Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Oji River in Enugu State, Rev. Ikechukwu Egbuonu, said he was surprised by the level of sympathy leader of Indigenous People’s of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu receives from ordinary residents in Sokoto, including members of the Hausa and Fulani communities.
Kanu is presently serving a life sentence at Sokoto Maximum Correctional Center.
Bishop Egbuonu who visited Kanu at Sokoto prison, spoke during an interview on national television.
According to him, although he does not agree with every method adopted by Kanu, he shares the belief that Nigeria is failing its citizens.
The cleric stated that the worsening social, economic, and security situation in the country has pushed many into supporting legitimate agitation.
“I did not support some of his actions, but I support agitation because Nigeria is collapsing. You and I know that.
“From Sokoto street, I discovered that even Hausas in the street of Sokoto, Fulanis, some of them good ones among them who are rational enough are in support of Kanu,” he added.
Egbuonu urged the Federal Government to embrace dialogue and find a political solution to the case, warning that continued tension in the South-East and widespread grievances across the country should not be ignored.
Kanu was convicted by Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja after a 10-year trial that began before his controversial arrest in Kenya and subsequent extradition to Nigeria.
