The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo has appealed to the British government for leniency on behalf of former Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu who was recently convicted in the United Kingdom.
Ohaneze Ndigbo declared that it accepts the trial Court’s Judgement that pronounced over 10 years jail term for the ex-lawmaker for organ harvesting against him, his wife, and another.
The group made its appeal when the Ohanaeze Ndigbo leadership met with Dr. Richard Montgomery, the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, at the organization’s national secretariat in Enugu.
Archbishop Emmanuel Chukwuma who spoke on the behalf of the organisation said Ndigbo would be happy should Ekweremadu’s jail term be reduced.
Bishop Chukwuma said, “There is a very important issue that we have to bring to your attention. You’re aware of the case of Nigeria’s former Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu who was convicted and is in jail in your country. He’s from this state and we all know the circumstance he got entangled in that unfortunate incident because he wanted to save his daughter
“He is already serving a jail term. It’s unfortunate; but it has happened. I testified for him during the trial and in fact, the judge mentioned my name two times while delivering his judgment.
“But we’re using the opportunity of your visit to ask for leniency for him so that he doesn’t spend the number of years in jail. We have accepted the judgment, but are saying if there’s anything that could be done to reduce the jail term. He’s from this area and if we don’t bring this thing up as Ohanaeze or from us here, concerning this important son of Igboland, it wouldn’t be nice of us. We are quite overwhelmed.”