As Abaribe comes under pressure Joe Igbokwe mocks Nnamdi Kanu as no longer relevant saying Atiku is now Ipob leader

PUBLICITY secretary of the Lagos chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Joe Igbokwe has ridiculed the sudden appearance of Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipob) leader Nnamdi Kanu saying that he is no longer relevant as Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has usurped his position.

Yesterday, Mr Kanu suddenly appeared on social media as videos and pictures of him praying at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem went viral. It is the first time he has been seen in public since September 10, 2017 when he and his family fled after Nigerian Army troops invaded their compound in Afaraukwu, near Umuahia, the Abia State capital.

Before taking flight, Mr Kanu has become a folk hero among Igbo youths as his campaign for a breakaway republic was very popular among them due to the perceived marginalisation of Igbos by the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari. Of late, however, following the emergence of former vice president Atiku Abubakar as the presidential candidate of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), these calls for secession have died down.

Alhaji Abubakar is not considered as anti-Igbo, nepotistic or primordial as President Buhari and to consolidate his position among Ndigbo, he has picked former Anambra State governor Peter Obi as his running mate. Next February when Nigeria goes to the polls, the Igbo-speaking southeastern geo-political zone is expected to vote en mass for the PDP and Alhaji Abubakar.

Reacting to the development, Mr Igbokwe said Mr Kanu no longer has any relevance and will not even be meeting his followers when he returns to Nigeria because of Atiku. He also mocked those who believed that President Buhari sent the Nigerian Army to kill Mr Kanu.

Mr Igbokwe said: “I thought they said President Buhari's army has killed our own Nnamdi Kanu. Now the play boy is in Jerusalem enjoying his life.

“Will Nnamdi Kanu meet his followers when he returns? I do not think so. Atiku Abubakar, a Fulani from Adamawa is now their spiritual leader.”

Following the appearance of Mr Kanu, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, the lawmaker representing the Abia South Senatorial District, who stood as his surety is now under pressure. Senator Abaribe had been facing the risk of arrest after Mr Kanu broke his bail conditions by absconding but now that his whereabouts are known, the senator will be asked to produce him.

Federal prosecutor, Shuiabu Labaran, said Senator Abaribe is now expected to produce him in court when the case comes up again on November 14. Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja had adjourned until November 14 for Senator Abaribe to show reason why he should not forfeit the bail bond or be jailed for failing to produce Mr Kanu.

Senator Abaribe is asking the court to discharge him as a surety following Mr Kanu’s disappearance. However, the prosecution said that since Mr Kanu did not escape from custody but was granted bail, it was left for the court to decide what to do should the surety fail to produce him.