By Jungle-Journalist.Com, Abuja
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has joined forces with activist and former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore in calling for the immediate release of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
The development has intensified nationwide interest in Sowore’s planned “#FreeNnamdiKanuNow” protest march to the Aso Rock Presidential Villa in Abuja, scheduled for October 20, 2025, at 7 a.m.
Sowore had, earlier in the week, taken to his official X (Twitter) handle to challenge leading figures from the South-East and across Nigeria—including Peter Obi, Atiku Abubakar, and Anambra State Governor Charles Soludo—to move beyond rhetoric and join a peaceful march demanding Kanu’s release.
“I challenge every politician or person of good conscience from the Southeast who says they want Nnamdi Kanu released to stop the rhetoric. Time for action is now. Let’s march to Aso Rock Villa,” Sowore declared, adding that he was willing to set aside political differences for one cause — the release of Nnamdi Kanu.
Reacting in solidarity on Thursday, Atiku Abubakar issued a strong statement condemning Kanu’s prolonged detention, describing it as “an open sore on our nation’s conscience.”
“The continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu remains an open sore on our nation’s conscience and a stain on our belief in the rule of law. Defying court orders that granted him bail is an abuse of power and an assault on justice,” Atiku wrote on X.
“I, therefore, lend my voice in full support of the campaign led by Yele Sowore for his immediate release or due prosecution. We fail as patriots if we allow Kanu’s case to fester as yet another wound this nation refuses to heal.”
Meanwhile, Sowore confirmed that all logistics have been finalized for the October 20 march, which he described as “a historic day of civil action for justice and truth.”
The protest will come just days after Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja, adjourned Kanu’s trial on terrorism-related charges to October 16, citing delays by the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) in completing an assessment of Kanu’s health.
The court had earlier directed the NMA President to assemble a panel of medical experts to evaluate the detained separatist leader, who has reportedly faced deteriorating health conditions while in custody.
Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, founder of IPOB—a movement agitating for the independence of Biafra—was first arrested in 2015 on an 11-count charge bordering on treasonable felony and terrorism. After jumping bail in 2017, he was rearrested in Kenya on June 27, 2021, and forcibly repatriated to Nigeria, where he remains in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS).
His continued detention despite several court orders granting him bail has remained one of the most contentious human rights and political issues in Nigeria today.