A member of the Texas House of Representatives, Jarvis Johnson, has demanded the Nigerian Supreme Court unconditionally release the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) Nnamdi Kanu.
The apex court is set to make an epic decision on Friday, December 15, 2023, regarding federal government’s appeal to the Court of Appeal’s earlier judgment acquitting Mr. Kanu.
Representative Johnson, from District 139, said legal opinions both within and outside Nigeria anticipate the Supreme Court’s confirmation of the several judgments and orders of lower courts finding Mr. Kanu inculpable of federal charges against him.
Johnson argued that the fact Kanu was extraordinarily renditioned form Kenya by the Nigeria government on June 27, 2021 was not in dispute.
He described IPOB as “non-violent” and said that Kanu only seeks an “internationally supervised referendum to address the Biafran question within the Nigerian polity”.
An Enugu High Court of on October 30, 2023, declared the classification of IPOB as a terrorist group by the Government of Nigeria and the Southeast Governor’s Forum as a violation of Section 42 of the Nigerian Constitution. Johnson opined therefore that the continued treatment of IPOB, its leadership, and members as a terrorist group is now illegal and discriminatory, lacking a valid legal basis for Kanu’s continued incarceration.
Other Nigerian courts, including the High Court in Umuahia, Abia State, and the Court of Appeals in Abuja, have previously ruled in favor of Kanu’s immediate and unconditional release.
In July 20, 2022, the United Nations Human Rights Council ruled that Kanu’s solitary confinement violated International Human Rights Conventions and demanded his immediate release.
“I, therefore, call on the Nigerian Supreme Court to uphold or affirm the considered judgments of its subordinate courts, and of the many International Tribunals, by ordering the immediate and unconditional release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
“This anticipated ruling will hasten the process of restoring confidence in the Nigerian Judiciary, of which the Supreme Court is its apex court,” wrote Johnson.
The Supreme Court is set to deliver its final judgment on Thursday December 15, 2023 whether to free Mr. Kanu or keep him in detention and refer back the matter to the lower court for continuation of trial.
In the Southeast and parts of Southsouth geopolitical zones of Nigeria, restiveness and insecurity has become the norm, some of them linked to disgruntled groups who believe the elders of the region are doing little to emancipate their hero who they consider a political prisoner of conscience.
Please Like 👍, Comment, Share & Follow us on our social media handles.
WhatsApp Channel
Telegram Channel
