Nnamdi Kanu’s Release, Creation of Anioma State Key to South-East Peace – Ned Nwoko
Senator Ned Nwoko, representing Delta North, has said the persistent unrest in Nigeria’s South-East region stems from years of perceived injustice and marginalisation under successive governments.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics on Sunday, October 26, Nwoko stated that peace could be restored to the region if the Federal Government addresses two critical issues — the creation of Anioma State and the release of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
“The problem in the South-East has to do with the perceived injustice by successive governments,” the lawmaker said. “What needs to be done is to create a new state to make the number six, and then release Nnamdi Kanu. By the time you do these two things, peace will return to the South-East.”
Nwoko, who is spearheading efforts for the creation of Anioma State from Delta State to become the sixth state in the South-East, argued that the uneven distribution of states across Nigeria’s regions fuels political and economic inequality.
He further maintained that Kanu’s continued detention has worsened the agitation and insecurity in the region.
“Nnamdi Kanu is being held unjustly. His incarceration is the main reason for the continued unrest in the South-East,” Nwoko added.
Kanu has been in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) since June 2021 following his re-arrest, and he currently faces terrorism-related charges at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Political and traditional leaders from the South-East have consistently called for his release through political means.
On the proposed Anioma State, Nwoko expressed optimism about its approval, revealing that the National Assembly has already made progress on the matter.
“The National Assembly has set up a committee to decide which state to choose from the South-East. There are about seven proposals, and we are one of them. At the public hearing in Enugu, we presented our case, so I am almost certain that we will be chosen,” he said.
