IPOB Says Islamic Cleric Jingir’s ‘ Christians Are Infidels’ Remark Vindicates Nnamdi Kanu’s Warnings

 

The IPOB spokesperson said Jingir’s comments should not be dismissed as mere rhetoric, noting that they raised fundamental questions about Nigeria’s constitutional status as a secular country.

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has said that a recent declaration by Islamic cleric Sheikh Sani Yahaya Jingir that Nigeria is a Muslim country and Christians are “infidels” vindicates warnings issued by its imprisoned leader, Nnamdi Kanu, over the years.

IPOB, in a statement issued on Tuesday by its spokesperson, Emma Powerful, accused the Nigerian authorities of persecuting Kanu because of his warnings about an alleged plan to Islamise Nigeria.

The IPOB spokesperson said Jingir’s comments should not be dismissed as mere rhetoric, noting that they raised fundamental questions about Nigeria’s constitutional status as a secular country.

“IPOB views with profound alarm Sheikh Sani Yahaya Jingir’s declaration that Nigeria is a Muslim country, Christians are ‘infidels,’ and dissenters should leave,” Powerful stated.

“This is not a slip, it is the open confirmation of the very agenda Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu has warned against for over a decade.”

IPOB also rejected the classification of Kanu as a terrorist, describing him instead as a “whistleblower” who exposed what it called an organised attempt to alter Nigeria’s religious character.

IPOB argued that Jingir’s remarks have provided additional grounds for international scrutiny of the issues raised by Kanu and his supporters.

“Those who mocked Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu must now answer,” the group said.

“Those who branded him a troublemaker must now answer. Those who dismissed his warnings as imaginary must now answer.”

IPOB also questioned whether Nigeria remains a country where citizens of different faiths enjoy equal constitutional protection.

“The Nigerian Government must answer,” the group said. “Is Nigeria a secular constitutional republic belonging equally to Christians, Muslims, traditional worshippers and citizens of no religion, or is it a religious fiefdom in which one constituency may claim ownership of the country and tell everybody else to vacate?”

The group insisted that the Nigerian Constitution provides the basis for religious equality and challenged the Federal Government to publicly state its position on the issue.

IPOB also linked alleged spread of jihadist groups and attacks by armed Fulani groups in parts of Nigeria to the warnings it said Kanu had repeatedly issued.

“The relentless advance of jihadist groups and Fulani bandits into indigenous southern territories will never be accepted as the destiny of our people,” Powerful stated.

The group alleged that Kanu’s life imprisonment was partly aimed at preventing him from publicly advancing his position on the issues.

“That is why powerful interests have worked so hard to keep him behind bars. A free Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu remains their greatest obstacle,” IPOB claimed.

IPOB said Kanu’s imprisonment could not erase his political message, insisting that his supporters would continue to demand what they described as justice and accountability.

“The mask is slipping,” the group said. “The warnings once ridiculed are being vindicated by events and by the increasingly brazen declarations now being made in public.”

The group further argued that Kanu’s case has implications beyond the IPOB leader, saying it raised questions about the rule of law, religious freedom, judicial independence, self-determination and government accountability.

“If a citizen can be abducted abroad, extraordinarily rendered into Nigeria, kept imprisoned after being discharged by an appellate court, subjected to a civil stay of a criminal discharge, re-arraigned by a contemnor, denied fair hearing and ultimately convicted under non-existent or repealed statutes incapable of grounding a criminal conviction, then the danger extends far beyond one defendant,” IPOB said.

“That is why this appeal is bigger than one man,” IPOB said, insisting that Kanu’s warnings should now receive greater international attention.

“Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu saw the danger coming,” IPOB said. “They called him a terrorist. They called him an extremist. They imprisoned the messenger.

“Now the message speaks for itself. The world is watching. History is recording. Justice is inevitable.”

SOURCE: SAHARA REPORTERS