Presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi has been accused of allegedly being behind the continued detention of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, at the Directorate of State Services (DSS) facility.
A source, according to Vanguard Newspaper, who is an IPOB insider, said Obi may have allegedly had a pact with the DSS and the Attorney-General of the Federation, AGF to ensure that Kanu remained in prison custody until after the election.
The source, hinted that if Kanu regains his freedom before the election, he could declare sit-at-home in the Southeast zone on the election day and truncate Obi’s anticipated massive votes from the zone which is his stronghold.
The IPOB insider, said unfortunately, the freedom of Kanu has been sacrificed on the altar of Obi’s ambition to the extent that Obi is secretly behind his continued illegal detention.
“The fear of Mr Peter Obi and the Western world is not unconnected with Obi’s perceived likely negative effect the release of the Biafran leader could have on his chances in the Southeast, where he hopes to amass votes.
“The desire of the people of the former break-away region of Biafra, the Igbos to produce a Nigerian President amidst the unwritten post-civil war policies designed to keep the Igbos in check and to deny them a shot at the highest position in the land since after the fratricidal civil war that ended on 15th January 1970 has continued to agitate the people of the region.
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“The Labour Party Presidential candidate is the real reason the Department of State Service, DSS and the office of the Attorney General of the Federation, AGF have refused to set free Mazi Nnamdi Kanu as ordered by the Court of Appeal since last August and Obi’s imprimatur in the whole saga is becoming evident.
“The fear of a possible election boycott if Kanu is released and the consequences of its attendant massive compliance in the Southeast region as latter events have proved has remained a worrisome possibility to Mr Peter Obi as the Southeast remains the strongest base where he hopes to get bulk votes, hence his obsession to Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s release,” the source added.
IPOB spokesperson, Emma Powerful, reacting to these claims, also told Vanguard that the pro-Biafra group has no business with the general election.
“IPoB does not have any interest whatsoever in the election, neither do we have any interest in any candidate. We have said it time without number that whether Nnamdi Kanu come out from prison custody or not, IPoB will neither participate nor constitute an obstacle to the electorate by declaring sit-at-home on election day.
“Although our members are not going to vote since IPoB has nothing to do with the election, but we are not going to stop anybody from voting, neither are we going to force anybody to vote. Anybody who comes out that day to force people to vote or stop people from voting is an enemy of Biafra.”
Addressing if Peter Obi is behind Nnamdi Kanu’s detention, Powerful said: “we will set machinery in motion and if it turns out to be true that he has hand in Kanu’s continued illegal detention, we will pay him back in his own coin”.
