Bianca Ojukwu Condemns Life Sentence On Nnamdi Kanu, Urges Calm, Push For Political Solution

Abuja, Nigeria- Nigeria’s former ambassador and widow of Biafran leader Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Bianca Ojukwu, has faulted the life imprisonment handed down to the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, calling for calm as political avenues are explored to resolve the crisis.

Ojukwu, who recently returned from a monitoring assignment in Zanzibar, said the ruling was “not the outcome anyone hoped for,” adding that the moment demanded restraint rather than reactions that could heighten tensions across the country.

“There comes a time in the history of a people when there is need for calm… I advise Ndigbo and Nigerians as a whole that such a period is now,” she said in a statement issued on Friday.

She warned against any form of response—both at home and abroad—that could inflame the already charged situation, stressing that “a word is enough for the wise.”

According to her, only strategic engagement, not anger, would lead to a meaningful resolution.

She called on Igbo leaders—governors, senators, members of the National Assembly, traditional rulers, clergy, and the business community—to unite and interface collectively with the Federal Government.

“Beating the drums of fury and sabre-rattling will only generate diminishing returns and, in the worst case, yet another wasteland,” she warned.

Describing dialogue as the most effective route to de-escalation, Ojukwu said the struggle for justice, equity, and fair coexistence for Ndigbo in Nigeria must continue, peacefully.

Despite the shockwaves caused by Kanu’s sentencing, Ojukwu insisted there is still room for resolution that will “reduce national anxiety and societal trauma.”

“I reassure Ndigbo, Nigerians and our foreign partners that prospects remain for resolving this impasse. Now is the time for a joint engagement involving all South-East states to seek a political solution,” she added.