- Femi Adesina reveals that President Buhari’s government considered subjecting Nnamdi Kanu to the judicial system rather than drastic actions
- Adesina highlights Buhari’s response to the delegation, emphasizing the government’s favor to Kanu by allowing him a legal process
Former Special Adviser to ex-President Muhammadu Buhari on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, revealed that Buhari’s government extended favour to Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), by extraditing him to Nigeria.
Adesina shared this perspective in his book, ‘ Reflections of a Special Adviser, Media and Publicity (2015-2023),’ launched in Abuja last week. Quoting Buhari’s response to a delegation under the name ‘Highly-Respected Igbo Greats,’ Adesina emphasized the government’s decision to subject Kanu to the judicial system instead of taking drastic actions.
“In the past six years, I have developed a system where I don’t interfere with the judiciary. That was why, in the case of Kanu, I said the best was to subject him to the system,” Adesina quoted his principal.
He further explained that offering Kanu the opportunity to make his case in court was a significant favour, considering the alternative could have been mobilizing to eliminate him. In his response to the delegation, Buhari acknowledged the gravity of their request, stating, “The demand you have made is heavy, but I will consider it.”
Chief Mbazulike Amaechi, a First Republic Minister of Aviation, led the delegation, urging the unconditional release of Nnamdi Kanu. Amaechi, then 93, expressed the painful and pathetic situation in the East, seeking Buhari’s intervention for a solution. He vowed that if Kanu were released to him, “he will no longer say the things he used to say.”