The Presidency has responded to growing calls for the immediate release of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
In a statement released through Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, the Presidency described the renewed agitation for Kanu’s release as an attempt to incite disorder and undermine the rule of law.
In a post shared on his official X (formerly Twitter) handle, Onanuga criticised Sahara Reporters’ publisher, Omoyele Sowore, for mobilising a protest to demand Kanu’s release. He accused Sowore of acting under the guise of activism to create chaos.
You are nothing more than an anarchist masquerading as a rights activist. You very well know that Nnamdi Kanu is facing trial for treason, and you want to cause a breakdown of law and order by mobilising for a protest? Is this the kind of revolution you envisage for Nigeria, where the rule of law will be violated and your idea of justice would be the law of the jungle?” Onanuga wrote.
His reaction came shortly after Sowore announced plans for a nationwide protest tagged #FreeNnamdiKanuNow, scheduled to take place on 20 October at 7 a.m. in Abuja. Sowore stated, “We now have a date for the historic #FreeNnamdiKanuNow protest march to the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja, it is October 20 at 7AM!”