South-East monarchs urge Buhari to release Kanu

Traditional rulers from the South-East on Tuesday appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to release the leader of the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.

The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja had on October 13 discharged Kanu on the 15-count charge of treasonable felony and terrorism filed against him by the Federal Government in June last year.

However, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, declared a few hours later that the activist would still have his days in court.

In a statement issued by his media aide, Umar Gwandu, the AGF insisted that Kanu was only discharged and had not been acquitted by the court.

He stressed that the appellate court’s judgment only touched Kanu’s extraordinary rendition from Kenya last year.

READ ALSO: Clark begs Buhari to release Kanu

The South-East Council of Traditional Rulers made the call in a statement issued on Tuesday.

The monarch’s appeal came just 24 hours after a former federal commissioner for information, Chief Edwin Clark, urged the president to release the IPOB leader.

The statement read: “We welcome this judgement and assert that the wisdom of the Appellate Court presents a timely and an unprecedented opportunity to overcome the challenge of trust that has obstructed the path to peace; and opens the window to winning the hearts and minds of the people.

“We, therefore, unequivocally support the call for the immediate release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu in line with the unanimous judgement of the Court that his extradition and subsequent trial was illegal, and the lower court had no jurisdiction to hear the case.”

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