The Nigerian Army has broken silence on the allegation that the leader of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, was in its custody.
Kanu’s lawyer, Ifeanyi Ejiofor, had on Wednesday filed a suit at the Federal High Court, Abuja, seeking the order of the court to ask Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai and the Nigerian Army to produce Kanu in court, adding since the September 14 invasion of Kanu’s country home at Afaraukwu in Abia State, the IPOB leader had not been seen.
However, sources at the Army Headquarters, Abuja, and the 82 Division Headquarters, Enugu State, which coordinates Operation Python Dance II, said on Thursday that Kanu was not arrested or detained, as being speculated.
The source said, “If you follow the trends of things, the army has not been talking about a proscribed group. If someone says he does not know where Kanu is, who gave him the authority to file a motion against the army?
“We don’t want to be drawn into this propaganda. For goodness sake, if we have Kanu, of what use is it if we keep quiet? We have never been secretive. Nobody prompted us before we came out to talk about Egwu Eke II starting in the South-East. Nobody prompted us before we came out to say that despite all the pressures, we were not withdrawing the operation. The exercise is still ongoing.”
Also, the source from 82 Division headquarters, Enugu, who did not want his name in print, replied our correspondent’s enquiry through a text message.
“Kanu is not with us. And I am not aware of his whereabouts,” it read.
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