A Nigerian court on Wednesday denied a bail request for separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu who is standing trial for terrorism charges and broadcasting falsehoods, one of his defence lawyers told newsmen.
Kanu, a leader of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, is facing seven counts of terrorism levied against him by the Nigerian Government.
He has disputed the allegations, which stem from broadcasts he made between 2018 and last year.
It would be recalled that in 2015, Nnamdi Kanu was first charged and arrested for treason, unlawful possession of arms, and illegal importation of broadcast equipment at a Federal High Court in Abuja in 2015. Fast forward to June 29, 2021, the controversial secessionist was arrested and extradited back to Nigeria.
His arrest led to IPOB declaring a Monday sit-at-home order across the South-East, a directive which have grounded economic and business activities in the region.
Several communities in the South-East have been on ‘Lockdown’ every Monday as markets, schools, banks, motor parks, and even worship centres are closed following threats of violence and mayhem perpetrated by IPOB/ESN militants.
During this time, INEC offices, security facilities, and other Government offices are attacked and torched.
IPOB, which Kanu created in 2014, is pushing for the secession of a region of southeast Nigeria where the Igbo ethnic group makes up the majority of the population. IPOB is considered a terrorist organisation by authorities. IPOB claims it wants to achieve independence without resorting to violence.
In 1967, the year Kanu was born, Igbo separatists attempted to form the Republic of Biafra, which sparked a three-year civil war that killed over one million people.