The Indigenous People of Biafra has said the recent revelations by the Spokesman to former President Muhammadu Buhari, Garba Shehu that they used the “Villa rat” invasion story to cover up Buhari’s prolonged illness and absence from governance, has vindicated the position of the pro-Biafran leader, Nnamdi Kanu.

In a press statement released by the IPOB’s Spokesman, Emma Powerful, on Saturday, the group claimed that Kanu was the first to bring the information to the public and was persecuted by the likes of Shehu, who described it as “fake news” and “hate speech”.

Powerful said, “The IPOB under the leadership of our incorruptible and prophetically gifted leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, notes with righteous vindication the stunning admission by Garba Shehu, former spokesman to the late President Muhammadu Buhari, that the now-infamous ‘villa rat invasion’ story was a calculated lie to cover up Buhari’s prolonged illness and absence from governance.

“Let the world take note: what Mazi Nnamdi Kanu said years ago on Radio Biafra, that Muhammadu Buhari was gravely ill and incapable of leading Nigeria, and that Aso Rock was enmeshed in a web of lies and deception, has now been confirmed by one of the principal architects of that deception himself.

“The same Garba Shehu who accused our leader of ‘fake news’ and ‘hate speech’, has now confessed, with no shame, that they orchestrated a national charade to fool over 200 million people. What greater treason can be committed than lying to an entire nation about the health and whereabouts of its so-called president?

“This disgraceful confirmation vindicates everything Kanu has ever said about the fraudulent and deceptive nature of the Nigerian state. He told the truth and was persecuted for it. He warned Nigerians that their President was missing in action, that shadowy forces had hijacked the machinery of government, and that the people were being ruled by deception.

“Instead of investigating the truth, the Nigerian media and political elite mocked him. They ridiculed his divine insight. They arrested him. They tortured him. They abducted and renditioned him. But they could not bury the truth.”

The group, however, insisted that Shehu’s cowardly confession is not an act of courage, adding that it is a delayed admission born of guilt and irrelevance.

“Where was this honesty when the Nigerian people needed it? Where was this ‘truth’ when IPOB and our leader were being vilified, jailed, and labeled terrorists for speaking it? If this level of deliberate misinformation had happened in any sane society, those responsible would be in jail for subverting the constitution, undermining national security, and deceiving the electorate. But Nigeria rewards mediocrity, protects liars, and punishes truth-tellers.

“Let it be clearly stated once again: Mazi Nnamdi Kanu does not lie. He does not speculate. He speaks only divine truth, and every word he has ever uttered is manifesting before your eyes. From the exposure of Buhari’s health fraud, to the Fulani expansionist agenda, to the illegality of his abduction and extraordinary rendition — time continues to prove Mazi Nnamdi Kanu right.

“Those who still doubt the divine calling of our leader should watch as every falsehood told against him crumbles one after the other. The truth is like the rising sun — it cannot be suppressed. Today Garba Shehu has confessed. Tomorrow others will follow. Aso Rock is a house built on lies, and the foundation is shaking,” the statement added.

The group urged Nigerians and international community to stop enabling tyranny in Nigeria, adding, “You now have confirmation from the mouth of the regime’s own spokesperson that the Nigerian people were lied to on a grand scale. If this does not concern you, then you are complicit.

“In the words of our leader: we are without fear before our enemies” and “in the end, we always win.”