Legend or fraudster?
Little is known about Kanu’s private life. Speaking to IBTimes UK on conditions of anonymity, an Ipob member said he is regarded as a “legend in the making” and “he may not have given a detailed biography of himself to media, website or journalists”. In an open letter to world leaders, Ipob members described Kanu as “a law abiding leader who has disciplined indigenous people of Biafra to strictly abide by local and international law”. His official Facebook page is followed by more than 30,000 people.
In the midst of the Twitter storm following Kanu’s alleged arrest, some people spoke out against him, claiming he is “a fraudster” who uses the Biafra cause for his own interests. Some also accused Radio Biafra of promoting hate speech.
Earlier in October, a woman claiming to be a former PR coordinator for Radio Biafra, Chioma Amaryllis, released an interview in which she claimed she left the radio station and moved back to Nigeria due to the “lies and misinformation”. She alleged: “Money was being collected and used for other things. I was not going to be part of a ploy that was going to exploit the ignorance of people.” Amaryllis, who claimed she had had a relationship with Kanu, criticised him for advocating an independent Biafran state from the UK instead of being on the ground.
Massob and Ipob are no longer collaborating and the two groups accuse each other of carrying out violent attacks that smear pro-Biafrans’ reputation. Massob has been deemed by the Nigerian government as a violent group and authorities arrested its leader, Ralph Uwazuruike, in 2005 on treason charges. He was released two years later.
Following Kanu’s alleged arrest, Massob released a statement arguing the man does not represent the group and he is “a rebel who had long been expelled by Massob for inciting violence among members”. However, a faction of Massob has condemned the arrest. Read full on IBTimes