• Says FG Did Not Come To Equity With Clean Hands

The Court of Appeal in Abuja on Thursday, October 13, 2022, acquitted and discharged the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, of terrorism charges proffered against him by the Federal Government of Nigeria.

The court declared the abduction of the Biafra nation agitator, Nnamdi Kanu, from Kenya to Nigeria as ‘illegal and unlawful.’

It therefore quashed the entire terrorism charges Nigerian government brought against Kanu.

According to the court, “the Federal Government breached all local and international laws in the forceful rendition of Kanu to Nigeria, thereby making the terrorism charges against him incompetent and unlawful.”

 Justice Oludotun Adefope-Okojie in his judgment also voided and set aside the criminal charges by the Federal Government against Kanu.

The Appellate Court said the Federal Government having flagrantly breached the fundamental rights of Kanu, lost the legal right to put him on trial.

The Court held that laws are meant to be obeyed and that the Federal Government has no reason to have taken laws into her own hand in the illegal and unlawful way the matter of Kanu was handled.

Justice Adebola also held that failure of Nigeria to follow due process by way of extradition process as prescribed by law was fatal to the charges against Kanu.

The Appeal Court further held that the failure of the Federal Government to disclose where and when the alleged offences brought against Kanu were committed was also fatal to the terrorism charges and made them liable to dismissal.

“By engaging in utter unlawful and illegal acts and in breach of its own laws in the instant matter, the Federal Government did not come to equity in clean hands and must be called to order.

“With appalling disregard to local and international laws, the Federal Government has lost the right to put the appellant trial for any offence.

“Treaties and Protocols are meant to be obeyed. No government in the world is permitted to abduct anybody without following due process of extradition. Nigeria is not an exception or excused. Nigeria must obey her own law and that of international, so as to avoid anarchy”, the Court held.