The leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, expressed interest in exploring an out-of-court settlement in the alleged terrorism charge against him by the Federal Government.
During the resumed trial, Kanu’s lead counsel, Aloy Ejimakor, informed Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja. Ejimakor mentioned that he had discussed the matter with Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, the lawyer to the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), during the last adjourned date. However, Awomolo stated that he had yet to be instructed or authorized to initiate the idea and advised Ejimakor to approach the AGF, who had the power to do so.
When the case was called, Awomolo told the court that the trial was scheduled to take place and that they were ready to proceed with their witnesses present in court. On the other hand, Ejimakor informed the court that he had two applications pending. He stated that one was a Form 49 application seeking the imprisonment of the director general of the Department of State Service (DSS) for allegedly disobeying court orders, and the other was an application challenging the court’s jurisdiction.
According to Ejimakor, the DSS had not fully complied with the court’s orders as their visit to Kanu was still being bugged. However, he said in their last visit to Kanu on Monday that there was considerable improvement in how the security agency treated them. According to him, he and his colleagues were granted access to the facility, and they were given papers to take notes on. He insisted that the service had not obeyed the order directing them to give Kanu a “safe room” to meet with his lawyers.
Ejimakor expressed concern that the room the DSS gave them to meet with their “client is bugged.” He, therefore, urged the court to invoke Section 17 of the Federal High Court Act, which he said provides for “reconciliation” and facilitation of amicable settlement in criminal or civil matters.
On the issue of the Form 49 application filed by Kanu, Justice Nyako held that the application was not before her. She said the matter would be looked into when the application Is brought before her.
The judge, however, ordered the DSS to provide an “unbugged space” for Kanu to meet with his lawyers each time they were at the facility to prepare for his defence. She said the unbugged space could be a garden within the DSS premises where Kanu and his lawyers could discuss without any interference by the DSS operatives.
Meanwhile, Justice Nyako also dismissed a fresh application by Kanu challenging the jurisdiction of the court to entertain counts 1,2,3,4,5,8 and 15 for being unconstitutional. The judge held that she could not overrule herself on issues she had already resolved, adding that the only option left for the applicant was to proceed on appeal.
Justice Nyako equally ordered the prosecution to file and serve its prove of evidence on the defendant while the defendant should file his defence pending the next adjourned date. She further ordered that the defendant should agree with the prosecution where there are no issues and state his objection where necessary.
Kanu, through his lawyer, had, in the fresh application, urged the court to quash the charges for being unconstitutional.He argued that in five counts, the prosecution failed to indicate the exact location where Kanu’s alleged offensive broadcast occurred and that the court lacked jurisdiction since the prosecution failed to show in the charge whether the alleged offensive broadcast was a punishable offence in Kenya or Britain, the two places where Kanu had been outside Nigeria before his rearrest.
The judge adjourned the matter until Sept. 24 for further hearing.
The IPOB leader had been in the custody of the DSS since 2021, when he was re-arrested and brought back to continue his trial on allegedly treasonable felony and terrorism charges.
