Peter Obi, Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, has criticised the Federal Government following the life sentence handed to IPOB leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
In a detailed statement, Obi described the conviction as “unfortunate” and the product of a long-standing leadership failure.
He insisted that Kanu should never have been arrested, arguing that the Federal Government mishandled the issue from the beginning.
According to him, Kanu’s grievances required dialogue and empathy, not force or prolonged detention.
Obi warned that the conviction may heighten ethnic tension at a time when Nigerians are already overwhelmed by inflation, insecurity and governance failures.
He noted that functional nations often adopt political solutions, negotiated settlements, or amnesty when legal actions alone cannot guarantee stability.
The former governor urged the Presidency, Council of State and respected national elders to pursue reconciliation rather than confrontation.
He said a peaceful, united Nigeria requires leaders who choose “healing over hostility, and dialogue over division,” stressing that national cohesion cannot be achieved through coercion.
