The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has said that the Governor of Anambra State, Chukwuma Soludo’s rejection of the call by Mr Peter Obi for the release of Nnamdi Kanu from prison is a tragic betrayal and painful display of hypocrisy.
 
Describing the stance of the governor as “political desperation”, the IPOB stated that his position was also an insult to the memory of great Igbo icons and others who had “fearlessly”, asked for Kanu’s release.

The Special Adviser on Media to the Anambra State Governor, Ejimofor Opara, has faulted the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Obi, over his comment on the Kanu case.

Opara Obi’s stance as a “major slap” not just on the Nigerian judiciary, but also as an insult to the judiciary of Finland, where Simon Ekpa, described as Kanu’s protégé, was tried, found guilty, and is currently serving a six-year jail term for terrorism-related offences.
 
IPOB, yesterday, stated that Soludo’s attack on Obi was “treacherous and in bad faith”.

In a statement signed by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, the group asked when Soludo turned against Kanu, after earlier speaking glowingly of him and paying him a visit at the Department of State Services (DSS).
 
“Let it be known to the world that on Friday, May 13, 2022, the same Soludo made a high-profile visit to Kanu at the DSS facility in Abuja. He sat with our leader, shook his hands, looked into his eyes, and publicly demanded his release.
 
“He went as far as offering to stand as surety for Kanu. As recently as March 2025, Soludo’s own Commissioner for Information, Mr Law Mefor, boasted that the governor ‘has been actively working towards Kanu’s release’ because he believed it would restore peace in the South-East.
 
“Today, the same Soludo, through his government, describes Obi’s identical call for justice as ‘a slap on the Nigerian judiciary’ and claims it undermines judicial processes. This is not statesmanship. This is the height of treachery and political chameleonic behaviour,” the IPOB stated.

The group reminded Soludo that no man with “authentic Igbo blood” flowing in his veins turns against the freedom of his own brother after riding on that same cause to power.
 
“You visited Kanu in detention when you needed Igbo votes and his moral endorsement to become governor. Now that you occupy the seat, you have turned against him and the people who put you there, all in pursuit of crumbs from Abuja.
 
“The same judiciary you now defend with fake reverence is the one that has held our leader in illegal, dehumanising detention for years in clear violation of court orders. Yet, you chose to defend oppression against your own brother for personal gain,” the group added.
 
IPOB noted that the demand for Kanu’s release is not an Igbo affair alone, adding that well-meaning Nigerians had continued to call for his freedom.