We Can’t move forward like this – Igwe Agubuzu tells Tinubu to release Nnamdi Kanu

The Igwe of Ezema Olo in Ezeagu LGA, Enugu State, His Royal Highness Ambassador Dr. Lawrence Agubuzu, has asked President Bola Tinubu to release Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), and return him to Kenya or the United Kingdom if the authorities are not comfortable with his presence in Nigeria.

Kanu was arrested in Kenya during the administration of the late Muhammadu Buhari and brought back to Nigeria to face trial on terrorism charges.

The IPOB leader was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Federal High Court last year and is currently being held at the maximum security prison in Sokoto.

Many prominent Igbo leaders have been appealing to Tinubu to release the agitator.

The monarch warned that keeping the pro-Biafra leader in custody was fueling anger and restiveness among young people in the Southeast.

Agubuzu spoke at the 2026 National Traditional and Religious Leaders Summit on Health, held at the State House Conference Centre in Abuja.

He said, “Having come now to Abuja and listened to His Royal Majesty, the Ooni of Ife, who was urging all of us to work as a family, to work as a team, and to see Nigeria as one, I thought maybe this is good.

“But when you look at it, this same Ooni of Ife is planning to confer a very high honour on Sunday Igboho who, in my part of the country, we see as the Southwest counterpart of Nnamdi Kanu. The Imperial Majesty does not seem to understand the pain in my heart when Nnamdi Kanu is in Sokoto. So, sir, the ball is in your court.

“Bring this man out. If we don’t want him in Nigeria, send him back to Kenya or London, where he came from. Please do something about this,” Agubuzu told the President.

“We can’t move forward in this country unless we face the truth.”

DAILY POST reports that the summit, themed “The Role of Traditional and Religious Leaders in Advancing the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative,” was convened to increase community involvement in health system reforms.

The event, however, took an unexpected turn during the goodwill messages when Agubuzu raised the issue of Kanu’s fate.

He added, “I must tell you, Mr. President, that I don’t feel very happy because you weren’t here in the morning when the Ooni of Ife delivered the opening speech and encouraged everyone to work together as one.”