The South East Amalgamated Market Traders Association (SEAMATA) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to exercise his prerogative of mercy in favor of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
In a statement issued Thursday in Onitsha by its President-General, Chief Emeka Emechebe, following a general meeting in Enugu, SEAMATA described Kanu’s life imprisonment as a “rude shock” and a “miscarriage of justice.”
The association urged South East governors, political office holders, and national lawmakers from the region to support a political solution to Kanu’s case, emphasizing that such a step would promote justice and peace, rather than statements that could worsen regional disaffection.
SEAMATA noted that the Court of Appeal in Abuja had acquitted Kanu of terrorism charges on October 13, 2022, but he remained in detention until his recent conviction. The group criticized the sentence, saying it was imposed under a law that had been repealed years earlier, calling its application “malicious” and “a travesty of justice.”
The traders’ group also cited past efforts by prominent Igbo elder statesmen—including the late Amb. George Obiozor, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, Chief Mbazulike Amaechi, Prof. Ben Nwabueze (SAN), and Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife—who had petitioned former President Muhammadu Buhari for a political resolution to Kanu’s case, efforts they said were unsuccessful.
SEAMATA concluded by appealing to President Tinubu to act swiftly to secure Kanu’s release, stating that such a move would restore calm, reduce insecurity, and ease youth restiveness in the South East. The association also called on regional political leaders and lawmakers to advocate for peace and justice in the region.
