2027: Pardon Kanu in your interest, Ohanaeze leader tells Tinubu

The Deputy President- General of the Igbo apex socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Okechukwu Isiguzoro, has urged President Bola Tinubu to pardon the jailed leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, as part of measures to secure his 2027 re-election.

He also called on the President to take steps to neutralise opposition forces against his second term, warning that failure to do so could endanger his ambition.

In an interview with Sunday PUNCH, Isiguzoro said pardoning Kanu, suspending the newly introduced tax law, and fully implementing the 2014 National Conference report would help stabilise the polity.

The Igbo leader added that Tinubu also needs to accelerate the completion of major infrastructure projects and consider the creation of additional states.

According to him, the country’s political environment is gradually becoming hostile to the President, with diverse interest groups quietly aligning to frustrate his second-term ambition.

The Ohanaeze chieftain argued that granting Kanu a presidential pardon would immediately ease political tensions in the South-East and weaken separatist agitations ahead of 2027.

He said, “There are powerful forces across the country working against Tinubu. They include northern elites, Middle Belt leaders, angry business moguls, and retired military and political power brokers. The President must act decisively to neutralise them.

“A pardon for Nnamdi Kanu before 2027—preferably on June 12 or October 1—will change the political temperature in the South-East and deny the opposition a powerful mobilisation tool.

He advised the President to urgently review and suspend the newly introduced tax law, which he said has alienated influential business leaders and private-sector players.

“Many business moguls are already funding opposition movements quietly because of the tax policy. This is a dangerous front the President cannot ignore,” he warned.

The chieftain described the implementation of the 2014 National Conference report as a “game changer” capable of reshaping the country’s political structure and weakening regional grievances.

“If Tinubu implements the 2014 Confab report, he will rewrite Nigeria’s political history and outsmart those plotting against him. Visible projects win elections. If these roads are completed before 2027, the APC will make unprecedented gains in regions it has historically struggled,” he added.

Isiguzoro also called on the President to initiate the creation of additional states across the six geopolitical zones, describing it as a strategic political move that could broaden Tinubu’s national support base.

The chieftain warned that 2027 would not be an easy contest, noting that the opposition was already exploring alliances to stop Tinubu’s reelection.

Tinubu must not underestimate the conspiracy against him. This election will be won through strategy, courage, and timely political decisions,” he said