The Nigerian
government has linked the 2,671 pump action rifles illegally imported from
Turkey to the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Mr. Nnamdi Kanu.
The riffles
were intercepted by the Nigeria Customs Service on four different
occasions in 2017.
In a
counter-affidavit filed by the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation
and which was deposed to by a litigation officer in the Department of State
Services, Mr. Ayuba Adam, it drew a link between the Turkish citizen’s visit to
Kanu and the arms smuggled into Nigeria, the counter-affidavit added that the
NCS had intercepted 2,671 rifles smuggled from Turkey in 2017 alone.
The counter-affidavit read in part, “That a Turkish citizen, Abdulkadir
Erkahraman, visited Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the respondent/applicant in
Isiama Afara, Umuahia, Abia State sometimes in July 2017, and has been
canvassing support for the secessionist agenda of the respondent/applicant. He
also admonished Biafrans to rise
up and fight a good fight for freedom.’
“That the
Nigeria Customs Service had on four occasions this year intercepted pump action
rifles totalling 2,671 illegally imported into the country. Copies of the report
on arms smuggling is attached herewith and marked as Exhibit FGN 2A and 2B.”
Recall that
the Acting Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Abdu Kafarati, had on
September 20, 2017, made an order proscribing IPOB and designating it as a
terrorist group upon an ex parte application by the Attorney General of the
Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN).
The AGF
office subsequently filed a counter-affidavit justifying the proscription order
of the court.
Justice
Kafarati heard the two parties on Tuesday after which he adjourned until
January 17 for ruling on whether or not the proscription of IPOB should be
proscribed.
Source: New Telegraph
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