By Chinwe Nwacha, Onitsha
The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Friday, reacted to the life jail conviction of its leader, Mazi Nnamdi kanu, insisting that Justice James Omotosho must explain the law he used for the conviction adding that Kanu committed no offense than that he is fighting for Biafran freedom as enshrined globally.
Reacting through its spokesperson, Emma Powerful, IPO stated that, "For the avoidance of doubt, no gun, no grenade, no GPMG, no explosive, and no attack plan was ever found on Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. None.
No witness, civilian or military, ever testified before any court at any stage that Mazi Nnamdi Kanu committed any offence known to Nigerian or international law. This is an undeniable fact.
"The only thing the Nigerian government continues to criminalize is self-determination, a right guaranteed under Article 20 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Article 1 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and Article 1 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR).
"Self-determination is a protected right, not a crime.
Agitation is not terrorism, and requesting a referendum is not a weapon," the movement stated.
It added that the politically manufactured insecurity in the South-East escalated while Kanu was in solitary confinement at the DSS facility, cut off from the outside world.
According to the movement, "No honest observer can attribute to him acts that occurred while he was physically incapable of involvement".
IPOB recalled that it was Kanu who was attacked by the Nigerian military during Operation Python Dance and some IPOB family members massacred at Nkpor, Aba, Onitsha, Emene, and other locations.
"Not one government officer or soldier has been held accountable for these atrocities. Yet the same system now seeks to convict the victim," it stated.
It explained further that, "Justice Omotosho has demonstrated, sadly, that he either cannot interpret or refuses to interpret simple English contained in Section 36(12) of the 1999 Constitution".
According to IPOB the section states clearly that, "A person shall not be convicted of a criminal offence unless that offence is defined and the penalty therefore is prescribed in a written law.”
"This constitutional provision is short, simple, and unambiguous.Our questions to Justice Omotosho, questions the entire world deserves answers to, are as follows: What written law did you rely on to purport to convict Mazi Nnamdi Kanu?
"Is that law extant, or has it been repealed? If the law has been repealed, can a repealed law ever qualify as a written law under Section 36(12)?
Why did you ignore binding Court of Appeal and Supreme Court authorities stating that no Nigerian can be tried or convicted under a non-existent or repealed statute?
"A judge cannot manufacture an offence from thin air.
A court cannot resurrect a dead law. A repealed legislation cannot convict a living person.
"The global family of IPOB will, beginning immediately, expose and dissect every line of Omotosho’s ruling for the world to see the depth of the judicial malpractice at play. Nigeria must not be allowed to tarnish the last remnants of its judiciary’s credibility by permitting such unconstitutional conduct.
"This is no longer merely a Biafra issue. It is a human rights issue. It is a constitutional issue. It is an international law issue.
And it is a test of whether Nigeria respects the rule of law or has descended into full judicial authoritarianism.
"Mazi Nnamdi Kanu remains a prisoner of conscience, a victim of extraordinary rendition, and the target of a political persecution orchestrated by the Nigerian state. No amount of judicial contortion can change the truth.
"We reaffirm our commitment to peaceful advocacy, international law, and the pursuit of a United Nations, supervised referendum.
IPOB will continue to engage global institutions to ensure that this latest judicial absurdity attracts the condemnation it deserves," IPOB stated.
