By Luminous Jannamike
ABUJA – Prominent human rights lawyer, Barrister Christopher Chidera, has asserted that the continued detention of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, is not legally justified but rather a consequence of his outspoken criticism of the Nigerian government.
Addressing journalists in Abuja, Chidera described Kanu’s prolonged incarceration as punishment for “speaking truth to power,” arguing that there is no substantial legal basis for his imprisonment.
“The government has yet to bring charges against Kanu for alleging that former President Muhammadu Buhari had died—a claim many dismissed as propaganda,” Chidera noted. “If he is spreading such outrageous falsehoods, why hasn’t he been charged for misinformation?”
The lawyer further alleged that Kanu’s detention is part of a broader effort to diminish his influence among the Igbo people.
“They don’t understand that Nnamdi Kanu doesn’t need propaganda to win the loyalty of his people. He has the truth, he has consistency, and he has suffered more in pursuit of freedom than all of them combined,” Chidera said.
He also issued a passionate call for Africans to embrace unity and cultivate critical thinking, blaming mental complacency—not colonialism—for the continent’s lingering struggles.
“Africa’s biggest curse isn’t colonialism, it’s our refusal to think. Until Black Africans learn to reason critically, challenge authority, and demand evidence over emotion, we will remain trapped—not by foreign hands, but by our own mental laziness,” he said.
Chidera also condemned a recent article published by a leading online platform titled “How Nnamdi Kanu Sought to Please South-Easterners with Hilarious Propaganda,” calling it a “malicious falsehood” intended to discredit Kanu and sow division among his supporters.
He called on the public and the media to resist narratives that seek to undermine voices of dissent and emphasized the importance of defending fundamental rights, especially the freedom of expression.
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