Buhari signs proclamation proscribing IPOB

Buhari signs proclamation proscribing IPOB

- President Buhari has signed a proclamation forbidding the activities of IPOB

- The president reportedly signed the necessary document before departing for US on Sunday

- The AGF is expected to soon head to court to initiate legal backings of the presidential proclamation

As controversy trail the Nigerian army's declaration of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) as a terrorist group and the proscription of the group by southeast governors, President Muhammadu Buhari has reportedly signed a proclamation proscribing the group.

In a bid to take the heat off the Nigerian army, the president signed the presidential proclamation on Sunday before leaving for the US to attend the 72nd session of United Nations General Assembly, This Day reports.

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Recall Legit.ng reported that Senate president Bukola Saraki, on Monday, September 19, said the army's decision to declare the IPOB a terrorist group and the southeast governor's proscription of same group did not follow due process.

The Senate president asked Buhari to 'do the needful' and initiate the right process, a step it seems the president has now taken by signing a proclamation forbidding activities of the IPOB.

A source in the attorney general’s office reportedly claimed that the president has effectively initiated the formal process of proscribing IPOB in accordance with the provisions of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act, 2011.

The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Mr Abubakar Malami (SAN) is expected to head to court soon to give legal backing to the presidential proclamation.

The source said: “The issue was extensively debated between Buhari, the AGF and other aides before he left for the UN General Assembly and the president decided to sign the declaration before leaving for New York, so he could say that due process was being followed if the question was raised by other world leaders at the UN."

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported earlier that the Chief of Army Staff, Lt General Tukur Buratai, revealed that the Defence Headquarters did not declare IPOB a terrorist organisation in Nigeria.

The latest twist is coming on the heels of the recent declaration of IPOB as a terrorist organisation by the army.

Buratai, who spoke while officially launching the Operation Python Dance 2 in Abakaliki, Ebonyi state in the evening of Monday, September 18, said the federal government took the right steps to contain IPOB.

Watch this Legit.ng exclusive video of Nnamdi Kanu's lawyers reacting to the army's invasion of his client's residence:

Source: Legit.ng

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