IPOB Accuses Soludo of Reversing Position on Nnamdi Kanu’s Release

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has criticised Anambra State Governor Chukwuma Soludo over his criticism of Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi’s call for the release of detained IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu.

In a statement issued on June 15, 2026, by its spokesman, Emma Powerful, IPOB alleged that Soludo had abandoned a position he previously championed.

The group recalled that the governor visited Kanu at the Department of State Services facility in Abuja on May 13, 2022, and publicly called for his release, reportedly offering to stand as surety for him.

IPOB also referenced remarks allegedly made in March 2025 by Anambra State Commissioner for Information, Law Mefor, who was quoted as saying that the governor was actively working towards securing Kanu’s release as part of efforts to restore peace in the South-East.

Reacting to the Anambra State Government’s criticism of Obi’s recent demand for Kanu’s immediate and unconditional release, IPOB questioned what informed Soludo’s latest position. “Governor Soludo, what suddenly changed? What changed is your blind and shameless ambition. You have now chosen to sacrifice Mazi Nnamdi Kanu on the altar of caliphate appeasement,” the statement alleged.

The group further claimed that support for Kanu’s release extends beyond the South-East, maintaining that several prominent Nigerians and elder statesmen had backed similar calls in the past. IPOB argued that Soludo’s current stance was inconsistent with the position allegedly taken by a number of respected Igbo leaders before their deaths.

IPOB also accused the governor of betraying the interests of his people and warned that his actions would not be forgotten. “The Igbo nation has a long memory; your northern masters will never trust a proven betrayer of his own people,” the statement said.

Kanu has remained in DSS custody since June 2021 over terrorism-related and treasonable felony charges, which he has denied as legal proceedings in the matter continues