Femi Fani-Kayode, a former aviation minister, has refuted reports circulating online that the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu has changed his stance on his fight for the freedom of Biafra from Nigeria.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, May 3, 2017, and e-mailed to The Trent, Fani-Kayode, through his spokesperson, Jude Ndukwe refuted the reports and said that there were manufactured in the All Progressives Congress, APC Media Office widely known to be the source of deceptive and fake news which intend to cast the opposition to President Muhammadu Buhari in bad light and cause disaffection among Nigerians.
“There is a statement making the rounds to the effect that Prince Nnamdi Kanu made certain statements that are contrary to his original stance on national matters and are found disturbing by his admirers, supporters and followers,” Ndukwe wrote.
“Some other versions of the rumour have it that he made the statement during his visit to Chief Femi Fani-Kayode.
“While we are proud of having hosted the courageous IPOB leader when he paid a visit to FFK [Femi Fani-Kayode] as part of his “Thank you tour”, we wish to state categorically clear that Prince Nnamdi Kanu didn’t make such statement.
“Our investigations have revealed that that statement emanated from the notorious APC Media Centre (a coordinated propaganda machinery of our collective traducers).
“Kanu could not in any way have made and did not make such a statement, and nothing of that sort or anything near it was said by him or any other person present at the meeting. If anything, our strong belief is that the IPOB leader still holds very tightly to his struggle and the principles behind it. He does not in any way look like a man that would flinch in the face of intimidation or harassment. He cut the figure of a man that is more determined now than ever to see his struggle through to a logical conclusion.
“The meeting was also held in an atmosphere of conviviality and was characterised by mutual respect and appreciation for and to all parties involved in the struggle to have our people emancipated from oppression and tyranny.
“We therefore cannot afford to help our common traducers divide us now.
“Unfortunately, some of those who shared the wickedly false story in the social media and other places are those who should have known better and apply circumspection. They are those who are the most pitiable victims of State oppression and tyranny but would neither raise a finger to join in the struggle for emancipation but would rather put all their hands in bids to destroy it.
“At this point, we ask, whose interest are they serving?
“Our traducers are master propagandists. It beats our imagination that some people can’t still spot their work when they see it and dismiss same even on its face value.
“We urge every well meaning Nigerian to kindly disregard that misleading statement purportedly authored by Prince Kanu whenever and wherever it is found and dismiss same for all its malice, wickedness, evil, as the intentions of its faceless authors are divisive and ignoble. But they have failed,” the statement ended.
