By Ishola Adeleke, YeyeNews.com, December 8, 2021
The detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu (MNK) may be released soon following negotiations with the government being brokered by some elders of the southeast, a source familiar with the happenings told YeyeNews.com. The source reiterated that the negotiations centered on MNK renouncing his demand for secession of the southeast and for him to join a political party to champion the struggle for regional autonomy within the federation.
“Some of the conditions is that he should join a political party. He will also not travel out of the country for the next two years. Though some people in the government side are lobbying that the condition should stipulate he joins the APC, hoping that the move will improve the party’s fortune in the southeast. They insist President Buhari is doing a great favor to him which should be reciprocated by joining the president’s party. But it seems MNK’s people are more inclined to him joining APGA”.
But a source close to the IPOB spokesman disclosed to YeyeNews.com that there is no possibility of MNK agreeing to join the APC upon his release. “We have the upper hand in the negotiations so we will determine what conditions are acceptable. Our leader will be released unconditionally and he will lead all Umuchineke into APGA. Then we are going to sweep the entire southeast from governorship to councilor. At that time the real fight for self determination will begin. Those efulefus think they have cornered us but we are going to use their advantage against them”, the source declared.
Recall that Nnamdi Kanu was kidnapped in Kenya and smuggled into Nigeria. Since his kidnap there has been series of attacks against security agents in the southeast allegedly carried out by members of IPOB. As a way to prevent an escalation of the violence government has agreed to a political solution to the crisis. A source in the presidency revealed that some powerful political interest in the southeast are completely against the release of Kanu unless he agrees to join the APC.
“They fear that if he joins APGA upon release, the fortune of APC in the region will vanish. You know Kanu enjoys massive support among the youths there so any party he joins will become a massive force in the region. They will totally dominate the politics of the region. But the power brokers in APC are already looking way beyond the southeast. They are willing to sacrifice the region for the bigger prize of the 2023 presidency. They believe if MNK can commit to supporting the APC presidential candidate in 2023, irrespective of which party he joins, then they are assured of victory. So the permutation is basically a north and southeast alliance for 2023 elections. They want to sideline the southwest, retain the presidency in the north and choose a vice president from the southeast”, the source explained.
