ICC acknowledges receipt of Igboho's petition against Buhari

The International Criminal Court (ICC) at the Hague has acknowledged the receipt of a 27-page petition filed by the leader of Ilana Omo Oodua, Prof Banji Akintoye, Yoruba Nation enforcer, Sunday Adeyemo aka Sunday Igboho, and 49 other Yoruba Self-Determination groups against President Muhammad Buhari.

Others petitioned against are the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami SAN, former Chief of Army Staff Tukur Buratai and former Inspectors General of Police Ibrahim Idris and Muhammed Adamu.

In the petition signed by several leaders of Yoruba Self-Determination groups and submitted at the ICC on their behalf by international Lawyer, Ade Omojola, the Nigerian leaders were accused of genocide and crimes against humanity against the Yoruba people of Ekiti, Oyo, Osun, Ondo, Ogun, Okun land in Kogi and Kwara States respectively.

ICC's Head of Information and Evidence Unit of the Office of the Prosecutor, Mark P. Dillon, wrote that "as soon as a decision is reached to formally commence investigation into this petition, we will inform you in writing, and provide you with reasons for this decision.

"This communication has been duly entered in the Communications Register of the Office. We will give consideration to this communication, as appropriate, in accordance with the provisions of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court."

ICC acknowledges Igboho's petition ICC acknowledges Igboho's petition Pulse Nigeria

The petitioners accuse Buhari, Malami, Buratai and others of "genocide, causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group, crimes against humanity, murder, deportation or forcible transfer of population, torture, rape, sexual slavery," among others.

Igboho's Ibadan residence was raided on July 1, 2021 by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS), 48 hours before the secessionist's mega rally in Lagos, Nigeria's most populous city.

The separatist-themed rally on July 3 was subsequently quelled by law enforcement, with arrests made.

Igboho has gone into hiding since the raid.