Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has accused the federal government of promoting impunity, perfidy and unconstitutionality by lodging an appealing at the Supreme Court against the Appeal Court judgement which freed the leader of the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

According to HURIWA, the federal government committed what it called legal sacrilege by disrespecting the binding judgment of the appellate court on Kanu.

The group insisted that the disobedience by federal government to the definitive verdict of the appellate court “shows deep seated hatred of the Igbo ethnic nationality because the President is aware of the probable explosive security implication for Ndigbo of the continuous illegal detention of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu but did not budge.”

ARIWA noted that the President rather “danmed the consequences on purpose hoping that civil unrests or riotous protests will break out in the South East so soldiers will be drafted to have incredible excuse to kill off Igbo youths.”

It recalled that the Court of Appeal in Abuja, on Thursday last week, struck out the terrorism charges filed against Kanu by the government and ordered his release from the custody of the Directorate of State Service (DSS).

The court had held that the IPOB leader was “extra-ordinarily renditioned” to Nigeria and that the action was a flagrant violation of the country’s extradition treaty and also a breach of Kanu’s fundamental human rights.

However, the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, in a statement, late Thursday, through his spokesperson, Umar Gwandu, argued the Court of Appeal only discharged Kanu and did not acquit him. He indicated that the government would not release Kanu despite the court ruling.

“Let it be made clear to the general public that other issues that predate rendition on the basis of which Kanu jumped bail remain valid issues for judicial determination.

“The Federal Government will consider all available options open to us on judgment on rendition while pursuing determination of pre-rendition issues,” Mr Malami had said.

HURIWA recalled that in a counter-reaction to Malami’s tepid and legally vexatious submission, Nnamdi Kanu’s lead Counsel and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Mike Ozekhome, said the DSS should let Kanu go home immediately after his lawyers must have presented the certified true copy of the judgment.

Ozekhome said: “What it (the ruling) means is that Nnamdi Kanu was discharged today. That means he is a free man. And he should be allowed to go home tomorrow by the time we get a certified true copy of the judgment, we will serve it to the Office of the Attorney-General and the DSS to allow Nnamdi Kanu go. Let my people go.”

In a statement endorsed by the its National Coordinator, Comrade mmanuel Onwbiko, HURIWA said by President Buhari went to the Supreme Court of Nigeria seeking stay of execution of the Appeal Court’s decision and further seeks the invalidation of the judgment and described the federal government was being hypocritical “because it was in flagrant breach of a binding Appeal Court’s judgment and had gone to equity with dirty hands by failing to comply with the judgment before appealing.”

HURIWA said the same President Buhari had, through the Justice Ministry, in another matter at the National industrial Court it filed and won against Academic Staff Union of Universities, argued that ASUU couldn’t institute any application for a stay of execution or appeal the ruling unless it first of all respected the decision of the court ordering the then striking Unionists to resume their duties.

The rights group therefore wondered how such an administration that has two morally self-contradictory standards over the same related issue of respecting judgment before appeal is now before the Supreme Court to deny Mazi Nnamdi Kanu of his constitutionally guaranteed fundamental freedoms as reinstated by the court of Appeal. HURIWA said “by this act of infamy, the federal government has brought shame and opprobrium to the image of Nigeria Internationally and locally.”

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