Activist and politician Omoyele Sowore has expressed renewed concern over the continued detention of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) leader, Nnamdi Kanu, arguing that the government’s approach has backfired.
Speaking with journalists at the Federal High Court in Abuja, Sowore said Kanu had become a “full-blown celebrity” at the Sokoto Custodial Centre, insisting that authorities had unintentionally boosted his influence instead of diminishing it.
He warned that those responsible for securing a life sentence against Kanu would eventually face the consequences of their actions.
Sowore maintained that presiding judge Justice James Omotosho would ultimately have to revisit the ruling.
“They will soon understand the magnitude of the mistake they made,” he said, noting that earlier predictions he made about the fallout of the imprisonment were already coming to pass.
According to him, Kanu’s status among inmates has risen significantly. “They said he has become the president of the prison. It may not be official, but it shows the level of respect he commands,” he stated.
He added that individuals who were once expected to protest Kanu’s incarceration were instead travelling to Sokoto an unexpected reversal, in his view. Sowore urged Kanu’s family to grant him permission to coordinate visits, saying it would expose the extent of what he described as the government’s miscalculation.
Drawing parallels with historic episodes of civil resistance, he suggested the situation reflects past instances in which authorities eventually yielded to public pressure.
“They thought sending him to Sokoto would ridicule him, but they ended up turning the place into a destination,” he said, comparing the influx of visitors to a form of pilgrimage.
Sowore attributed the situation to what he called “poor judgement at the highest levels of government,” arguing that officials failed to anticipate the political and social ripple effects of Kanu’s detention.
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