A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has struck out the N50 billion fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), against the Federal Government of Nigeria.
Naija Blog Daily reports that Justice Inyang Ekwo, in a ruling delivered on Thursday, dismissed the suit for lack of diligent prosecution after several adjournments without representation from either party.
During the latest court session, neither Kanu nor any legal representatives from the Federal Government appeared in court. The judge noted that this had occurred on multiple occasions and cited three adjournments with no meaningful progress, prompting the decision to strike out the suit.
NAIJABLOGDAILY.COM
Kanu filed the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/462/2022 against the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), alleging gross violations of his fundamental human rights.
He accused the Nigerian government of unlawfully abducting him from Kenya and subjecting him to extraordinary rendition, a process he claims violates international law and provisions of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
Among the reliefs Kanu sought were:
- A declaration that his extraordinary rendition was illegal.
- An order for his immediate release from the Department of State Services (DSS) custody.
- A court order restraining the government from continuing its prosecution on terrorism-related charges (FHC/ABJ/CR/383/2015).
- A N50 billion compensation for damages suffered.
- An additional N100 million is the cost of the action.
However, the Federal Government, in a preliminary objection filed in June 2022, argued that the case constituted an abuse of court process, citing a similar suit Kanu had filed earlier at the Federal High Court in Umuahia, Abia State (FHC/UM/CS/30/2022), involving the same parties and facts.
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The defense maintained that this deprived the Abuja court of jurisdiction to hear the case.
The IPOB leader’s legal team had also attempted a change of counsel during proceedings, with Aloy Ejimakor informing the court of his intention to take over from Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN, who filed the suit initially in April 2022.
With the dismissal of the case, legal experts are watching closely to see if Kanu’s legal team will refile or pursue alternative legal strategies.
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