From Jude Chinedu, Enugu
Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, has once again called for the release of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, insisting it was the right thing to do.
Mbah restated his position on Monday during a question-and-answer session that followed his presentation on “Leadership and Transformation” at the ongoing Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Annual General Conference in Enugu.
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Responding to a participant who urged him not to relent in his advocacy for Kanu’s release, the governor revealed that his very first visit to President Bola Tinubu was on the matter. “My first visit to the President was about Nnamdi Kanu. I believe that the right thing to do is to release him. Hopefully, that will be done soon.”
Mbah added that the weekly sit-at-home protests in the South East, triggered by Kanu’s continued detention, had already become a thing of the past in Enugu State.
“We met a situation where people were compelled to stay at home every Monday. Now, people trade in Ogbete and other markets in peace on Mondays.
“Monday sit-at-home has ended in Enugu, as you (lawyers) can see. You can also move around and investigate.”
Kanu is currently standing trial at the Federal High Court in Abuja on terrorism charges, which he has denied.
Beyond Kanu’s case, Mbah used his presentation to highlight the leadership principles and transformative strategies driving his administration. According to him, transformational leadership requires courage, vision and disruptive strategies anchored on strong values.
“Our vision was to grow Enugu’s economy from $4.4 billion to $30 billion, reduce the poverty headcount to zero, and make Enugu the preferred destination in Nigeria for business, tourism, and living. We imagined a state that, within eight years, would be completely unrecognisable from the one we inherited,” he said. The governor explained that such goals were only achievable with peace and security, which was why his administration invested heavily in technology-driven policing. “None of our visions and targets would have been possible without security. So, from the outset, we built a tech-driven, intelligence-led security architecture anchored in our Command and Control Centre.
“With round-the-clock AI surveillance across our neighbourhoods, integrated response units (DRS), and community partnership, Enugu has recorded an over 80 percent reduction in violent crime. This stability is the bedrock upon which investment, jobs and society can grow,” he said.
Mbah further noted that his government currently has over 2,000 projects either completed or ongoing across critical sectors, such as health, roads, transport, agriculture and education.
He also defended his administration’s decision to dedicate a record 33 percent of the state’s annual budget to education, stressing that Enugu’s real wealth lies in the quality of its human capital.
“We committed over 33 percent of our budget to education, a decision some thought was reckless, but we knew it was essential,” the governor said.
The post Again, Gov. Mbah calls for Kanu’s release appeared first on The Sun Nigeria.
