Uchechigeme Anyanwụụtụtụ Okwu-Kanu, wife of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has recounted the circumstances surrounding his abduction in 2009.
In a post shared on social media on Thursday, Okwu-Kanu said both she and her husband had endured profound personal hardship in what she described as a struggle for the “restoration and transformation” of their people.
She said Kanu was abducted in broad daylight on December 19, 2009, the same day their traditional marriage was scheduled to take place.
Okwu-Kanu alleged that Kanu was seized in front of their family square by men loyal to Ralph Uwazuruike, leader of the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB).
She accused Uwazuruike of betraying Kanu and said the incident remains a painful memory whenever she reflects on that day.
Okwu-Kanu alleged that Kanu was assaulted and publicly humiliated after his abduction.
She said Kanu’s only offence was opposing what she described as the exploitation of the Igbo cause through the printing of “so-called Biafran passports”, vehicle number plates and proposals to issue currency for profit.
She said: “I will stop here for today. But understand this: there are battles in which the only weapon you possess is time. And in a little while, Nnamdi Kanu will be free.”
The article was originally published on Politics Nigeria.