Senators from the South-east have met with the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, to demand the release of the detained leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) Nnamdi Kanu.
The senators made the call on Wednesday in Abuja during their close-door meeting with Mr Fagbemi.
The senators, numbering 15, were led by Enyinnaya Abaribe (APGA, Abia South).
They claimed that unless Mr Kanu were released, social and economic activities in the South-east region would continue to be stagnant.
The senators handed over their letter of appeal for the release to Mr Fagbemi for onward transmission to President Bola Tinubu.
Mr Abaribe, a former deputy governor of Abia State, who spoke to journalists on behalf of his colleagues, lamented that the economy and social life in the South-east had suffered enough due to the continued incarceration of the Biafra nation agitator.
He noted with grave concern that the peaceful demand of the detained IPOB leader had been hijacked by hoodlums and hardened criminals, leading to wanton killings of innocent people, including security operatives.
Mr Abaribe said he had already met with Mr Kanu at the headquarters of the State Security Service (SSS) and that Mr Kanu had agreed to abide by any conditional release.
He expressed optimism that once Mr Kanu is released, the tension and acrimonies engulfing the South-east region since 2021 when he was clamped into SSS custody would become a thing of the past.
The senators, therefore, pleaded with the AGF to convey their message to President Tinubu and for the AGF to use his position to terminate all charges brought against the IPOB leader by the federal government.
They said that virtually all political leaders, religious leaders and stakeholders have unanimously agreed that Mr Kanu be released for peace to bounce back to the region.
It would be recalled that Mr Kanu was re-arrested in Kenya in 2021 by the federal government and brought to the country for trial on terrorism charges.
Although he pleaded not guilty to the charges, Binta Nyako, a judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja, declined to admit him to bail on the ground that he had earlier jumped bail in which Mr Abaribe was his surety.
Mr Kanu has been in the custody of the SSS on the orders of the court.
(NAN)
