Julie Ward, member of the European Parliament
A top British lawmaker and member of the European Parliament (MEP)
has reported President Muhammadu Buhari to the European Parliament over
the continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu.
Julie Ward called on President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately
release Kanu as his incarceration is a violation of his human rights
since a court had granted him bail.
Making her plea before the parliament, Ward who is a Labour Member
of the European Parliament (MEP) for the North West of England gave
details of how the security operatives in October, 2015 apprehended and
detained Kanu ever since he stepped into Nigeria. She observed that in
spite of court orders asking for his release, Kanu has still been
detained.
She said: “Since October 2015, Nnamdi Kanu, a British-Nigerian
citizen and leader of the Indigenous People Of Biafra has been
unlawfully imprisoned by Nigeria’s Department of State Services despite
the fact that all criminal charges against him were dropped and the
court order has been issued for him to be released on bail. Chapter 4
section 39 of the Nigerian constitution says that every person every
person shall be entitled to freedom of expression including freedom to
hold opinions and to receive and impact ideas and information without
interference.”
She urged President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately release Kanu
and also stop the violence again Biafra people as it constitutes a
violation of their fundamental human rights.
“I therefore call upon the president of Nigeria, Muhammadu
Buhari to uphold his country’s constitution, to ensure Nnamdi Kanu’s
immediate and safe release as well as his co-defendant, Benjamin
Madubgwu and James Nwawuisi.
“The Nigerian government must guarantee the freedom of
expression of all Nigerian citizens including their right to protest
without intimidation and end violence towards those who identify as
Biafrans.
“And I call on my colleagues here in the European Parliament to do much more to promote human rights in Nigeria.”
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