from where they were hung.”

    He rejected the terrorist tag on IPOB, stating ”Nobody can tag IPOB a terrorist organisation. We don’t carry arms and arms never solved any dispute. They should engage IPOB leadership genuinely.

    “We are not violent. We don’t give life and we can’t take one. They have rubbished the name of the country called Nigeria, that’s why we are called Biafrans.”