Cameroon Lauds Nigeria for Arresting IPOB Leader, Kanu

Deji Elumoye in Abuja

Cameroon has lauded Nigeria for the recent arrest and repatriation of the leader of the proscribed Independent People of Biafra (IPOB), Mr. Nnamdi Kanu, to the country.

The commendation came as President Muhammadu Buhari pledged the readiness of Nigeria to ensure that the Republic of Cameroon would remain an indivisible country.

Cameroon’s Special Envoy, Mr. Felix Mbayu, who spoke yesterday at the State House, Abuja while delivering a message from President Paul Biya to Buhari, congratulated the Nigerian government on the recent arrest and repatriation of Kanu with the collaboration of national security agencies and INTERPOL.

The IPOB, a separatist group that was proscribed by the Nigerian government, was said to have entered into alliance with the Ambazonian Movement, a separatist group from Cameroon, in their agitations for self-determination.

Mbayu, who is also Minister Delegate in Charge of Cooperation with the Commonwealth, said that Biya was happy with the role Nigeria was playing in Africa, noting that the two neighbours shared not just borders and historical ties “but also common challenges.”

He said: “These challenges border on security specially, and it is incumbent on us both to find common solutions.”

The special envoy said that Biya looked forward to a situation in which Nigerian territory would not be available for the Ambazonian movement to destabilise Cameroon, “as some people are taking advantage of some crises in the two English speaking parts of Cameroon to break the country apart.”

Speaking while receiving his guest, Buhari recalled that Cameroon offered Nigeria needed support during the civil war adding that the two countries shared historical ties and common borders, which made it imperative for the two countries to look out for each other’s well-being.

He said: “That was why when I first came to office in 2015, I immediately visited all our neighbours, because we are very clear about the value of good neighbourliness. You will have problems if your neighbours are not cultivated. And our relationship with Cameroon had been very clear since when I was serving in the military. The country offered us needed support during our civil war.”

Buhari said that Nigeria was acutely aware of the separatist agitation by the Ambazonian movement and submitted that it was in the interest of Nigeria “to ensure that Cameroon is stable, and we will be steadfast in our support for you.”