The legal team of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), have threatened to boycott court proceedings if the perceived injustice against their client persists.
The lawyers bared their minds over the failure of the Department of State Services (DSS) to respect Kanu’s right to a fair trial, where he has been detained since 2021, facing charges of treason, felony and terrorism.
Despite Kanu’s application for bail on health grounds and to facilitate trial preparation, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja denied Kanu’s request, opting instead for an expedited hearing scheduled to start on April 17, 2024.
Alloy Ejimakor, leading Kanu’s defence, stated the challenges they’ve encountered in preparing for the trial, including alleged restricted access to their client and the seizure of legal documents by the DSS.
During a press briefing in Abuja on April 9, 2024, and another on Wednesday, Ejimakor criticized the DSS’s actions as obstructive to Kanu’s entitlement to a fair trial.
Ejimakor stated, “This legal team is not going to be part of the travesty of justice. If Nnamdi Kanu is not going to get a fair trial, this legal team is not going to be part of murdering justice in a Nigerian court.”
He clarified that their potential withdrawal from the proceedings would not equate to abandoning Kanu but rather a stand against “pre-programmed injustice” by withdrawing from the process, effectively boycotting what they perceive as a flawed judicial process.
Attempts to secure comments from the DSS spokesperson, Peter Afunanya, were unsuccessful as his phone line remained engaged, and there was no response to messages seeking his input on the matter as of the time this report was filed.