Nnamdi Kanu's brother lashes out at Swiss embassy for denying him visa to attend UN conference

NNAMDI Kanu's younger brother Emmanuel has lashed out at the Swiss embassy in Nigeria for denying him a visa to attend 116th United Nations Human Rights Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances taking place in Zurich.

Emmanuel, a sibling to Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipob) leader Nnamdi,. who has been in hiding since September 14 last year, had been invited by the United nations (UN), to address the gathering. Members of the Kanu family were asked to come and testify as key witnesses of the mass murder allegedly committed by security operatives when their compound in Afaraukwu was invaded on September 14, 2017, during the Operation Python Dance conducted by the Nigerian Army.

However, the Swiss embassy in Nigeria declined to give him a visa and according to Mr Kanu Jnr, apart from the family, key Ipob members who witnessed the genocide at Afaraukwu were also denied visas. He accused the embassy of conspiracy, collusion and unholy dealings with Abuja to frustrate the family and help the Nigerian state escape punishment.

Mr Kanu said: “Amazonians fleeing persecutions in the Cameroons were equally denied visas by the Swiss embassy. It is a clear indication that the embassy was colluding with oppressive administrations to suppress freedom fighters.”

Kanu decried what he termed the bad faith of the Swiss embassy in constituting itself to an impediment to the family’s bid to get justice over the unprovoked invasion of its house and the disappearance of their beloved ones including their parents, Eze Israel Kanu, the traditional ruler of Afaraukwu community and his wife, Lolo Sally Kanu. Nigeria's military, claims that is does not know the whereabouts of the family and they must have gone into hiding, while Ipob claims they are being held by the authorities.

“Some of our family members who were invited by the United Nations could not understand why they should be denied visas. Some Amazonians who fled Cameroun to Nigeria who were also invited to the United Nations by this same working group were also denied visas.

“For the fact that you house the world body does not give you the right to deny victims and key eyewitnesses of torture and genocide visas even when the same world body invited them,” Mr Kanu added.