11 hours ago
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The All Igbo Youth Forum, a pressure group, has issued a stern warning that Igbo youths will boycott the 2027 general elections unless the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu, is released by the administration of President Bola Tinubu.
The forum’s National President, Chief Chinedu Obilor, disclosed that the group had suspended a planned protest after engaging in discussions with the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Benjamin Kalu.
According to Obilor, Kalu assured the forum that dialogue with the President regarding Kanu’s release was ongoing.
“We believe the President will listen to the cry of Ndigbo and release Kanu,” Obilor said.
He reiterated that the forum’s position remains firm, stating, “they cannot leave Nnamdi Kanu and be talking of 2027.”
Obilor said the group had resolved to give the Deputy Speaker a further two months to engage with President Tinubu on the matter. He stressed that Kalu must take the demand for Kanu’s release to the President as a matter of urgency.
“If they fail, we will march 10 million strong to Abuja and dare them to jail us all,” he vowed.
Obilor questioned the continued detention of Kanu, despite the release of other agitators and suspected terrorists across the country.
“If they feel they will use Nnamdi Kanu to do politics, we will not agree,” he said.
The forum’s president expressed the group’s preparedness to mobilise mass protests against what they described as unjust detention.
“We’ll mobilise 10 million Igbo youths to march and tell the government we won’t vote if Kanu is not released,” he said.
He also condemned what he termed the exclusion of Igbos from recent federal political appointments, describing it as unacceptable marginalisation.
“How can we say we’re one Nigeria when Igbo people are always excluded?” he asked.
Obilor criticised northern interest in the 2027 presidency, calling it unjust and provocative.
“Any coalition that won’t cede the ticket to the South will not fly,” Obilor warned.
He argued that the North had enjoyed eight years under former President Muhammadu Buhari, and it was now time for the principle of equity to be upheld.
“The South must complete its eight years before power returns North,” he added.
Obilor expressed disappointment in some Igbo leaders, accusing them of sabotaging Kanu’s cause.
“Some of them are behind Kanu’s plight and they are deceiving the President,” he said.
He urged President Tinubu to listen to Igbo youths rather than political elites from the South-East, warning that failure to do so could result in unexpected political consequences in 2027.
He cautioned the President against relying on politicians who lack grassroots legitimacy.
“We who live here with our families have the real followers,” Obilor added.
