A group of religious leaders under the aegis of Concerned Igbo Ministers has linked reports of renewed separatist sentiments in the United Kingdom to the continued detention of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
In a statement signed by Rev. Tony Uzor Anthony and issued on behalf of the group, the ministers claimed that the developments in the UK were not coincidental but represented the spiritual consequences of what they described as Britain’s continued collaboration with the Nigerian government over Kanu’s incarceration.
The group alleged that some constituent nations within the United Kingdom were preparing to demand referendums on separation, describing the development as part of a broader “spiritual and civic disorder” in the country.
According to the ministers, Britain and Nigeria had treated the demand for a referendum as an act of rebellion rather than what they described as a legitimate demand for self-determination.
They further claimed that Kanu’s continued detention would result in both countries experiencing further instability.
Drawing parallels from biblical accounts, the group described Kanu as a spiritual “sign” whose continued incarceration, according to them, would have consequences for the nations involved.
The ministers called on the Nigerian and British governments to release Kanu without further delay, consider his demand for a referendum and end what they described as a policy of “connivance” that had kept him incarcerated.
“If they refuse, let them remember that the wrath that now touches Britain will not spare Nigeria,” the group stated, warning that the coming year would be difficult for those who continued to detain Kanu.
The ministers said they would continue to pray and publicly advocate for what they described as justice until Kanu was released.
The statement was issued in the name of Concerned Igbo Ministers and signed by Rev. Tony Uzor Anthony.