The American Veterans of Igbo Descent (AVID) has challenged Nigeria’s National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, stating that he lacks the moral authority to label the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) as a terrorist organization or accuse them of being responsible for attacks on police stations and correctional centers across the country.
In a strongly worded statement issued on Sunday and signed by its leader, Chief Dr. Sylvester Onyia, the group described Ribadu’s comments as “brazen lies, hate speech, and incitement” that are not only sub judice but also represent “a disgraceful abuse of public office.”
AVID warned that declaring IPOB guilty in the media while the trial of its leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, is ongoing amounts to a gross interference with judicial independence, an action that, in any civilized democracy, should warrant immediate sanctions from the courts.
Reacting to Ribadu’s recent remarks attributing violent attacks to IPOB and its security wing, the Eastern Security Network (ESN), the group described his claims as “ridiculous, absurd, and unacceptable,” accusing him of hypocrisy for turning a blind eye to terrorist violence in his own region.
“It is appalling that Ribadu, who oversees an intelligence community accused by its own witnesses of misconduct, feels emboldened to pronounce IPOB guilty through the media,” the statement read in part.
“Let us remind Ribadu that on May 22, 2025, a key government witness (PW-BBB) testified under oath that Nigeria’s Department of State Services (DSS)—the secret police—is under the control of the National Intelligence Agency and, by extension, the National Security Adviser. Yet, the same Ribadu has interfered in an ongoing judicial process by pre-judging IPOB in public.”
The group further accused Ribadu of double standards, saying he has failed to address the killings and displacement caused by armed Fulani militias and terrorists across the North.
“You have no moral standing to speak of terrorism while blood flows freely in Sokoto, Zamfara, Niger, Borno, Katsina, and other states ravaged by banditry and insurgency,” the statement continued.
“Mallam Ribadu, how many times have you addressed the media about the sacking of indigenous villages in the Middle Belt and South by Fulani herdsmen? How many Nigerians have died from hunger and disease in overcrowded IDP camps in the North?”
AVID, which represents Igbo individuals who have served or are currently serving in the United States Armed Forces, called on the federal government to respect judicial processes and stop weaponizing public offices against dissenting voices and ethnic minorities.
