Human rights activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has claimed that the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, is now a “celebrity” at the Sokoto Custodial Centre, where he is currently serving a life sentence.
Sowore made the remarks on Tuesday while addressing journalists at the Federal High Court in Abuja. His comments come days after Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court delivered the controversial judgment that sentenced Kanu to life imprisonment on charges linked to terrorism and threats to national security.
The ruling has continued to trigger reactions across the country, especially among Kanu’s supporters in the South-East and human rights activists who believe the government mishandled the long-running case. Kanu has been in detention since 2021, following his arrest in Kenya and subsequent extradition to Nigeria under circumstances that many legal experts described as irregular.
Speaking to journalists, Sowore claimed that rather than silence Kanu or weaken his influence, the Nigerian government had only succeeded in giving him a new level of recognition.
“Nnamdi Kanu is already a celebrity in prison,” Sowore said. “They even said he has become the president of the prison, but I doubt it must have been conferred on him just by respect.”
The activist added that government officials had underestimated the impact of their decision. According to him, Kanu’s relocation to Sokoto was intended to isolate him, but it ended up drawing more attention and sympathy.
“When they were taking him to Sokoto, they thought they would ridicule him. But when they got to Sokoto, he turned Sokoto into another Mecca,” he said.
Sowore explained that several people, including those who did not originally support IPOB’s agitation, were now rushing to the Sokoto prison to see Kanu, a development he said showed that the government’s plan had backfired.
The most controversial part of Sowore’s remarks was his claim that Justice James Omotosho, who delivered the life sentence, would one day “beg” Kanu for passing what he believes is a wrongful judgment.
He said:
“I want his family members to give me the right to admit people to see him, so that I will tell you the day the judge who sentenced him will go to Sokoto to beg him, like Fela was begged for doing what is wrong—if he has not done that already.”
Sowore compared the situation to the famous case of Afrobeat legend Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, who was wrongfully convicted during the military era and later received apologies from those involved.
Nnamdi Kanu has been one of the most controversial political figures in Nigeria for over a decade. As the leader of IPOB, he has repeatedly demanded a separate state of Biafra for the South-East region, citing political marginalisation, insecurity, and poor infrastructure as reasons for the agitation.
In 2015, Kanu was first arrested on charges of treasonable felony. He later obtained bail in 2017 but fled the country after a military operation in Abia State. IPOB was subsequently declared a terrorist organisation by the Nigerian government.
In June 2021, he was re-arrested in Kenya and flown back to Nigeria. This move was widely criticised by international human rights organisations, who described it as an act of “extraordinary rendition.”
Over the past three years, his trial has experienced multiple delays, court orders, and appeals. His supporters have consistently accused the government of violating his rights, while the government maintains that his actions pose a serious threat to national unity.
Sokoto Custodial Centre, a high-security prison in northwestern Nigeria, is known for housing individuals convicted of high-profile offences. Kanu’s relocation there has drawn national attention, partly because the South-East, where his followers are most concentrated, is thousands of kilometres away.
Sowore argued that the government moved Kanu to Sokoto to make access more difficult, but the plan has not worked.
“The people we asked to protest to stop Kanu from going to jail are now all rushing to Sokoto,” he said.
While the federal government has not responded to Sowore’s claims, tensions remain high in the South-East. Some IPOB members have called for renewed protests, while moderate groups have urged calm and lawful engagement with the court process.
Human rights organisations are also monitoring the situation closely. Many have questioned whether the life sentence was appropriate, especially considering earlier court rulings that ordered Kanu’s release. Amnesty International has long argued that the government should seek a political solution instead of a purely legal one.
Sowore did not hide his belief that the authorities will eventually come to regret the judgment.
“Very soon you will see that they will reverse the fundamental mistake they made regarding Kanu,” he predicted. “I said before that this will be the mistake of their lives.”
The activist called on Kanu’s family to grant him permission to coordinate visits to the prison, insisting that the situation is already shifting in Kanu’s favour.
Kanu’s legal team is expected to file an appeal against the life sentence. Some lawyers have already argued that the verdict contradicts earlier judgments by higher courts, including a 2022 ruling by the Court of Appeal which discharged him on the grounds that his extradition was unlawful. However, that ruling was later stayed by the Supreme Court.
