Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, has appealed for calm among Nigerians, particularly the Igbo community, following the conviction and sentencing of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) leader, Nnamdi Kanu, on terrorism charges.

In a statement posted on her official X account on Friday, Odumegwu-Ojukwu, who had just returned from Zanzibar, Tanzania, where she was on a monitoring assignment for the National Tripartite Advisory Council, described the judgment as “not what we anticipated, nor prayed for, but a reality that is now upon us.”

She urged restraint and cautioned against actions that could inflame tensions either within Nigeria or among the diaspora. “There comes a time in the history of a people when there is a need for calm. I therefore advise Ndigbo, and Nigerians as a whole, that such a period is now,” she said, warning against incendiary responses.

The minister stressed the importance of dialogue and collective engagement among Igbo stakeholders, including governors, lawmakers, traditional rulers, clergy, politicians, and business leaders, as the most effective path toward resolution. She emphasised that the quest for coexistence with justice, equity, and dignity requires unity and peace to safeguard all citizens regardless of ethnicity or faith.

Odumegwu-Ojukwu reassured Nigerians and international partners that opportunities remain to resolve the crisis in ways that ease national anxiety and trauma. She called for a joint political engagement in the South-East to seek a lasting solution.

Kanu was convicted on November 20 by the Federal High Court in Abuja on seven counts of terrorism. Justice James Omotosho sentenced him to life imprisonment on five counts, 20 years on one count, and five years on another, with all sentences to run concurrently. The court opted for life imprisonment rather than the death penalty, citing international standards and the interest of justice.