‘Anyone who calls for Kanu’s release is a traitor’ — Buhari’s former aide

A former aide to the late President Muhammadu Buhari, Bashir Ahmad, has called anyone who demands the release of detained Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, a traitor who will betray the thousands of Nigerians killed by Kanu followers as a result of his words.

Calls for the IPOB leader’s release from detention have intensified with the #FreeNnamdiKanu protest organized by activist Omoyele Sowore scheduled for October 20, gaining support from former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and several political leaders in the southeast region.

But in a post on his X account on Thursday, Ahmad said that releasing Kanu would be a major betrayal of those killed by his supporters.

Ahmad stated that Kanu was a known terrorist who should pay for his crimes instead of regaining freedom.

He said that he had never supported pardoning terrorists because he had witnessed the devastation caused by Boko Haram and noted that Kanu had incited violence that killed people in the southeast region.

“It is a great betrayal of the loss of innocent lives and countless victims of IPOB brutality to call for the release of Nnamdi Kanu,” Ahmad wrote.

“This person is a person who has deliberately incited violence, engineered murders and unleashed destruction in the South East and other regions of Nigeria.

“His actions destroyed families, destabilized communities, and left deep scars on our country.

“I have never supported pardoning terrorists, my position has always been clear and consistent.

“I witnessed firsthand the horror and destruction caused by Boko Haram, they are murderers and destroyers, and they know exactly what they are doing when they deliberately inflict unimaginable pain on innocent people.

“Therefore, I see absolutely no justification for pardoning them after the state has expended enormous resources, time and lives to arrest them.”