Nnamdi Kanu granted Honorary US Citizenship, named Georgia Goodwill ambassador

Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPoB) currently serving a life sentence in Sokoto prison, has been conferred Honorary Citizenship of the State of Georgia, USA, and recognized as a Goodwill Ambassador.

The proclamation was issued by Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on January 16, 2026, and formally presented on January 23, 2026, in Milledgeville, Georgia, by State Representative Gab Okoye.

Former Nigerian Consul General in South Africa, Ambassador Uche Ajulu-Okeke, received the certificate on Kanu’s behalf, describing him as “Africa’s most famous political prisoner and global prisoner of conscience.”

The official proclamation states:

“I, Brad Raffensperger, Secretary of State of the State of Georgia, do hereby proclaim Nnamdi Okwu Kanu as an Honorary Georgia Citizen.

“May this Outstanding Citizen be accorded every courtesy as a Goodwill Ambassador from Georgia in his travels to other states, to nations beyond the borders of the United States of America, or wherever he may hereafter travel or reside.”

Kanu, who is serving a life sentence following a conviction for treasonable offences by an Abuja Federal Court, has consistently denied wrongdoing, challenging the court to justify the charges.

He has also vowed to appeal the judgment, arguing that he was tried under a non-existent law.

The IPoB leader was abducted in Kenya in 2021 and extradited to Nigeria under controversial circumstances during the administration of the late President Muhammadu Buhari.