Ohanaeze Youth Council Backs October 20 Nationwide Protest for Nnamdi Kanu’s Release

The Ohanaeze Youth Council (OYC) has thrown its full support behind the planned nationwide protest on October 20 calling for the release of detained Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

The protest, spearheaded by activist and African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Omoyele Sowore, seeks to draw attention to what organisers describe as the “selective justice” in Nigeria’s treatment of agitators and insurgents.

In a statement issued on Monday, the National President of OYC, Comrade Igboayaka O. Igboayaka, condemned the continued detention and prosecution of Kanu, describing it as a grave injustice and a threat to national unity.

“The urgent and persuasive call to release Nnamdi Kanu became clear when Boko Haram members and bandits were granted amnesty and even reintegrated into the Nigerian Army,” Igboayaka said. “This has raised nationwide and global questions on why the Federal Government continues to incarcerate Kanu.”

He added that the October 20 Pan-Nigeria protest would send a strong message that all citizens, regardless of ethnic or religious background, deserve equal treatment under the law.

“If the government can negotiate with terrorists and forgive them, then there is no moral justification for keeping Nnamdi Kanu in detention,” he said. “This protest represents a collective demand for justice and fairness.”

The OYC leader also urged political, religious, and traditional leaders across the South-East to join the movement, calling for unity among Igbos in demanding Kanu’s unconditional release.

“I call on Igbo leaders, past and present, including governors, senators, members of the National Assembly, bishops, and traditional rulers, to raise their voices in solidarity,” he appealed. “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu should act in the interest of national stability and order the Attorney General to withdraw all charges against Kanu.”

The protest, according to Sowore’s organisers, will take place across several Nigerian cities and is expected to attract broad participation from civil society groups and human rights activists.