KANU’S lawyer petitions Gov. Nwifuru, others over unwarranted detention of IPOB members in prison

By Uchenna Okeh Abakaliki 

The leading counsel to the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu has petitioned Ebonyi State Governor Francis Nwifuru over alleged unwarranted detention of 36 members of the group in the Abakaliki correctional centre.

The lawyer, Ifeanyi Ejiofor also petitioned the state Chief Judge, Justice Elvis Ngene and the state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Ben Odo and urged them to intervene to ensure the release of the IPOB members who, according to him, are innocent citizens of the state.

He lamented that the innocent 36 members of IPOB were detained at the Abakaliki correctional center for four years without trial.

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Ejiofor emphasized that the 36 detainees were discharged by high courts in the state four times but they have been in detention since 2021 after they were discharged by the courts.

He described their continued detention as a mockery of the judicial process and  assault to democratic institutions, and called for their immediate release.

The lawyer wondered why courts will make an order discharging citizens who were brought before them and it will not be obeyed.

Ejiofor who made this known while speaking with newsmen in Abakaliki said: “This case has a chequered history of course and over time narrated the targeting of the case ; how far we have gone and where we are today.

“So, they  have been, on four successive occasions, discharged and acquitted by the high courts of Ebonyi State before we are here for this last charge.

“However, between this intervening period, I made a strongly worded petition to the executive Governor of Ebonyi State and copied the Chief Judge of Ebonyi State and the state Attorney General, requesting that the court order should be complied with.

“The compliance to the court order entails immediate and unconditional release of the inmates because what we are seeing being played out here is a mockery of judicial process and it is an assault to democratic institution where court will make an order discharging citizens who were brought before them on frivolous charges in 2nd, 3rd, 4th occasions and they are still being kept in custody.

“So, we have to take a bull by the horns by formally writing to the executive Governor of the state, let’s assume that he was not aware of the development and the Chief of the state because it is compelling we do that”, he stated.