Nnamdi Kanu Gives Conditions To Stand Trial In Court

Nnamdi Kanu gives conditions to stand trial, including being granted bail or transferred from State Security Service detention to Abuja prison or house arrest.

The leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has stated that he will only stand trial if granted bail or transferred from State Security Service (SSS) detention to the Abuja prison.

VerseNews reports that Kanu faces treason charges at the Federal High Court in Abuja for his group’s efforts to secede southeastern Nigeria and parts of the south-south region.

During the resumed hearing, Kanu’s lead lawyer, Aloy Ejimakor, requested house arrest for his client to ensure he has unrestricted access to legal counsel, citing the precedent of Islamic cleric Sheik El-Zaky Zaky and former National Security Adviser Sambo Dasuki.

Ejimakor emphasized that Kanu’s restricted access to lawyers while in SSS detention hinders his constitutional right to prepare for his case.

Kanu was re-arrested in Kenya and brought back to Nigeria in June 2021, where he has since been held in SSS custody.

Ejimakor argued that the court’s previous revocation of Kanu’s bail was based on misrepresentation of facts by the Nigerian government and that he had not breached bail conditions prior to his home being raided by soldiers in 2017.

Despite Ejimakor’s arguments, the prosecution lawyer, Adegboyega Awomolo, urged the court to dismiss Kanu’s conditions for trial, labeling the application as “frivolous, vexatious, and baseless.”

He pointed out that the appropriate forum for Kanu’s bail application was the Court of Appeal, not the trial court.

After hearing arguments from both sides, the judge adjourned the case to May 20 for a ruling on the matter.