… says he might have been killed in last year’s invasion
- Our parents may be dead too – Brother
- We know nothing about Kanu, parents – Army
- They were in the palace before the invasion – Community leader
- Family petitions Commonwealth
The family of Nnamdi Kanu, the missing leader of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra, raised the alarm, on Sunday, about the safety of their son, saying there were indications that he might have been killed by rampaging soldiers on the day the Military invaded their Abia State country home.
Kanu’s younger brother, Emmanuel Kanu, who spoke exclusively to our correspondent on behalf of the family, indicated that their father, a traditional ruler; and mother, might have been killed too, during the invasion code-named, ‘Operation Crocodile Smile’.
The Army authorities, however, at the weekend, denied having the missing IPOB leader and his parents in their custody. They also denied knowledge of their whereabouts.
They were all present in the palace when the invaders, who were armed to the teeth, started bombarding it. “While we can safely assume that they had been killed, as far as the family is concerned, they are in the custody of the troops that invaded the palace and they should be held accountable for them
Troops had invaded Kanu’s father’s palace in Isiama Afaraukwu Ibeku, Umuahia North Local Government Area of Abia State on September 14, 2017, during which scores of locals reportedly died. Several members of the IPOB were also arrested.
The soldiers reportedly went in search of Kanu, who had drawn the ire of the Federal Government over his campaigns for another secession of the Easterners and adjourning ethnic groups, to relive the defunct Biafra Republic.
The late former military governor of the defunct Eastern Nigeria, Col. Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu (as he then was) had seceded from Nigeria and founded the Biafra State, which led to a fratricidal civil war that lasted from 1967 to 1970.
Emmanuel, popularly referred to as Fine Boy, said ever since the soldiers attacked their home, the whereabouts of Kanu and their parents had been unknown, thus fueling the belief that they might have been killed during the sudden bombardment.
The outspoken younger brother of the missing IPOB leader, who is in his mid-30s, and who has assumed the position of spokesman for the IPOB, said, “They were all present in the palace when the invaders, who were armed to the teeth, started bombarding it.
“While we can safely assume that they had been killed, as far as the family is concerned, they are in the custody of the troops that invaded the palace and they should be held accountable for them.”
He disclosed that, not being comfortable with the silence of the Federal Government on the matter, the family’s international lawyers had petitioned the Commonwealth Organisation, to pile pressure on the Nigerian government to produce them, either dead or alive.
He termed the 2017 invasion as “the massive destruction of lives and property the troop visited on the community for no just cause other than the just advocacy of the IPOB leader for the emancipation of his people from the oppressive feudal powers in Nigeria, led by the Sokoto Caliphate.”
The Kanu that I know is not someone who will escape to a hideout and cease from communicating with the outside world. Ever since the event happened, we’ve ceased to hear from him; no communication with his immediate family, much less the IPOB members or even friends for that matter
“We don’t know whether they are alive or dead. If they are alive, we don’t know the condition under which they are being kept. We don’t know their health condition,” he said.
Speaking in the same vein, another family member, a man in his 50s, who opted for anonymity, told The Point that the family believed that Kanu was killed on the day of the invasion and his corpse possibly evacuated, because ever since the invasion took place, nothing had been heard from him again.
“The Kanu that I know is not someone who will escape to a hideout and cease from communicating with the outside world. Ever since the event happened, we’ve ceased to hear from him; no communication with his immediate family, much less the IPOB members or even friends for that matter,” he claimed.
The family member dismissed the suggestion that the Niger Delta militants had taken him away to the creeks to train him in military offensives and tactics.
“If that had been the case, he would have been issuing press statements from his hideout, in response to various national issues, which was his natural habit,” the source explained.
WE KNOW NOTHING ABOUT KANU, PARENTS’ WHEREABOUTS- ARMY
However, military authorities said at the weekend that neither Kanu nor his parents were in their custody.
The Director, Army Public Relations, Brig General Texas Chukwu told The Point on the phone that nobody in the military had any information concerning the whereabouts of both the IPOB leader and his parents.
In the brief telephone conversation, Chukwu quipped, “Are we holding the guy and his parents? I don’t know. Actually, they (troops) never told us anything about them.”
‘IPOB PROSCRIPTION UNCALLED FOR’
Emmanuel also condemned the proscription of the IPOB, saying it was uncalled for.
He said, “The IPOB was not a security threat to the country as Fulani herdsmen have been. The herdsmen have been tormenting the country, killing defenceless people and destroying their property, yet the Federal Government has not called them to order. We don’t believe in arms struggle to achieve our aim. We have truth, which is stronger than any weapon you can think of.
“The song by the Caliphate about ‘One Nigeria’ is because of the oil deposit in the southern part of the country. Remove the oil tomorrow and they will sing a different song.”
Fine Boy also came down hard on some Igbo governors and leaders, noting that they played Judas, destroying the idea for which Nnamdi Kanu stood.
He further lamented, “Our Igbo leaders, especially the governors, did not help matters. They conspired with the Federal Government to destroy or truncate the struggle; but one day, they will pay dearly for it. As for the palace, it has been desecrated; so we can no longer enter there. Even the cars are to remain there to tell our story. We don’t care how long the palace will remain as it is, we don’t care. The struggle will continue, even if there is one man left standing.
“We have recorded so many mysterious deaths in the community and our enquiry from the gods proved that they were connected with the wanton destruction of lives in the palace. The walls are smeared with blood.”
Also reacting, a community leader, Chief Ndubueze Ikechukwu, said the disappearance of Kanu and his parents was still befuddling to the members of the Afaraukwu community, as efforts by community chiefs and elders to track them had not yielded any fruitful result.
Ikechukwu, who is the President General, Isiama Afaraukwu Ibeku Autonomous Community, said, “In fact, the question about his whereabouts, and his parents’ is ambiguous. There is more to it than meets the eye. We know that they were in the place (palace), intact, until the invasion. That was the place where they were last seen, but since after the invasion, nobody has set eyes on them.
“In my capacity as the President General of the community, who is the head of the political arm of the community, I have made efforts to reach either the monarch or Kanu himself on their cell phones, to no avail. Their lines have been switched off since then.
“It has been very difficult for me leading the people. You can imagine how tasking it could be, combining both responsibilities. As far as our tradition demands, we cannot elect or choose another monarch until we have ascertained whether he (Kanu’s father) is alive or not.”
He added, “We cannot say for sure where Kanu is. We do not know who is holding him or the condition he is in. During the invasion, there were so many killings that we don’t have the records of who perished or survived. And mind you, we have been so policed that our liberty has been curtailed.
“And another thing is that, the palace has been desecrated by the wanton destruction of lives. We cannot enter there until it is cleansed spiritually. There was so much spilling of blood in the palace during the invasion. The mysterious deaths we have been experiencing in the community could be attributed to the spirits which need to be appeased.”
PALACE DESERTED
During the reign of the now proscribed IPOB, the palace of the father of its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, was its headquarters. And it never saw a dull moment all day through.
A day never passed without his scores of supporters gamboling in vehicles bearing the flags of the defunct Biafra Republic, and trooping into the palace to pay obeisance to Kanu, the leader.
But since September 14, 2017, when a troop of Nigerian soldiers invaded it in search of Kanu, the palace has become a shadow of its former self.
Our correspondent observed that the main gate to the palace has remained shut, just as the surrounding is full of grasses. The once shining Red-Green-Black Biafran flags, hoisted on the external wall, are gradually fading. Three bullet-ridden cars abandoned at the gate after the invasion, are lying in waste.
It was also observed that passersby now approached the frontage of the palace with fear.
Life in the sleepy community, within the vicinity of the Government House, Umuahia, has, however, returned to normal. Both government and private organisations operating there, it was observed, are fully back in business. But both the Kanu family and the leadership of the community have yet to come to terms with the event of that day, which had led to the disappearance of Kanu and his parents.
‘HE DID NOTHING TO WARRANT MILITARY INVASION’
Rationalising the scenario, an Umuahia, Abia State-based civil rights lawyer, Comrade Emerson Azubuike, said the bombardment of Kanu’s parent’s home and his disappearance along with his parents, could not be justified in any way, because Kanu was not armed but merely agitating for the rights of his Igbo people.
Azubuike said, “Initially, there were conflicting reports by his brother and lawyer about his whereabouts after the invasion. Some said he escaped before the arrival of the soldiers, while others insisted that he was there. But as things heightened, a sort of concussion set in. We are no longer sure whether he escaped or not. We are also not sure whether he is alive or not.
“No Nigerian can beat his chest and say he knows where he is. Only time will tell. As for me, he did nothing that warranted the treatment he was given. He had no gun. His supporters were not armed. What he was saying was that if we could not be accommodated in the country, we should be allowed to go
our way.”
However, speaking to our correspondent at Allwell Bus Stop, a common meeting place for Biafran agitators, a tricycle operator, who pleaded not to be identified, was optimistic that the IPOB leader was still alive and would be heard from soon.
The operator, who claimed to have served in the Biafra Boys Company during the Nigeria Civil War, said, “If the worst comes, but God forbid, He will raise another leader like Kanu for us, who will be generally acceptable by the people.
“The struggle is in phases. So, it will continue until we achieve our ultimate aim, which is, the State of Biafra. Our enemies may think they have won the battle, congratulations to them. But at the end of the day, we will win the war.”
