Founder of the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), Chief Ralph Uwazurike, has expressed readiness to lead a peaceful protest in Abuja or any part of the country to demand the release of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

Kanu, who once served as Director of Media under Uwazurike in MASSOB before founding IPOB in London, has been in detention following his controversial rendition to Nigeria in 2021.

In a video message released on Wednesday, Uwazurike described Kanu’s continued incarceration as a political injustice against the Igbo nation, stressing that the issue transcends the individual and reflects broader discrimination against the South-East.

“I’ve listened to the court proceedings and the presentations by Nnamdi Kanu’s lawyers, and I want to say that I wish to be part of any peaceful demonstration in Abuja or anywhere in Nigeria for his release,” Uwazurike declared.

He revealed that he had contacted Kanu’s lawyer, Barrister Alloy Ejimakor, to volunteer as one of the defence witnesses for the IPOB leader.

Uwazurike emphasized that the planned protest would be entirely peaceful and non-violent, adding that it was motivated by a sense of justice rather than politics.

“This is not just about Nnamdi Kanu; this is about Ndigbo. If anybody thinks that Kanu is being humiliated today, no — it is Ndigbo that are being humiliated,” he said.

He questioned what he described as double standards in the federal government’s handling of terrorism-related cases, arguing that it was unjust to negotiate with insurgents from one region while detaining others from another region under the same pretext.

According to him, “This has nothing to do with terrorism but with deep-rooted injustice against Ndigbo. We must do this for the future of our children. I will be there.” (Vanguard)