Nnamdi Kanu’s trial will remain in limbo until assigned to another judge – Ejimakor

Aloy Ejimakor, the Special Counsel to Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has vowed never to allow a ‘partial’ judge to preside over the agitator’s trial.

Ejimakor said Kanu’s trial would remain in limbo until another judge is assigned to handle it by the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, John Tsoho.

He insisted that Justice Binta Nyako had recused herself from Kanu’s case and had entered an enrolled order to that effect.

In December 2024, the IPOB leader had charged Justice Nyako to step down from his case because he lacked confidence in her handling of his trial.

To this end, the judge recused herself from Kanu’s case and transfered the case file to Justice Tsoho for reassigning.

But Justice Tsoho returned the case file to Nyako with a directive to continue the matter.

In line with Justice Tsoho’s directive, the legal representative of the Federal Government, Adegboyega Awomolo, asked for a date to continue Kanu’s trial.

Displeased by the move, Ejimakor rejected the demand by the Nigerian government on the ground that Nyako had recused herself from Kanu’s trial.

In a statement on Thursday, Ejimakor said there is no legal pathway to resuming Kanu’s trial until Justice Nyako completely hands off the matter.

In a statement he signed, Ejimakor said: “For the benefit of those who asked me, the truth is that Mazi Nnamdi Kanu properly exercised his constitutional right back September last year when he requested Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako to recuse herself from presiding over his case.

“If you are wondering about the next steps, here it is: Given that the Judge had affirmed the recusal in good faith and enrolled an order in that regard, the case will remain in limbo until another Judge is assigned to handle it by the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court.

“That a new or another Judge has not been assigned to the case and such has lingered for an unreasonable period of time, a vigorous case can be made that the continued incarceration of Mazi Kanu has become unconstitutional by effluxion of time.

In plain terms, the Constitution forbids the authorities from detaining anybody without trial beyond a limited period of time. In this very case, that period time has come and passed.

“And this: This judicial gridlock is not the fault of Mazi Kanu. It’s instead the fault of the authorities that have proved unable or unwilling to conduct Mazi Kanu’s case in accordance with the dictates of the Constitution and the statutes pertinent to the case. And to make matters worse, the extraordinary rendition brought its own unique complications that have not settled to this day.

“Presently, there is no pathway for legally resuming the trial before Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako, because her order of recusal remains extant and subsisting to boot. Thus, any step taken in violation of the order will trigger a rash of countervailing measures that will surely culminate in more significant legal complications. Bottom line: Mazi Kanu is never going back to Egypt.”