APEX Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, yesterday, sounded a note of warning that the continuous incarceration of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, amounts to the “incarceration of Ndigbo.”

The group insisted that it was no longer comfortable that the trial had taken about 10 years since 2015, even with the bail earlier granted to him by a competent court in Nigeria.

The President General of Ohanaeze, John Azuta-Mbata, stated, during the 2025 Ohanaeze Ndigbo worldwide retreat in Enugu yesterday, that Kanu’s matter, which had taken a toll on Igboland, could have ended if those behind the trial wanted it to end.

He stated that the postponement of the retreat earlier scheduled for May 21 and 22, was due to Kanu’s court case that was to be heard on that day, stressing that the shift in the date was a bold and loud statement about how Ndigbo felt on the matter.

“Ohanaeze was making a point by postponing the retreat to redirect the attention of all Igbo to what was going on in the court on that day.
“We have had that trial going on for 10 years, what kind of trial is that? What kind of justice is that? Let every one bear in mind that, as Kanu is being incarcerated, even with a bail granted by a competent court, it is the entire Igbo that is being incarcerated. Many prerogatives are available to the government. The continuous delay in this trial is not acceptable to Ndigbo.

“As we proceed to the next election, let us put the interest of our people first,” he stated.
He said that the retreat, with the theme, “Rebuilding our foundation,” was deliberate on a way to call attention to the dying values and characters of Ndigbo.
Anglican Bishop of Enugu Diocese, Rt Rev Samuel Ike, had earlier charged the Ohanaeze leadership to restructure the funding mechanisms so as not to be strangulated by the government in power as a way of rebuilding Igbo land.

“You must restructure our core values as in the days of old. We must, by all means, seek to go back to our core values, uphold justice and dish out punishment where necessary. We must pursue justice and ensure that we eliminate the influence of moneybags. We must return to integrity and dignity. We have money baggers who have no address.