Nnamdi Kanu wondered why the Supreme Court was taking time to release his case file to the Federal High Court.
By Jeffrey Agbo
Leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, on Monday lamented the delay in transmitting his case file from the Supreme Court to the Federal High Court in Abuja.
On December 15, the apex court ordered the continuation of Kanu’s trial on terrorism charges.
The case which started in 2015 had been put on hold at the Federal High Court in Abuja after the Court of Appeal dismissed the charges in a judgement delivered in October 2022.
The Court of Appeal in Abuja had anchored its decision dismissing the charges on the illegality of the “extraordinary rendition” of Kanu from Kenya to Nigeria in June 2021 to continue his trial.
In a statement signed by his special counsel Aloy Ejimakor, Kanu said: “During my routine visitation with Mazi Nnamdi Kanu today (8th January 2024) at the DSS in Abuja, our discussion centered mainly on the persisting failure of the Supreme Court to enroll its 15th December 2023 judgment on Kanu’s case and transmission of the case file to the Federal High Court, as was ordered by the court on said 15th December.
READ ALSO:
We can’t get Nnamdi Kanu released through force – Deputy Speaker Kalu
“This delay is unusual and thus unacceptable to Mazi Kanu and he strongly condemns it.
“In a case where Kanu has been in detention (for two and half years) and it is in public and judicial knowledge that he is grievously ill, one would expect that it should not take almost one month to certify the judgment and transmit the case file to the Federal High Court. And from what we are hearing, it might as well take over month.”
The IPOB leader compared his situation with election petition cases where judgments are readied and certified in a day or two and made available to parties.
Kanu added, “In particular, given the fact that Kanu’s case cannot go forward without his case file being physically transmitted to the Federal High Court and the judgment thereof certified, any prolongation of taking these steps becomes legally injurious to Kanu, as he continues to be detained without any immediate prospects of trial and exoneration.
“Accordingly, and by this Press Release, we strongly urge the judicial and administrative leadership of the Supreme Court to take prompt steps to transmit Kanu’s file to the Federal High Court and make certified true copies of the judgment available to his Lawyers. This is what the justice of the case demands at this point in time.”
