A court trial is the next logical step to Nnamdi Kanu’s arrest and detention. Kanu and his supporters should be thrilled about the prospect of his court trial, as it will provide him a forum to defend himself, and proclaim his message, of Biafranism, to the world. What an enviable setting for a Public Relation (PR) masterpiece. Paradoxically, in a deafening frenzy, his supporters are demanding his release from detention, without trial......See Full Story>>.....See Full Story>>
Following a trial, the judge reaches a verdict: innocent or guilty, and thus, acquittal or conviction and imprisonment. Imprisonment is a staple in the life of a freedom fighter or social/moral crusader. To a freedom fighter, genuinely committed to the struggle, and therefore, prepared to make the necessary sacrifice for his principles and convictions, imprisonment is merely a meditative respite, and prison, just a secluded arena of reflection. The father of Indian nationalism, Mahatma Gandhi, reiterated this point, when he said, “Jail is jail for rapists and murders, for me, it is a temple”. The Black American civil right leader, Martin Luther King, Jr. also made a similar point, “Jail clears you from the miasma of life”.
At his trial, the dauntless martyred Ogoni environmental activist, Saro Wiwo, articulated his message. With his sparkling prose that bordered on poetry, he made a passionate and persuasive case for his activism to the court and, by extension, the world. Lamentably, he was convicted and executed. Having anticipated his death, he, earlier, confided in a notable Nigerian book publisher that he knew that sooner or later, he will be killed by the Nigerian government, but, before his death, he needed to tell his story to the world. He told his story to the world and it resonated. Confirmed in the moral and strategic validity of his beliefs, choices and actions, he died dignifiedly and honorably.
Does Kanu not need a similar opportunity to make his case to the world? His unassailable presentation of the Biafran case to the court and the world will be a bludgeoning blow to the continued corporate existence of the “Zoo”. Kanu is supercilious, presumptuous and bumptious. He pontificated more than the Pontiff. He talked with the absolutism of a demi-god. He sounded infallible and indispensable, as though he has a monopoly on knowledge and wisdom.
He did not disguise his contempt for Igbo elders, kings and political leaders; repeatedly, he discredited and disparaged them. He postured as the Moses of the Igbo nation and the other peoples of his Biafran federation – a messiah determined by Providence – that will lead us all out of “marginalization, enslavement and extermination” in the “Zoological Republic”, and chaperon us to the promise land, Biafra, where we will, for ever, luxuriate in peace and prosperity.
Many, even among the Igbo, question Nnamdi Kanu’s credibility. They consider him a vulgar upstart, vainglorious thug and con artist, who is using Biafranism to advance his personal ambitions: fame and wealth. If Kanu is for real, he will brave imprisonment and risk his life for his convictions, especially, when the path he has chosen has caused his people pains, blood, tears and sorrow. His detention provides him the opportunity to demonstrate his heroic tenacity and nobility of character, like earlier credible freedom fighters that trod paths similar to his: Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela, Saro Wiwo, etc.
Secession contravenes the Nigerian constitution. Consequently, Kanu’s secessionist activism is illegal and deserving of punishment. In his deplorable verbal excesses, as shown in his earlier videos, he ordered his followers to stone the then chairman of Ohaneze, Ninia Nwodo, to death, and kill those that disobeyed his sit-at-home orders, and burn them up in their stores. They also showed him ordering members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and Eastern Security Network (ESN) to attack Nigerian soldiers, kill them and take their guns and kill more of them. The comeuppance of such incendiary and seditious rhetoric is not in question. In addition, the murderous lunacy of the IPOB and ESN, and their spin-off groups have brought unwarranted deaths, immense suffering, unspeakable horror and frightful disorder to the once peaceful Igbo land.
But then, the Homeric question, is Nnamdi Kanu that cowardly and un-principled that he can lead Igbo youths into trouble, egg them on to their deaths and cause the Igbo unbearable suffering and sorrow, and then, plead for, and accept, mercy and pardon for himself? Secondly, will he be freed to continue with his agitation for Biafra or on the condition that he renounces Biafra? The former will be tantamount to his continuation with the crime that got him in trouble; and the latter will be perfidious: a betrayal of Biafrans and mockery of the memory of those that died fighting for his Biafra.
Tochukwu Ezukanma writes from Lagos, Nigeria.
tezukanma@gmail.com
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