It was on Monday 20th, 2025, at about 7pm. I had decided to sit out with some friends and colleagues in an outskirt of Abuja, having earlier joined them in the child naming ceremony of a member. Still in the mood of merrying, and our usual discussions of Nigeria’s socio-economic-cum-political events (as if we could even change anything), the topic of ‘Babalaye’ Sowore’s-led protests earlier that day popped up.

Tacitly, I queried a friend of mine, Don Coleone, who is an unapologetically avid supporter of Nnamdi Kanu’s cause, “why didn’t you attend today’s protest?”. His response was simple and clear, “I have a family to take care of”. Then, I declared, “stop ranting about the matter since you refused to join the protesters”.

He snapped back at me, “Did you attend either?”. I defended myself sheepishly, “No. I was too occupied”. I didn’t want to use the right word ‘AFRAID’. Resigned to my fate, I felt an irritating pain of guilt in me. Could it be that everyone on the street seeking for the freedom of Nnamdi Kanu do not have families to take care of?.

Or they are ‘less busy’?. Even his most loyal online supporters failed him on this day. We were expecting a ‘mother-of-all protests’. At least, that was the hype and impression given to Nigerians across social media platforms before the deal day! Whatever must have happened? This is the problem of an average Nigerian, myself included.

The fear of the unknown. The lack of trust in our security apparatus. The death of selfless representation. I was visibly overwhelmed in a crises of conscience and complicity.

The ongoing detention of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, despite a clear and unambiguous ruling from the Court of Appeal for his release, represents a profound crisis of conscience and a glaring testament to the complicity that festers within the power structures of Nigeria, particularly among the political elite of the South East region. This is not merely a legal battle; it is a dramatic exposure of the ghosts that haunt the corridors of power; leaders who, by their calculated silence and inaction, reveal a terrifying truth: they are more comfortable with the captivity of their most prominent agitator than with the disruptive freedom he embodies.

The Nigerian government’s stubborn refusal to obey its own court is a direct assault on the very foundation of the rule of law, rendering the judiciary a toothless bulldog and confirming the fears of many that the state operates on impunity rather than constitutional order.

When a government can brazenly kidnap a citizen from a foreign land, ignore a superior court’s discharge order, and indefinitely hold him without legal justification, it ceases to be a democracy and morphs into an autocracy masquerading in democratic garb. With Former President Buhari in power, it was understandable that a dictator can never change, no matter how hard he tries to.

But with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, an avowed democrat, one would wonder what has gone wrong!

The perplexing silence and often tacit support for this legal travesty from the established political leaders of the South East is a betrayal of monumental proportions. Their reluctance is not born of a concern for public safety but from a cold, political calculus for self-preservation. A free Nnamdi Kanu represents an existential threat to their carefully curated political ecosystem, which is built on a paradigm of negotiation with the central government for crumbs from the national table.

His massive, grassroots popularity would instantly eclipse their relevance, rendering their political machines obsolete. He is an uncontrollable force, a man who commands the streets and gives raw, uncompromising voice to the deep-seated feelings of marginalization and generational anger that they have only ever paid lip service to. They fear his release because it would shatter their managed narrative of “restructuring” and “dialogue” and force a genuine, people-driven conversation about the future of the region, a conversation in which they would be mere bystanders.

Furthermore, his continued detention provides them with a convenient scapegoat for their own abysmal failures in governance. They can point to the insecurity and the disruptive sit-at-home orders as the root of all problems, deflecting attention from their own corruption, incompetence, and inability to provide basic amenities or security for their people.

In essence, these ghostly leaders are haunted by the prospect of a truly empowered populace and would rather rule over a silenced and suffering region than share the stage with a man who embodies its defiant spirit.

The continued detention of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is a stain on Nigeria’s democracy and a testament to the cowardice of a political class that has lost its moral compass. The “ghosts” of South East leaders (Governors especially), by their silence, are complicit in the economic strangulation and social anguish of their own people.

They fear the fire of a free man more than the slow decay of their people in chains. Releasing Kanu is not an endorsement of his ideology, rather, it is an endorsement of the law; a prerequisite for peace, and the first step in reclaiming the soul of a nation on the brink. To ignore the court and the will of the people is to court anarchy, and in that storm, the ghosts of these leaders might find no peace.

In stark contrast to this leadership failure, the streets are speaking. Across the South East and in major cities like Abuja and Lagos, a groundswell of protest is growing. Nigerians from various walks of life, including lawyers, civil society organizations, and ordinary citizens, are consistently taking to the streets, as seen on October 20th 2025, waving placards and chanting slogans to demand that the government obey the court order and release Nnamdi Kanu.

These protests are a powerful, organic response to the injustice, a clear signal that the people are aware of the law and are watching their leaders. They understand that the continued detention is the primary fuel for the insecurity and economic paralysis plaguing the region.

Even Kanu himself has, from his detention cell, disavowed the violent enforcement of sit-at-home orders, yet they persist, often orchestrated by shadowy elements who thrive in the vacuum created by his absence. His release would immediately dismantle the central grievance and test the genuine popularity of his peaceful message against the authority of his voice, a necessary step towards de-escalating the tension that benefits no one but the agents of chaos and a complacent political class.

It is instructive to declare that the path forward is not one of complex political negotiation, but a simple, courageous return to the rule of law. The Federal Government must immediately and unconditionally comply with the judgment of the Court of Appeal and release Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. This act alone would extinguish a major source of tension and begin to restore a shred of credibility to Nigeria’s battered judicial system.

His release should then be used as a crucial window of opportunity to initiate a sincere, internationally monitored national dialogue aimed at addressing the fundamental issues of state structure, true federalism, and the legitimate grievances of the Igbo people and other marginalized groups.

The political leaders of the South East must be compelled to find their voice and speak with one accord to demand the freedom of their son, not out of agreement with his ideology, but out of respect for the law and a genuine desire for the peace and economic revival of their homeland.

The continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu is a festering wound; his release is the first and most necessary step towards any hope of healing, reconciliation, and a return to a nation governed by laws, not by the whims of men and the fears of ghosts. A word is enough for the wise!

May the sun shine tomorrow…