By The Nation On Jan 13, 2022
Will the trial of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, continue at the Federal High Court in Abuja or be terminated abruptly?
This and more are what an Abia State High Court sitting in Umuahia, the state capital, will determine on January 19.
It will deliver judgement in a suit seeking to stop Kanu’s ongoing trial over treasonable felony charges before Justice Binta Nyako.
The IPOB leader has been in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) since he was brought back to the country.
Justice Benson Anya of the Abia High Court fixed the date after closing arguments by Kanu’s special counsel, Aloy Ejimakor.
The lawyer, in the suit filed on August 27, 2021, is seeking an order of injunction restraining the Federal Government from taking any further step in prosecuting Kanu in the charge numbered FHC/ABJ/CR/383/2015.
The suit also is seeking an order compelling the government to forthwith release Kanu from detention, restore the liberty he enjoyed before his alleged abduction on June 19, 2021, and repatriate him to Britain, where is he is a citizen.
Kanu is also demanding an apology for the alleged infringement of his fundamental rights, to be published in three national dailies.
The prayers include: “A declaration that the military invasion of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s home in Abia State in September 2017 by the Nigerian government is illegal, unlawful, unconstitutional and amounts to infringement of his fundamental rights to life, the dignity of his person, his personal liberty and fair hearing as guaranteed under the Nigerian Constitution and the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights.
“A declaration that the arrest of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu in Kenya by agents of the Nigerian government without due process of law is arbitrary, illegal, unlawful, unconstitutional and amounts to infringement of his fundamental rights against arbitrary arrest, to his personal liberty and to fair hearing as guaranteed under the Nigerian Constitution and the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights.
“A declaration that the torture and detention of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu in Kenya by agents of the Nigerian government is illegal, unlawful, unconstitutional and amounts to infringement of his fundamental rights against torture and a fair hearing, as guaranteed under the Nigerian Constitution and the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights.
“A declaration that the expulsion of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu from Kenya to Nigeria by the Nigerian government and his consequent detention and planned prosecution in Charge No: FHC/ABJ/CR/383/2015 (the Federal Republic of Nigeria v. Nnamdi Kanu) is illegal, unlawful, unconstitutional and amount to infringement of his fundamental rights against unlawful expulsion and detention, and to a fair hearing, as guaranteed under the Nigerian Constitution and the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights”.
Also yesterday, IPOB again raised the alarm over Kanu’s continued detention, claiming he was being subjected to mental and emotional torture.
In a statement by its Media and Publicity, Emma Powerful, the group called on men and women of good conscience to prevail on the government to release Kanu to avert his death in detention.
The statement reads in part: “Solitary confinement of an innocent person is a crime as stipulated under Section 2 of the Anti-torture Act of 2017, which offence attracts 25 years imprisonment upon conviction…
“It is no longer in a controversy that Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is detained in solitary confinement where he is daily subjected to mental and emotional torture because of his belief for Biafra freedom and independence.
“We are calling on men and women of a good conscience, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, intersociety and reputable human rights organisations across the globe to prevail on Nigeria government and the…security agencies particularly the DSS, as well as justice Binta Nyako, to release Nnamdi Kanu whose health condition needs urgent attention.
“He should not be allowed to die in detention as such this scenario will not be in the interest of anybody.”
The DSS last year asked anyone with complaints about how Kanu is treated in detention to seek legal remedies.
It also denied subjecting Kanu to any form of torture.
