On July 2021, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu was arrested and brought back into the country. This was first disclosed by his brother, Kingsley Kanu, who narrated to newsmen how his brother was abducted from Kenya.
Since that period, there has been an altercation on the legality of Kanu’s extraordinary rendition, which is highly unlawful as it violates the Nigerian, Kenyan and even the International laws. As it is, Kanu was illegally arrested, repatriated, detained and tortured by the Nigerian Government, and currently, he is facing trial at the Federal High Court in Abuja with 11 charges, among those being incitement, terrorism and treason.
This prompted the rights advocacy group, Foundation for Environmental Rights Advocacy and Development (FENRAD) to condemn his rearrest by the Nigerian Government. In fact, Barrister Aloy Ejimakor, a member of Kanu’s legal team, and on behalf of Kanu petitioned the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights to demand for accountability on the extraordinary rendition of his client.
Prior to his extraordinary rendition into the country which was less than a month, a bounty of 100 million naira was placed on Kanu by 75 northern groups under the auspices of the Northern Consensus Movement (NCM), and was to be offered to anyone who could bring him back to the country. Although, they went on with this action on the grounds that members of the Eastern Security Network (ESN), were killing Northerners in the South-East, it was firmly kicked against by the apex Igbo sociocultural group, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, and the proscribed secessionist group, IPOB.
On September 16, Kanu filed a lawsuit against the Kenyan Government and this prompted the Kenyan Government on November 4, 2021 to deny playing a part in the arrest and extraordinary rendition of the pro-Biafran Agitator back to Nigeria as no police station in their country indicated ever legally arresting him and preparing him for the rendition.
Kanu even seems to be unfettered in the midst of this serious conundrum he has found himself, that is the charges levelled against him. He even expressed optimism that he would come out victorious in the charges levelled against him.
Since the period of his extraordinary rendition to the country from Kenya, alot of events have pointed out that the Federal Government seems to be afraid of the leader of the proscribed secessionist group.
First, it was the huge amount of money spent by the Department of State Services (DSS) to bring him to court. Just last year, we got to know how the DSS spent a minimum of 500 million naira on each court appearance of Nnamdi Kanu. Why would such amount be spent on one man? What is the fear of the Nigerian Government? Yes, the DSS did this to provide logistics and adequate security for the separatist agitator from the facility he was detained in to the court and also back to the detention facility, but why this huge amount of money.
Also, the delay and extension of his trial. Since July 2021, there has always been delay in the court proceedings, with no final hearing on whether the separatist leader would be prosecuted or not. What we have been seeing so far is an adjournment of the trial. On July 26, the trial was delayed after the DSS failed to produce Nnamdi Kanu in court, and this prompted the Judge, Justice Binta Nyako to extend the case to October 21, 2021. On the day of his trial, the court hearing was then extended to November 10, 2021 after he pleaded not guilty to a 7-count charge. When the day of his trial had approached, the court hearing was then again extended to January 18, 2022. From that point in time, the court hearing was again delayed to February 16, 2022, on the grounds that his application would be heard. Now, the case has been adjourned to April 8, 2022. If the Nigerian Government had a genuine case against Kanu as with the count charges levelled against him, he should have been prosecuted instead of the trial being adjourned.
The Nigerian Government’s fear of this pro-Biafran agitator doesn’t seem to be vivid enough but as it is, Nigerians await the court hearing of this man on April.
