Why Ndi-Igbo Are In Life Imprisonment With Nnamdi Kanu - Wabara Explodes Over 'Political Judgment'

Former Senate President and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Adolphus Wabara, has sparked national outrage after declaring that the life imprisonment imposed on IPOB Leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, is "a life imprisonment hanging on the neck of every Igbo person.ÔÇØ

Wabara was reacting to the controversial judgment delivered by Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, which sentenced Kanu to life imprisonment-a decision that has triggered a storm of condemnation across the South-East.

According to Wabara, the ruling exposes a painful double standard in Nigeria's justice system. He expressed shock that a Boko Haram commander received just five years in prison 24 hours earlier, while Kanu-who he insists is "a non-violent freedom advocateÔÇØ-was slammed with a life sentence.

"They did not jail Nnamdi Kanu alone; they imprisoned the entire Igbo race. Justice was murdered. We must appeal-and we will win,ÔÇØ Wabara declared.

He stressed that Kanu is not a terrorist, but a victim of systematic injustice against Ndi-Igbo, and vowed that the legal team will pursue the matter up to the Supreme Court.

The Igbo Women Assembly (IWA) also rejected the judgment, describing it as "pre-written, pre-planned and designed to humiliate a people.ÔÇØ

Its President, Lolo Nneka Chimezie, accused the judiciary of ignoring Kanu's written submissions, insisting that his activism was centered on demanding equity and fairness for Ndi-Igbo.

"The law applied to the Igbo is not the same law applied to others. Terrorists are rehabilitated and reintegrated, yet peaceful agitators face the harshest sentences,ÔÇØ she said.

Former Minister of Education and Health, Professor Ihechukwu Madubuike, expressed optimism that the Court of Appeal would upturn the judgment, noting that Kanu has 90 days to file an appeal.

Similarly, HRH Eze Philip Ajomuiwe, former Chairman of Umuahia North Traditional Rulers Council, said the verdict confirms longstanding anti-Igbo sentiment in the country's governance structure.

He questioned how Kanu could be convicted again on charges he was previously discharged and acquitted of by the Court of Appeal.

The backlash underscores a growing perception across the South-East that the judgment is political, vindictive, and targeted at suppressing the Igbo voice in Nigeria's national conversation.