Tinubu's Govt Explains Difference Between Nnamdi Kanu, Sunday Igboho, Sends Key Message to Nigerians
- Sunday Dare has distinguished between Nnamdi Kanu and Sunday Igboho, asserting their methods and impacts differ significantly
- Kanu's actions involved armed rebellion, while Igboho focused on peaceful community defence against external threats, according to the Nigerian presidential spokesman
- Dare, a presidential spokesman, called for clear public discourse, emphasising the unique contexts and consequences of both figures' activism
Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering politics, elections, and governance in Nigeria and Africa.
FCT, Abuja - Sunday Dare, special adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on media and public communication, has firmly rejected suggestions in some quarters that there is no distinction between incarcerated Nnamdi Kanu and Sunday Adeyemo.
Legit.ng reports that Kanu is the leader of the banned Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), while Adeyemo is the Yoruba nation activist popularly known as Sunday Igboho.
Source: Twitter
Dare: Kanu, Igboho fundamentally different
In a statement issued on Tuesday, February 17, Dare maintained that there is “no basis for comparison” between the two figures, stressing that their actions, methods and consequences are fundamentally different.
Dare argued that Kanu crossed into armed rebellion and violent enforcement that affected, while Igboho "remained largely defensive and localised against perceived external threats, without the same level of state-targeted insurgency.”
Dare contended that by contrast, Igboho’s 'activism' was centred on defending communities in the south-west against criminal activities attributed to some killer herders, alongside 'peaceful agitation' for a Yoruba nation.
Vanguard quoted the presidential spokesperson as saying:
“This included enforcement of ‘sit-at-home’ orders (often through threats and violence), resulting in numerous deaths (reports cite over 700 fatalities linked to enforcement clashes and defiance killings). Other inimical activities include attacks on security forces, destruction of public infrastructure, and the formation of armed groups like Eastern Security Network (ESN).
“Kanu’s rhetoric and actions escalated to calls that many viewed as inciting violence against the state and even against his own people in the southeast who defied orders.”
Source: Facebook
Igboho’s activism differs from Kanu - Presidency
The statement continued, according to The Punch:
“In contrast, Sunday Igboho’s activism centered on defending Yoruba communities, primarily against alleged killings, kidnappings, and farm destructions by suspected herders. He focused on self-defence, warding off criminal elements from Yorubaland.
“Igboho also deployed peaceful agitation for Yoruba self-determination/Oduduwa Nation without establishing a militia to fight the Nigerian military, without ordering attacks on police/soldiers, and without imposing paralysing enforcement measures like sit-at-home orders that harmed civilians or the economy in his region."
Dare concluded:
“Public discourse should stop equating the two; the contexts, methods, and consequences are fundamentally different."
Read more on Nnamdi Kanu:
- Nnamdi Kanu to remain in custody as NMA fails to meet deadline
- Southeast Governor mentions when Tinubu may release Nnamdi Kanu
- Enugu Governor Mbah mentions how to secure Nnamdi Kanu's fast release after joining APC
Tinubu asked to free Nnamdi Kanu
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the president general of Ohaneze Ndigbo Worldwide, Senator Azuta Mbata, called on President Tinubu and the federal government to release Kanu.
The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation leader argued that the IPOB leader has stayed in detention for too long.
Source: Legit.ng
