IPOB: Sheikh Jingir Declares Nigeria a Muslim Country — Exactly What Nnamdi Kanu Warned the World About

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has said a recent declaration attributed to Islamic cleric Sheikh Sani Yahaya Jingir that Nigeria is a Muslim country and Christians are “infidels” vindicates warnings allegedly made by detained IPOB leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu about religious domination in Nigeria.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, IPOB spokesperson Comrade Emma Powerful described Jingir’s remarks as “open confirmation” of what Kanu had allegedly warned about for more than a decade.

IPOB said Kanu had raised concerns about the religious and political direction of Nigeria long before similar issues became prominent in public debate.

The group also rejected the description of Kanu as a terrorist, portraying him instead as a whistleblower who exposed what it described as an organised effort to alter Nigeria’s religious character and marginalise Christians and other non-Muslim populations.

IPOB Revisits Kanu’s Legal Battles

Powerful used the statement to reiterate IPOB’s longstanding objections to Kanu’s prosecution and detention.

The group referenced the October 13, 2022, Court of Appeal judgment that discharged Kanu, arguing that his continued detention following the judgment was unlawful.

According to IPOB, a subsequent civil stay of execution was improperly used to prevent the effect of the criminal appellate judgment.

The organisation further alleged that Kanu was illegally re-arraigned, denied a fair hearing and eventually convicted under statutes that it described as non-existent or repealed.

IPOB also criticised Kanu’s transfer to Sokoto, arguing that his detention there carries political and religious significance.

These claims are presented by IPOB as part of its wider argument that Kanu’s prosecution has been politically motivated. The allegations remain contested by Nigerian authorities.

Group Calls for International Scrutiny

IPOB said it had brought Kanu’s case and its concerns about alleged jihadist and Islamisation plans in Nigeria to the attention of the United States Congress and the Israeli Knesset.

The group argued that Jingir’s reported comments should prompt renewed international scrutiny of religious freedom, constitutional governance and the treatment of Kanu.

“Those who mocked Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu must now answer,” Powerful said, according to the statement.

The organisation also called on the Nigerian government to clarify whether Nigeria remains a secular constitutional republic in which Christians, Muslims, traditional worshippers and people of no religion enjoy equal rights.

IPOB Links Religious Claims to Security Concerns

The group further linked Jingir’s reported comments to the security challenges posed by jihadist groups and armed groups operating in parts of Nigeria.

IPOB alleged that the expansion of jihadist violence and what it described as the movement of Fulani bandits into southern communities demonstrated the danger Kanu had previously warned about.

The Nigerian government has previously rejected claims that Nigeria is being systematically Islamised, while security agencies and government officials have continued to describe terrorism and banditry primarily as security threats rather than evidence of a state-backed religious agenda.

IPOB nevertheless maintained that public statements advocating religious ownership of Nigeria should not be dismissed.

‘The Warnings Cannot Be Imprisoned’

Powerful said Kanu’s imprisonment had not eliminated the concerns he raised about Nigeria’s political, constitutional and religious future.

“The warnings once ridiculed are being vindicated by events and by the increasingly brazen declarations now being made in public,” the statement said.

IPOB concluded by framing Kanu’s case as extending beyond the individual defendant, arguing that it raises broader questions about the rule of law, religious equality, judicial independence, self-determination and government accountability.

The group said the international community was watching Kanu’s case and Nigeria’s wider political and security situation.