President Muhammadu Buhari has revealed that certain high-profile individuals are sponsoring the activities of separatists Nnamdi Kanu and Sunday Adeyemo aka Sunday Igboho.
The president stated that a serving member of the national assembly was identified as one of the sponsors.
Buhari stated this during his 37-minute Independence Day speech on Friday.
He reiterated his administration’s resolve to improve the country’s security architecture and stem the activities of insurgents and criminals in the Nigeria.
The statement reads in part: “The recent arrests of Nnamdi Kanu and Sunday Adeyemo, and the ongoing investigations being conducted have revealed certain high-profile financiers behind these individuals.
“We are vigorously pursuing these financiers including one identified as a serving member of the national assembly.
“This is a clear example of how people abandon their national leadership positions for their selfish gains. Instead of preaching unity, they are funding and misleading our youth to conduct criminal acts that sometimes lead to unfortunate and unnecessary loss of lives and property.
“As the so-called leaders run abroad to hide, our innocent youths are misled and left in the streets to fight for their senseless and destructive causes.
“Government will continue, with greater level of peoples’ participation and in collaboration with our international partners, to improve the security architecture, reduce enabling environment for criminality to thrive and eliminate opportunities for terrorism financing.
Chronicle NG reports that Sunday Igboho is detained in Benin Republic awaiting trial after he was arrested at an airport in Cotonou while trying to flee to Germany with his wife.
He was charged with using a fake passport to travel.
Nnamdi Kanu is currently in custody of the Department of State Security (DSS) after he was arrested in Kenya.
Kanu faces charges of treason and treasonable felony for being behind deadly attacks in the south east.