TheCable

BW Global Group, the American lobby firm hired by Nnamdi Kanu, Biafra separatist leader, has reportedly engaged the US government over the arrest of the activist.

Foreign Lobby, a Washington-based platform, quoted the firm as saying it “had been in touch with the State Department and Congress” about the arrest of Kanu, who leads the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

The IPOB leader was said to have signed a contract with BW Global Group to help promote IPOB in a bid to achieve its secession objective of Biafra.

The $1750,000 deal reportedly took effect from March 1, 2021, and is expected to last for a year.

A document relating to the contract had stated that, “BWGG shall provide IPOB with services relating to the promotion of human rights and democracy, and shall otherwise act as an advocate for the indigenous people of Biafra.”

Jeffrey Birrel, the co-owner of BW Global Group, told Foreign Lobby that Kanu’s arrest “could have grave consequences in terms of human life”.

“We don’t know all of the details surrounding the thuggish actions of the Nigerian Security Forces which acted, in a third country, against Mr. Kanu, a British citizen,” he reportedly said.

“We hope that the US will make its position clear regarding this unlawful abduction and assert support for Mr. Kanu’s universal human rights.”

Abubakar Malami, the attorney-general of the federation (AGF), said on Tuesday that the IPOB leader was “intercepted” on Sunday “through the collaborative efforts of Nigerian intelligence and Security Services.”

The AGF did not state where the separatist leader was arrested, but TheCable learnt that Kanu, who is also a British citizen, was lured to an African country with a promise of cash donations and was then picked up.

The British High Commission in Abuja said on Wednesday that it is “currently in the process of seeking clarification from the Nigerian government about the circumstances of the arrest”.