The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the forthcoming election in Anambra State, Mr Valentine Ozigbo has called for the release of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.

Ozigbo made the call when he spoke at the 2021 Anambra gubernatorial debate hosted by Anambra Broadcasting Service, (ABS) in Awka on Sunday.

Ozigbo attended the debate alongside; Col. Geoffrey Onyejegbu (Rtd), of Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Dr Chidozie Nwankwo of the African Action Congress (AAC), and Chief Akachukwu Nwankpo of African Democratic Congress (ADC).

Ozigbo said Kanu should be released by the APC-led federal government and that a non-violent and diplomatic means of addressing the calls for secession should be adopted.

He said: “Indeed, Nnamdi Kanu should actually be released while we go back to the root cause of the agitation.

“I always focus on the root causes of problem-solving. We can’t be addressing a problem from the symptoms, an efficient way to address any crisis is to deal with the root.

“Why the agitations? If you think deeply, you’ll understand that it is because Nigeria is not working. Our leaders have failed us. The sense of hopelessness brought about by poor governance pervades the land.

“There’s a lot we need to do to get Nigeria working again. The poor road networks, decayed infrastructure, failed social systems, a devastating healthcare sector, a shrinking economy, lack of opportunities, and many more manifestations of poor governance leads to the question of ‘Is there any need to be part of Nigeria, anyway?” Ozigbo said.

As a way out of the current crisis, Ozigbo called for a fresh approach to leadership. He said that Nigeria must focus on raising the competitiveness of the country, among other solutions.

“We must do away with nepotism and entrench competency. We must restructure Nigeria to be more just, more competitive, and more inclusive,” Ozigbo demanded.

The PDP candidate who is among the top contenders in the forthcoming poll used the opportunity to also unveil what he called his revolutionary ideas for transforming the state in education, healthcare, economy, social services, and other key human development indices.