The detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has appealed against the decision of a Federal High Court (FHC), in Abuja dismissing his objection to his trial continuation.... CLICK TO READ THE FULL NEWS HERE▶▶
The detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has appealed against the decision of a Federal High Court (FHC), in Abuja dismissing his objection to his trial continuation.
In Kanu’s brief of arguments before the appellate court, dated August 8 and brought against the judgment of Justice Binta Nyako of the FHC, his lead counsel, Aloy Ejimakor formulated eight legal questions for determination by the appellate court.
He argued that the trial court erred in dismissing the preliminary objection without fully addressing all seven grounds raised.
He contended that the court’s refusal to consider these grounds constitutes a violation of Kanu’s right to a fair hearing.
Among the issues raised in the appeal is the trial court’s failure to rule on the legality of charges brought under the now-repealed Terrorism Prevention (Amendment) Act 2013 and the Customs and Excise Management Act, which was also repealed.
He argued that these repealed laws cannot form the basis of a valid prosecution, and thus the charges should be dismissed.
Kanu in his appeal also challenged the trial court’s decision to dismiss his objection as an abuse of judicial process, arguing that the court’s ruling was a misdirection in law that led to a substantial miscarriage of justice.
The case dates to October 2015 when Kanu was arrested and charged with offences, bordering on treasonable felony, false declaration of imported goods, and defamation of the President.
However, after his controversial rendition from Kenya in June 2021, most of the original charges were dropped, and 14 new counts were introduced, primarily related to terrorism and membership of IPOB.
However, the Court of Appeal struck out seven of the charges against him in October 2022, leading to his discharge.
This decision was largely based on the court’s finding that his extraordinary rendition from Kenya constituted a breach of his rights, thereby barring further trial on those charges.
The Federal Government subsequently appealed this decision to the Supreme Court.
In December 2023, the Supreme Court remitted the case back to the Federal High Court, ordering Kanu to stand trial on the seven counts that had previously been struck out.
The Federal High Court then scheduled the case for trial, prompting Kanu’s legal team to file a preliminary objection, challenging the court’s jurisdiction.
However, on June 19, 2024, the Federal High Court dismissed Kanu’s objection, ruling that the court retained jurisdiction to proceed with the trial.
The court’s decision was based on the argument that Kanu could appeal the retained charges only after the trial court had ruled on the preliminary objection.
Kanu’s appeal, which is now before the appellate court, raises several critical issues.
His legal team argued that the trial court erred in dismissing the preliminary objection without fully addressing all seven grounds raised.
