Governor Alex Otti of Abia State has declared that the life jail sentence given to the IPOB leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, is not the end of the road but the opening of a new vista of further engagement to secure his release.
Governor Otti, in a statement issued on Saturday, said the judgment understandably caused sorrow and shock to the people of the State, Kanu being a son of the State, but assured that he would push for the freedom through diplomacy and dialogue with the federal government.
The statement reads: “While Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is free to appeal his conviction, I’m happy to inform you that I have activated and will continue to work on the already agreed strategy until his freedom is secured.
“I’m also happy to collaborate with other well-meaning Nigerians who genuinely want this problem resolved, to push for his freedom through the same diplomacy and dialogue with the federal government, which, though it did not create the problem, can courageously and compassionately solve it and take the credit.
“I’d like to use this opportunity to appeal to our people to remain calm and refrain from utterances and actions capable of stoking fear, violence and insecurity and may negatively affect the outcome of the engagements we are already having.
“I have no doubt that with the assurances I have received from the Federal Government, a resolution is in sight and Mazi Kanu will receive his freedom.”
Governor Otti also cautioned “politicians who have positioned themselves to play petty and dirty politics with the travails of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu to jettison the idea, and rather work with us to secure his freedom” and assured of his”unwavering resolve and commitment to genuinely solving this problem with wisdom, high level dialogue and diplomacy, with a view to ensuring that genuine peace returns to the South East.”
He recalled the invasion of Kanu’s residence in Afaraukwu Ibeku by the military in 2017 and the attendant loss of lives and property, an incident he condemned in his This Day column, but regretted that the issue escalated because it was mismanaged, “hence we cannot allow it to linger and create a bigger monstrous situation for us.”
The governor disclosed that, “While the trial that led to this conviction lasted, I personally engaged the authorities at the highest level, starting from December 22, 2023, on an alternative resolution strategy.
” I must state that some agreements were made which were dependent on the quick dispensation of the matter at the federal high court. Unfortunately, the matter dragged on until this time.
“I am confident that judgment having been delivered, the alternative resolution will now kick in. It is instructive that this strategy was explained to Mazi Nnamdi Kanu when I visited him while he was in the DSS Custody earlier in the year.”
