Pro-Biafran group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has written Russian President, Mr. Vladimir Putin, to confer with his Nigerian counterpart, Muhammadu Buhari, on how to address the demands of the group.
Putin, who has been the President of Russia since May 7, 2012, succeeded Mr. Dmitry Medvedev, having earlier served as prime minister.
The pro-Biafra group is demanding the independence of Biafran territories annexed during British colonisation, which ended in 1960.
In the letter IPOB claimed it addressed to the Russian president and exclusively obtained by Saturday Telegraph, the group alleged that there were discreet plans by the current administration “to convert Biafrans to Islam.”
In writing Putin, the group stated that it wanted the Russian president to intervene in the ongoing incarceration of Igbos in the hands of security agencies and the continued detention of its leader and Radio Biafra director, Mr. Nnamdi Kanu.
The letter reads: “Mr. President, Biafrans request your intervention to prevent them from being forcefully and violently converted to Islam and from extermination at the hands of the Islamic Republic of Nigeria.
“Mr. President, Russia is among the few nations that protect the rights of oppressed people all over the world. Biafrans call upon you to help stop the massacre of Biafran people by Nigerian security agencies
“The leader of IPOB, Kanu, who is a ‘Prisoner of Conscience’ has been in illegal detention, undergoing inhuman treatment and torture at the hands of the Nigerian security apparatus since October 14, 2015. Biafrans call upon you to take interest in this matter.”
The group explained that in achieving its objective, it decided to raise the alarm owing to the fact that: “Biafrans need to understand that we must not only be consistent in our quest for freedom from the Islamic Republic of Nigeria but must above all things be proactive.
“Biafrans should understand as well that every stone must be overturned in making sure that there is no hidden encumbrance to reaching our objectives.
“To ensure the unconditional release of Kanu from the illegal detention and persecution at the hands of the Nigerian government. To restore the sovereign and independent Biafran nation and raise its flag amongst the comity of Independent nations.”
The group explained that it created a phone in platform for Biafrans wishing to interact with Putin from April 18 to 22 where it made available the following telephones (with Russian names attached): Pryamoy Vyzon Putin – +78002002313, Prezidentskaya Ispolnitel’nyy Ofis -+74956253581 and Besplatnyy Nomer Dlya Otpravki (SMS)- +74956063602.
Meanwhile, the wife of the detained IPOB leader, Mrs. Uchechi Okwu-Kanu, has expressed concern over the detention of her husband by the Federal Government.
Speaking with the International Business Times (IBT), United Kingdom, Okwu- Kanu said she was no longer comfortable with the activities of security agencies around her husband.
To underscore this, she told the IBTimes UK: “That my husband’s defence counsel confirmed to me that they do not trust our security operatives. And to be honest, I am highly concerned about the increasing desperation of (President Muhammadu) Buhari and his henchmen.”
Similarly, Mr. Ifeanyi Ejiofor, one of the lawyers representing Kanu, told IBTimes UK: “As of now, this is the situation: Two days ago, some personnel allegedly invaded the cell he (Kanu) is staying in. We are concerned. I am meeting my client to understand what happened.”
However, efforts to get the Department of State Services (DSS) to comment on the allegations proved abortive.
It would be recalled that during a December 2015 presidential media chat, President Buhari had said Kanu would not be released for fear he could jump bail and flee to the UK, as he holds both British and Nigerian passports.
