By Steve Oko
As the October 20 nationwide solidarity march for the unconditional release of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, continues to gain momentum, former Senate President, Senator Adolphus Wabara, has written to the promoter of the peaceful protest and Rights Activist, Omoyele Sowore, declaring his support for the rally.
Similarly, the World Igbo Congress, IWC, has thrown its weight behind the protest, urging Ndigbo everywhere in the world to fully participate.
Senator Wabara, in a solidarity message he personally signed and addressed to Sowore, said every peaceful effort aimed at securing justice and national reconciliation had his total support.
The former Senate President, who is currently out of the country on a medical trip, said he would have loved to physically participate in the march but for his ongoing treatment.
He commended Sowore and all those promoting the march for their courage to rise against injustice.
The letter read in part:”I have been informed about the planned protest on the 20th of October, calling for the release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. I wish to commend your efforts and those of others who continue to speak up for justice and fairness in our country.
Unfortunately, I am out of the country and will not be able to join you
physically on that day.
“However, please know that I am with you in spirit and in full support of every peaceful effort aimed at securing justice and national reconciliation. I wish you and all participants a peaceful and successful outing.”
On its part, the World Igbo Congress, in a strong-worded statement by its Chairman, Dr Festus Okere, and Secretary General, Sir Chris Ogara, said that the demand for Kanu’s release “is not the cry of one tribe but the demand for justice itself.”
WIC argued that “Kanu’s persecution” had reached a point where “silence is no longer an option.”
“The chains on Nnamdi Kanu are not just chains on one man – they are chains on freedom, on justice, and on truth itself”, the statement made available to Vanguard said.
WIC argued that there was no justification to keep Kanu behind bars since 2021 when he was renditioned from Kenya, while bandits and mass murderers are being granted pardon by the same Government.
WIC urged all justice advocates, irrespective of their ethnicity, religion, or party affiliations, to lend their support for the free Kanu march.
“The peaceful protest led by a committed activist, Sowore, devoid of tribe, is most welcome. We call on all lovers of Justice, fairness, and unity to join in this peaceful protest on the 20th of October 2025.
” When injustice persists for too long, it ceases to be a local problem and becomes a global one. And Nigeria must understand – its future cannot be built on silencing its own.”
WIC expressed surprise that the same Government that is granting pardon to, and rehabilitating purportedly repentant bandits, is finding it difficult to heed growing appeals for Kanu’s release.
“Why is it that in Nigeria bandits and terrorists can gather openly, brandishing weapons, negotiating with the state as if they are kings, and getting presidential pardons; yet a man who spoke only with words languishes in prison? What does that say about the kind of freedom we pretend to practice?”
Citing President Donald Trump of the United States of America, WIC warned that “when governments fear the voice of their own citizens, they are no longer leading with strength, but with fear.”
According to the group, clamping down on dissenting voices is only a prelude to dictatorship.
“To lock up your children for daring to speak is not the act of a strong nation – it is the confession of a frightened one.
And President Traoré spoke truth to African leaders when he said: ‘Silence in the face of injustice is betrayal.’”
WIC expressed disappointment over the lack of commitment from the Igbo political elite in advancing the Igbo cause.
“Where were those who should have stood for their brother? Where were some of the Igbo governors when their son was dragged across borders like a criminal? They chose comfort over courage, power over people, silence over truth. History will not forget.”
It, therefore, urged the people to remain resolute in their demand for justice and equity for all.
“To you, our people, we say: no prison cell is strong enough to chain the human spirit. No silence is deep enough to bury truth. And no betrayal is final when the people rise.
WIC demanded an end to the persecution of Kanu and the Igbo exclusion from the scheme of things.
“Release Nnamdi Kanu. Stop persecuting the Igbo people. Protect Christians from being slaughtered in their churches and their communities. Show the world that Nigeria has the strength to choose freedom over fear, unity over division, justice over oppression.”
WIC, however, concluded that “the cry of the oppressed will always outlive the silence of their oppressors.”
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