Uchechigeme Anyanwụụtụtụ Okwu-Kanu, wife of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, has recounted events surrounding her husband’s abduction in 2009. In a social media post on Thursday, she described years of personal hardship endured by her family in what she called a struggle for the “restoration and transformation” of their people.
Okwu-Kanu said Kanu was abducted in broad daylight on December 19, 2009, the same day their traditional marriage was scheduled. She alleged that men loyal to Ralph Uwazuruike, leader of the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), seized him in front of their family square, accusing Uwazuruike of betrayal.
She further alleged that Kanu was assaulted and publicly humiliated during the incident, saying his only “offence” was opposing what she described as exploitation of the Igbo cause. “I will stop here for today… And in a little while, Nnamdi Kanu will be free,” she said.