Mrs Bianca Ojukwu, a former Nigerian ambassador to Spain, has implored President Muhammadu Buhari to release Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the banned Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
Mrs. Ojukwu made the request while speaking at the 10th memorial anniversary of late Igbo leader Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, which was held in Owerri on Friday.
She urged the President to consider the request for Kanu’s release made by some Igbo leaders during their recent visit to the State House in Abuja.
She stated that Kanu’s release would demonstrate Buhari’s magnanimity, adding that the call for secession is a direct result of perceived inequality in resource distribution and political appointments in the country.
She urged the governors of the South East geopolitical zone, as well as the event’s convener, Chief Ralph Uwazuruike, leader of the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra, to remember Ojukwu.
“Kanu’s release will bolster President Buhari’s commitment to healing the wounds inflicted by the Igbo nation’s sense of marginalisation,” she said.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr Ahamefula Ojukwu, son of the late Igbo leader, thanked Uwazuruike for conducting the affairs of the entire Igbo nation in unity.
He urged Igbos, particularly those in positions of authority, to uphold the legacies of his late father, whom he described as “an embodiment of selfless service and sacrifice to the Igbo cause.”
Earlier, Dr Nkem Okeke, Deputy Governor of Anambra, condemned the use of violence in the pursuit of self-determination.
He urged the Igbo people to band together and fight diplomatically in order to achieve a specific goal.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the event was attended by various Igbo groups from the country’s South-East and South-South geopolitical zones.
The cultural dances and traditional masquerade performances by various troupes were a highlight of the event.
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