Pan-Yoruba sociopolitical group, Afenifere says it has no basis for appealing to the Federal Government to release Yoruba Nation agitator, Sunday Adeyemo aka Sunday Igboho and will not be doing so.
The group said that Igboho did not commit any offence whatsoever and there was no charge of criminal conduct against him in any court.
The group however called on FG to obey the judgement of the Oyo State High Court which granted N20 billion in punitive damages in favour of Igboho for the invasion of his home by the Department of State Services (DSS) on July 1, 2021.
Afenifere was reacting to a recent visit by some prominent Igbo stakeholders led by First Republic Minister of Aviation, Mbazulike Amaechi to the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
During the visit, the Igbo leaders appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to unconditionally release detained Leader of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
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Although the president described the request as a “heavy one”, he promised to put it into consideration.
Igboho is currently in detention in Benin Republic after he was nabbed trying to fly to Germany from the Cotonou Airport on July 19, 2021.
General Secretary of Afenifere, Sola Ebiseni said, “We do not have to beg the President to release Sunday Igboho. Sunday Igboho did not commit any offence whatsoever; that’s our position. Those who went to invade his house were terrorists in Nigerian security uniform and they have no right whatsoever and that has been tested in a court of competent jurisdiction. Igboho has been absolved and the government was visited with N20bn worth of damages.
“There is no basis for the Yoruba people to beg the Federal Government to release Sunday Igboho.
“In spite of the impunity of the Buhari government, we insist that Nigeria shall not be governed except by the rule of law.
“The deep night invasion of Sunday Igboho’s house with the aim of killing him which resulted in killing of two of his companions and wanton destruction of his property is already adjudged by a court of competent jurisdiction as a most barbaric act of state terrorism with the sum of N20bn in damages.”