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Hausas are Arewas, Yorubas Oduduwas and we are Biafrans – Iwuanyanwu

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A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, has said that he belongs to Biafra and decried the prosecution of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) Leader Nnamdi Kanu and others by the Federal Government for demanding for Biafra.

This was as the former presidential candidate said that the Hausas are Arewas, Yorubas Oduduwas while the Igbos are Biafrans.

Iwuanyanwu, who was reacting to the recent release of IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu, stated this at Amokwe in Udi Local Government Area of Enugu State when he paid a condolence visit to the family of late political scientist, Prof. Godwin Odenigwe.

“I have always said that was no reason detaining Nnamdi Kanu. In the law of this country which I know unless you have arms. Nnamdi Kanu didn’t commit any treason. Treason is when you take up arms against the government, he didn’t take up any arms, there was no reason whatsoever for detaining him, because everybody have the right to say I want Biafra, everybody have the right to say I want Biafra. For God’s sake, I’ve made it clear to people that Biafra is for the Igbo. Hausas are Arewas, Yorubas are Oduduwas and we are Biafrans.”

“There is a problem we have because Biafra fought a war and people are ashamed to say they are Biafrans but I am not afraid to say I am a Biafran. Biafra is part of Nigeria, Arewa is part of Nigeria, Oduduwa is part of Nigeria; all of us are there”.

Read also: Group demands release of 3 IPOB members detained along Kanu

According to him the issues of treason can only arise in a situation a person from any part of Nigeria takes up arms to secede from Nigeria, “but if one is just saying by words of mouth, it’s just an ordinary expression of public opinion. There is no law that makes such a person get convicted by just saying we want to secede, it’s a right of expression.”

Speaking further Iwuanyanwu said, “If I come and say I want Biafra, it’s no offence. To the best of my knowledge Kanu didn’t have any violent means; all he said was that he wanted Biafra. He shouldn’t have been detained in the first place, I said it long ago. I said the government is making him a hero but people misquoted me and said I said government should jail him.

“No, I said that getting an innocent person, putting him in prison, they are making him a hero. So what Nnamdi Kanu is now is a hero because of all these. So he has not committed any offence and shouldn’t have been in detention in the first place.

“But there are also some parts of Igbo, who since after the war, they don’t want to talk about Biafra. You cannot wish away Biafra, Biafra is there just like you can’t wish away Oduduwa or Arewa.”

 

 

 

 

 

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