Aloy Ejimakor, Nnamdi Kanu’s attorney, has stated that he intends to swiftly seek bail for the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) following the recent Supreme Court decision upholding the trial on terrorism charges. Ejimakor claims that Nigerian legislation is archaic and outdated.
The supreme court reversed the Court of Appeal’s October 2022 verdict, which had cleared and released Kanu; it claimed that even though Kanu’s extradition from Kenya had been illegal, this did not affect the continuing trial. This defied expectations that the Court of Appeal’s finding would be upheld.
“We shall proceed with apace bail application to reinstate his bail in line with the ruling of the Supreme Court,” Ejimakor told reporters, expressing his disappointment with the verdict.
JUST IN: Supreme Court Gives Judgement On Nnamdi Kanu’s Freedom
Judge Garba Lawal’s ruling made it clear that a defendant may be tried in Nigeria even in cases when their extradition was illegal. Lawal maintained that Kanu’s rendition did not interfere with the terrorism trial, but he may bring a different civil suit about it.
Since the APC-led government came to power in 2015, Kanu has been in the centre of a legal dispute because the Nigerian government accuses him of terrorism and inciting violence.
As Kanu’s Special Counsel, Ejimakor challenged the Supreme Court’s ruling on extraordinary rendition, claiming it goes against the idea of a fair trial.
He commented, “The Supreme Court justified its position on the theory that our jurisprudence has not developed to the point of recognising extraordinary rendition as a barrier to prosecution. That is so wrong”.
Additionally, he charged that the court had implied that Nigerian law is “retrograde” and “primitive.”
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