Embattled leader of the proscribed separatist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, appeared in court

 Embattled leader of the proscribed separatist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, appeared in court

 On Wednesday dressed in a designer wear he wore when he was re-arrested and brought back to Nigeria in June 2021.

Seated in the courtroom with legs crossed, Kanu beamed with a smile as he took some time to pose for photos with his lawyers.

Kanu, 54, was born on September 25, 1967, at Afaraukwu, Abia State.

The secessionist leader is a holder of Nigerian and British passports. He had earlier jumped bail in June 2018 before leaving for the United Kingdom though he said that he fled because his life was no longer safe in Nigeria.

After about three years abroad, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), at a press briefing in Abuja on June 29, 2021, announced that the IPOB leader was re-arrested in a foreign country and extradited to Nigeria.

Kanu’s Lead Counsel, Ejiofor Ifeanyi, had said the IPOB leader was re-arrested in Kenya and whisked to Nigeria

However, there was confusion on Wednesday as Kanu’s team of lawyers staged a walkout over the refusal of operatives of the Department of State Services to allow some of them to gain access into the courtroom.

Though the counsel for the Federal Government and Director of Public Prosecution, M. D. Abubakar, urged the court to proceed with the trial in the absence of Kanu’s lawyers, the judge declined and adjourned the case till January 19 and 20, 2022, for trial.

Kanu’s followers in Nigeria had declared several sit-at-home orders in the South-East to protest his arrest and demand his release from the custody of the secret police.

The sit-at-home orders have been said to cripple economic activities in Imo, Abia, Anambra, Enugu and Ebonyi, especially on Mondays.

The proscribed group had also declared a sit-at-home which threatened the Anambra election but later called off the order.

 Politics

Anambra Governorship Election: I Will Congratulate Any Candidate Declared Winner By INEC, Says APC’s Uba

The candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Mr Andy Uba has said he will congratulate any candidate that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has declared a winner in the ongoing Anambra Governorship Election.

Uba stated this in a statement he released on Tuesday evening through his campaign organisation, the Senator Andy Uba Governorship Campaign Organisation, SAUGCO, and signed by the Deputy Director, Media and Publicity of the campaign, Mr Ikechukwu Emeka Onyia

He said he was commited to a peaceful election process, an attribute which he said he had “exhibited throughout the campaigns, during the election and afterwards.”

According to Uba, he ran “the most peaceful and issues-based campaign throughout the electioneering period.”

The statement praised Uba saying, “Our candidate has shown throughout the campaign and during the ongoing elections, that he is committed to a peaceful election in the state.

If you follow his campaign, you will notice that he maintained issues based engagement throughout. As we enter the final stages of the election, Uba has continued to sustain a peaceful path in our democratization process, even against anti democratic elements.”

On whether the candidate will challenge the results if it doesn’t go in his favour, Uba stated that while he believes that it will go in its favour, there were, however, issues arising from areas where the party did very well but the results therefrom were unfortunately cancelled

Our candidate will only accept a process that passes through the crucible of the law and justice.

“For now, our party and her candidate, are still positive about it’s prospects of winning the election. We are positive about coming out victorious.

‘But if it goes the other way, our candidate and the party will congratulate whoever wins once such victory can stand legal scrutiny,” and that starts from INEC decoration.

There are places that the party has pockets of issues that they are likely to challenge. But that is an issue to be decided after the entire process is completed.

For now, the most important fact to note is that Senator Andy Uba will always follow the dictates of the law in whatever decision he decides to take, with especially the overall interest of the state in mind.

As a consequence of this resolve, he is sure not to be found on the negative side of history in the cause of the Anambra governorship election.”