The All Igbo Youth Forum (ALYF) has issued a stern warning to the federal government, threatening to mobilize millions of Igbo youths to boycott the 2027 general elections if Nnamdi Kanu, the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), is not released.
The ALYF believes Kanu’s detention is unfair and a double standard, given that other agitators and terrorists have been granted freedom. Kanu has been in detention since June 2021 after being extradited from Kenya and is currently facing a seven-count charge bordering on treasonable felony.
The forum has given Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, a two-month ultimatum to ensure President Bola Tinubu addresses their demand. If Kanu isn’t released, they plan to march 10 million strong to Abuja and dare the government to jail them all.
ALYF President Chinedu Obilor accused some Igbo leaders of working against Kanu’s release and misleading the president. He urged Tinubu to listen to the voices of Igbo youths rather than the elite, whom he claimed lack grassroots support. Obilor also condemned the alleged exclusion of Igbo people from recent federal appointments, describing it as “unacceptable” and questioning the notion of a unified Nigeria when one region is consistently left out.
The threat to boycott the elections is significant, as the Igbo youth forum believes Kanu’s release will determine their support for President Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the South-East region. Some Igbo leaders are warning that the APC’s future in the region depends on Kanu’s case being resolved favorably.
Minister of Works David Umahi has argued that Kanu’s release shouldn’t be made a political condition for the South-East’s support of Tinubu in 2027, suggesting that the IPOB leader’s freedom would come through “divine grace and dialogue,” not political pressure.
