Nnamdi Kanu's terrorism trial reassigned to another judge

The Chief Judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja, John Tsoho, has finally reassigned Nnamdi Kanu’s trial to another judge after months of intense pressure.

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Aloy Ejimakor, the special counsel to Mr Kanu, disclosed this in a statement on Saturday.

Mr Kanu, who is facing terrorism charges at the Federal High Court in Abuja, is the leader of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

The IPOB leader has been in detention since he was repatriated to Nigeria from Kenya in June 2021 under controversial circumstances.

Recusal saga

Justice Binta Nyako had been presiding over the trial of the IPOB leader.

But during the court’s hearing on 24 September 2024, Mr Kanu requested that Mrs Nyako recuse herself from presiding over the matter, accusing the judge of bias.

The judge subsequently announced her withdrawal from the matter, but the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Mr Tsoho, later reassigned the matter to Mrs Nyako.

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Since then, Mr Kanu and his team of lawyers have repeatedly opposed Justice Nyako from presiding over the case.

During the court’s last hearing on 10 February, the IPOB leader became furious when he observed that Mrs Nyako continued presiding over his case despite her initial recusal.

He then accused the judge of insisting on presiding over the case because of ongoing corruption cases against her husband and son.

Reassignment of case

But in the Saturday statement, Mr Ejimakor said he and other legal team members received a letter from Mr Tsoho informing them that the case has now been reassigned to another judge of the Federal High Court, Abuja.

The special counsel uploaded on his Facebook page a screenshot of the letter dated 4 March 2025.

Mr Ejimakor said the legal team also received another letter from the Honourable Chief Justice of Nigeria, Kudirat Kekere-Ekun.

He said Mrs Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, in the letter dated 25 February 2025, was responding to a letter which the team had written to her requesting her prompt administrative intervention on the matter.

“Consequent upon these latest developments, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu instructed the legal team to publicly convey his sincere gratitudes to the Chief Justice of Nigeria for her sound administrative discretions and the dispatch with which she responded to our request.

“He (Kanu) also expressed his profound appreciation to members of the general public who publicly expressed their support to our righteous demands that Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s case be reassigned to another Judge, as the law demands,” the lawyer said.

He did not, however, mention the new judge which the case was assigned to.

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‘Kanu ready for trial’

Mr Ejimakor stressed Mr Kanu has always been ready to face trial because he is “firmly convinced of his innocence.”

The special counsel said the IPOB leader was compelled to insist on Mrs Nyako’s recusal because of the recent “perverse events” which “posed potent dangers” to Mr Kanu’s right to fair and speedy hearing.

“So, now that the first steps have been taken by the authorities to do the lawful thing, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and his legal team shall take stock and hanker down to the zealous preparation of his defence,” he said.