Pa Edwin Clark, a revered elder and head of the Southern and Middle-Belt Leaders Forum (SMBLF), recently addressed the goals and issues of the group in an interview with The Sun.
Several important topics that have sparked public controversy were addressed by Clark. The continued incarceration of pro-Biafra leader Nnamdi Kanu was one among the main points Clark made. He came clean about his role in the incident and explained how he and Kanu had a rocky start to their relationship.
Clark, despite their initial differences, highlighted the consequences of Kanu's situation by highlighting the apparent bias in the anti-terrorism laws enacted by the Buhari government. He pleaded with the federal government to release Kanu and gave a full narrative of what happened before Kanu fled the nation. Clark draws parallels between the cases of Kanu and Asari Dokubo, another prominent activist from President Obasanjo's administration, arguing that the way the government handles such cases could shape history.
Beyond the matter of Kanu's imprisonment, Clark voiced her disapproval of the Igbo people's exclusion from political life in Nigeria and called for their equal treatment and inclusion. I have been entangled in the Nnamdi Kanu controversy for some time now.
I told him he was crossing a queue once. I told him that you were being carried by your mother during the war. You did not come into this world during the 1967 conflict. You should relax. You should be able to demonstrate peacefully, but you shouldn't resort to violence or actions that harm the nation.
And I retaliated by abusing him. Reason being, I indicated in my remark that he ought not to incorporate the states of Delta, Edo, and South South. Consequently, they were enraged and made derogatory comments about me.
The matter at hand, however, is of the utmost gravity. We were unhappy with Buhari's implementation of the Terrorism Act throughout his trial. As if it were directed at a specific individual. "So we also found fault with that one," Clark stated.