A Niger Delta leader, Asari Dokubo, on Friday, asked President Bola Tinubu not to release the leader of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
Since his re-arrest in 2021, the embattled IPOB leader has been in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS). He is standing trial for terrorism.
A Federal High Court in Abuja had granted him bail in 2017 but he flouted the bail conditions and subsequently fled the country. He was thereafter re-arrested. Former President Muhammadu Buhari had resisted pressure to release Kanu, but with the entry of a new government, fresh calls are being made for the IPOB leader’s release.
But addressing journalists after meeting with President Tinubu, the Niger Delta leader said Kanu should face the law.
“Releasing Nnamdi Kanu is rewarding criminality and rewarding gruesome murder of innocent people,” he said at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. “He should face the law for the actions and instigations he has carried out.
“On security, I want to clearly say that there are full-scale wars going on in different parts of this country. In the South East, the IPOB/ESN is waging a full-scale war against the government of this country and many local governments, many communities are deserted, schools are closed, and hospitals are closed.”
Away from the IPOB leader, Dokubo also spoke about crude oil theft in the country, accusing the military of masterminding it.
He also claimed that some powerful cabals operating from Abuja are involved in the crime.
Dokubo, however, said President Tinubu has promised to investigate the allegations and also halt the trend.
He expressed joy that these powerful forces have now met their match in Tinubu.
The Niger Delta leader also volunteered to use his men to assist in tackling crude oil theft in Nigeria.