Obidigbo: South-East Politicians not Sincere About Calls for Release of Kanu

David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka

Elder statesman and former governorship candidate in Anambra State, Dr. Chike Obidigbo, has said that most politicians going to visit the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu are not sincere about their calls for his release.

In a press conference he convened yesterday, Obidigbo expressed his worry over the marginalization of Igbo and called on the federal government to address various areas of marginalization against the Igbo.

He said: “Many of the politicians going to visit Nnamdi Kanu and also making pleas for his release are not sincere. Some of them just go there to take pictures with him and also use it to further their political agenda. Be it Soludo, be it Ifeanyi Ubah, none of them is sincere.

“Mr. Sunday Adeyemo, alias Sunday Igboho, regained his freedom and re-joined his fellow Yoruba people after the federal government dropped all charges of treasonable felony against him for calling for the separation of the Yoruba nation from Nigeria due to the murderous activities of Fulani herdsmen in Yoruba land under President Muhammadu Buhari.

“Also, Mr. Omoyele Sowore, the former Presidential candidate of African Action Congress (AAC), was allowed to breathe the air of freedom after the federal government dropped charges against the young man for calling for ‘Revolution Now’ in Nigeria to address poor governance and bad leadership in the country.

“Just last week, the President of Myetti Allah, Bello Badejo, was declared innocent from the charges of terrorism after the federal government withdrew charges against him for setting up a nationwide Fulani vigilante to secure the country despite the existence of Nigerian security agencies.”

He wondered why Kanu’s case should be different to the extent of keeping him in detention for three years now.

Speaking on other forms of marginalization, Obidigbo said: “It is worrisome that despite the creation of six geopolitical zones, which was expected to provide equal opportunities and inclusive leadership, the Southeast has not been supported to produce the president of this country.

“This imbalance in the leadership of the country underscores the other sore political points of lopsided allocation of number of states per zone.

“While other zones have as many as seven and six states each, Southeast is being punished with just five states. This is sad when you consider that national cake is shared out on state-by-state basis.

“The Nigerian state has continued to behave in such a way as if isolating the Igbo is the best policy option to guarantee the country’s unity.”

He lamented that in the recent reconstitution of governing boards of federal tertiary institutions and Polytechnics one state produced as many as 25 candidates while the entire Southeast was allocated only 12.

He called on President Bola Tinubu to take steps to address the imbalance in the country, saying that it is gladdening that Tinubu refused to endorse the lists.