The ongoing terrorism case against Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has been reassigned to a new judge. This decision was made by the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja, John Tsoho, following months of pressure.
Kanu’s special counsel, Aloy Ejimakor, announced this development in a statement on Saturday. Previously, Justice Binta Nyako had been overseeing Kanu’s trial.
However, during a court hearing on September 24, 2024, Kanu requested that Nyako step down, accusing her of bias in the case.
Ejimakor’s statement said, “Before our routine visit to Mazi Nnamdi Kanu yesterday, we received two important letters about his case.
One letter came from the Honourable Chief Justice of Nigeria, responding to our recent request for administrative intervention to ensure the proper reassignment of the case after the judge’s recusal.
The other letter was from the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, notifying us that the case had been reassigned to another judge.”
As a result of these developments, Kanu instructed his legal team to publicly express gratitude to the Chief Justice of Nigeria for her prompt and sound administrative decision.
He also thanked the public for their support in advocating for the case to be reassigned, as the law requires.
The statement further explained, “Mazi Nnamdi Kanu has always been prepared to face trial because he firmly believes in his innocence.
However, the events of the past six months, starting from the judge’s recusal in September 2024, presented significant challenges to his constitutional rights, particularly his right to a fair and speedy trial.”
The statement concluded, “Given these issues, we had no choice but to take extraordinary measures to ensure that the case is reassigned and conducted in accordance with the law.
Now that the authorities have taken the first step to do the right thing, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and his legal team will focus on diligently preparing his defense.”
