American Military Veterans of Igbo Descent, AVID, have blamed governors in the zone for their insensitivity to the plight of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, who is under incarceration in the Department of State Services custody.

In a statement issued on Saturday and signed by its President, Chief Dr Sylvester Onyia and Secretary, Godson Obiagwu respectively, AVID noted, “The continued detention of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is a betrayal of Igbo nation, adding that it was wrong to blame President BolaTinubu for the situation in the South East

“As AVID USA, we cannot stand by and let the South-East governors devastate Igboland by selfishness and lack of motivation to advance our region.

“As a group, we attempted multiple times to persuade these governors that Mazi Kanu was justified, in his stands on security and social economic development of the South-East. For this reason, we can’t blame the President for the insecurity in the South-East region.”

They further alleged that information available to them showed that “the governors are supposed to meet with the President and unanimously advocate for Mazi Kanu’s release, which has yet to occur.

“We, the American Military Veterans of Igbo Descent, concur with Prince Emmanuel Kanu’s position on the implementation of the agreement between the family of Nnamdi Kanu and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, through his son, Seyi. We also concur with the concerned Igbo Ministers’ Commission over the recent news announcement.

“Keep in mind that you, the governors proscribed IPOB, while former President Muhammadu Buhari labelled this wonderful organization a terrorist movement.

“We also know that Mr President has asked the South-East governors to write a formal letter seeking the release of their son, which they all find difficult to do. We are also aware that all meaningful initiatives, particularly by religious leaders and national and state players have been frustrated by the same governors. Even after the Nigerian Appeal Court pronounced Mazi Nnamdi not guilty, the governors remained silent, confirming their complicity.

“Finally, your excellencies, as the USA Military Veterans of Igbo Descent, we must make you aware that the continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu mirrors the sort of grave human rights violations sanctionable by the United States of America under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act, which was enacted to punish violators of internationally recognized human rights.

“The Act empowers the President of the United States to impose sanctions against foreign officials complicit in ‘gross violations of internationally recognized human rights,’ against persons for exercising internationally recognized rights to freedom of expression or association, among other things.

“The range of presidential sanctions includes denial of visas, blocking transactions in all property in the United States, and public stigma. Therefore, when the time comes for it, your inaction in seeking the release of Nnamdi Kanu may make you complicit and thus subject to the full consequences of this Act should you come in contact with the United States which you do very often.”