Nnamdi Kanu, the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has petitioned the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court to relocate his legal proceedings to a court in Nigeria’s South-East or South-South region. This request comes amid concerns regarding Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako’s involvement in the case, prompting Kanu to seek an alternative jurisdiction for his trial.
The appeal was made on Wednesday through his legal team, led by his Special Counsel, Barrister Aloy Ejimakor, ahead of the next court date for the continuation of his case.
Recall that Kanu had requested for the recusal of Justice Murtala-Nyako from the case, and the judge had also confirmed her recusal from the case.
However, the IPOB leader through his legal team had raised an alarm that the case has been returned to Justice Murtala-Nyako to continue, a move which Kanu and his legal team have criticised and rejected.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by Ejimakor after the legal team’s routine visit to Kanu in the custody of the Department of the State Services (DSS), Kanu instructed his legal team to ensure that his case is not handled by Justice Murtala-Nyako.
Ejimakor stated, “Due to its constitutional implications, Onyendu instructed the legal team to take certain prompt steps to ensure that his case is not handled by the same Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako who had withdrawn from the case by virtue of the order of recusal entered on September 24, 2024.
“The point was stressed that should the case still lie with Justice Murtala-Nyako, it would mean that the same court is disobeying an order that it made.
“We are therefore looking forward to going to court as long as another Judge of the Federal High Court is assigned to the case.”
He demanded, “If no other Judge in Abuja is willing to handle the case, the Chief Judge is free to transfer the case to Umuahia, Awka, Enugu, Asaba, Port Harcourt or any other Federal High Court within the former Eastern Nigeria where the offences were alleged to have happened or allegedly had impact.”
