Mrs Ejezie, who is the foster mother of the detained IPOB leader was arrested in Abuja on May 18, 2022, during Kanu’s last court appearance and was detained without being charged for months.
The leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has reacted to the release of Mrs Ukamaka Ejezie, popularly called Mama Biafra, illegally detained for three months and 10 days by Nigeria's secret police, the Department of State Services (DSS).
Mrs Ejezie, who is the foster mother of the detained IPOB leader was arrested in Abuja on May 18, 2022, during Kanu’s last court appearance and was detained without being charged for months.
Reacting to her incarceration, Kanu had said, “I saw her at the DSS detention cell after her clothes were washed and spread on the wall. I demand that she be released because she committed no crime. She is an old woman and since my mother died, I have taken her as my mother. The DSS should release her."
But following a suit filed by Kanu's legal team led by Ifeanyi Ejiofor Esq, she was recently released.
Kanu, while reacting to her release during a routine visit by his legal team to see the detained IPOB leader in DSS custody on Thursday, expressed happiness over the release of his foster mother from detention.
A statement by Ejiofor noted that "Onyendu was particularly enthused after he was fully briefed on the news of the release of Mama Biafra. He could not hold his excitement on hearing the long-awaited news. He thanked me in particular, and my legal team for our outstanding professionalism that has always guided our strategy towards rescuing UmuChineke detained in various facilities of the Nigerian Security Agencies."
Ejiofor further stated that "Onyendu remains very strong in his conviction as he has defied every strategy adopted by the state to break him," adding that "Now that Mama Biafra has been released pursuant to an application for the enforcement of her fundamental rights I had earlier filed on her behalf, we shall continue with the suit to ensure that she is adequately compensated for the period of time she was unlawfully detained in solitary confinement."
He also disclosed that the IPOB legal team would not leave “any stone unturned towards ensuring that all those still languishing in custody are released”.
“Idara Gold and others are in our top priority, as our team is aggressively pursuing their release," the lawyer added.