Again, Nnamdi Kanu denied bail as court orders accelerated hearing

Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court Abuja on Tuesday denied the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, bail.

Persecondnews reports that the embattled leader of IPOB had filed a fresh application to be released on bail, pending the determination of the treasonable felony charge the Federal Government preferred against him.

Counsel for Kanu, Mr. Aloy Ejimakor, had brought the attention of the presiding judge, Justice Nyako, to the motion for bail dated February 5.

However, in a ruling on Tuesday, Justice Nyako held that the court would only grant an accelerated hearing in the matter and ordered the prosecution to call its first witness.

Expressing his displeasure over the ruling, Ejimakor said the IPOB leader’s legal team cannot go on with the proceedings if not given an opportunity to speak with their client.

He added that it has been difficult to have a meeting with Kanu in the custody of the DSS, as their conversations were always monitored and Kanu is still wearing the same outfit that the court ordered to be changed.

Kanu’s lawyer alleged unfair treatment of his client, which, according to him, contravened the Nigerian Constitution

He expressed the dissatisfaction of Kanu’s team of lawyers and asked for a standdown of the case to enable them to consult with their client, which the court has granted.

According to Persecondnews, security agents in Lagos first arrested the IPOB leader on October 14, 2015, and he has been in detention since June 29, 2021.

The trial judge, Justice Nyako, had on April 25, 2017, granted him bail on health grounds after he had spent about 18 months in detention.

Upon the perfection of the bail conditions, he was released on April 28, 2017, from the Kuje prison.

However, midway into the trial, the IPOB leader escaped from the country after soldiers invaded his country home at Afara Ukwu Ibeku in Umuahia, Abia State, an operation that led to the deaths of some of his followers.

Security agents subsequently re-arrested Kanu in Kenya on June 19, 2021, and extraordinary renditioned him back to the country on June 27, 2021.

Following the development, the trial court, on June 29, 2021, remanded him in custody of the Department of State Services (DSS), where he has remained till date.