Africa-Press – Nigeria. The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has rejected the judgment of the Federal High Court in Abuja sentencing its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, to life imprisonment on seven terrorism-related charges.
This was contained in a statement by IPOB’s spokesman, Emma Powerful, on Friday.
According to the group, Kanu committed no offence recognized by Nigerian law, maintaining that his agitation amounted only to self-determination, which it argued is a protected right under international conventions.
Powerful faulted the judgment delivered by Justice James Omotosho, accusing the judge of refusing to apply Section 36(12) of the 1999 Constitution, which states that a person shall not be convicted of an offence unless it is defined in a written law.
“The IPOB wishes to inform the global community, diplomatic missions, international media, and lovers of freedom that we shall, in the coming days and weeks, lay bare the fundamental defects, contradictions, and illegalities that define the recent ruling issued by Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
“For the avoidance of doubt, no gun, no grenade, no GPMG, no explosive, and no attack plan was ever found on Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. None. No witness, civilian or military, ever testified before any court at any stage that Mazi Nnamdi Kanu committed any offence known to Nigerian or international law. This is an undeniable fact.
“The only thing the Federal Government continues to criminalise is self-determination, a right guaranteed under Article 20 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Article 1 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and Article 1 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
“Self-determination is a protected right, not a crime. Agitation is not terrorism, and requesting a referendum is not a weapon.”
IPOB also argued that insecurity in the South-East escalated while Kanu was in the custody of the Department of State Services, stating that incidents recorded during that period could not be attributed to him.
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