IPOB accuses DSS of keeping Kanu in 23-hour solitary confinement

By PAMELA EBOH, Awka

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has raised the alarm over the continuous detention of its leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, in a solitary confinement at the Department of State Security (DSS) headquarters Abuja, saying that he was being held in solitary confinement for 23 hours daily.

IPOB in a statement by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, accused the Presiding Judge, Hon. Justice Binta Nyako, of being an accomplice to the suffering of its leader who, the group noted, committed no crime known to law in Nigeria and the world.

The group said that Nyako refused to ensure that DSS obliged and respect the fundamental rights of Kanu as provided by extant laws.

The statement partly reads: “We are watching her and DSS. If anything untoward happens to our leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, in DSS custody, that they will regret his rendition from Kenya to Nigeria.

“Our leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, is being held in solitary confinement for 23 hours every day.

“We raise this alarm again to the public to tell the world that Justice Binta Nyako is giving a blind eye to the impunity of the DSS against our leader. A judge should be fair to all, especially the accused who has not been convicted. Kanu should not be treated with brutality simply because he is an Igbo.

“The fact that all orders made by the court presided over by Justice Binta Nyako about the welfare and management of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu at the DSS dungeon were all flouted by the detaining authority and DSS without being reprimanded or committed for contempt, the presiding Judge exposed herself to the world that she is serving other interests, not the interest of Nigeria. This has further exposed her vulnerability and bias in this matter.

“Solitary confinement of innocent person is a crime as stipulated under Section 2 of the Anti-torture Act of 2017, which offence attracts 25 years imprisonment upon conviction. One will begin to wonder why should a Judge be a party to the commission of this heinous crime against Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and the entire race like Biafra.

“It is no longer in controversy that Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is detained in a solitary confinement where he is daily subjected to mental and emotional torture because of his belief for Biafra freedom and independence.”

The group called on men and women of good conscience, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Intersociety and reputable human rights organisations across the globe to prevail on Nigeria government and security agencies, particularly the DSS, as well as Justice Binta Nyako to release Nnamdi Kanu.

IPOB stressed that the health condition of Kanu needs urgent attention, saying that he should not be allowed to die in detention as such scenario would not be in the interest of anybody.