…. Judge transfers casefile to CJ for reassignment
By Ikechukwu Nnochiri
ABUJA–A motion the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu, filed to be moved to the National Hospital for urgent medical treatment, suffered a setback on Monday.
The embattled IPOB leader who is facing a seven-count terrorism charge, had in the motion ex-parte he filed through the head of his defence team, Chief Kanu Agabi, SAN, prayed the court to order his transfer from custody of the Department of State Services, DSS, to the hospital.
In the motion marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/383/2025, Kanu, while praying the court to hear his application within its vacation period, bemoaned that his health took a worrisome decline, a situation he said necessitated the invitation of doctors that carried out a thorough and extensive examination on him.
“The examination revealed issues to his health, including organs such as his pancreas and liver as well as an emerging lump underneath his armpit and dangerously low levels of potassium.
“The doctors have recommended that he be moved to the National Hospital as an interim measure to afford him medical attention and forestall further decline.
“The applicant’s health is seriously deteriorating considering the nature of his confinement thereby making more pressing, the need to bring this application and have same heard by a vacation judge,” Kanu’s lawyer added.
He further alleged that a letter the doctors wrote to the Director-General of the DSS, advising the transfer of Kanu to the hospital, was not answered.
When the matter came up on Monday, Justice Musa Liman drew attention of the parties to the fact that the Fiat the Chief Judge issued for him to sit as a vacation judge, had elapsed.
He held that in view of the development, his court no longer had the requisite jurisdiction to hear the application.
According to Justice Liman, the appropriate action was to return the casefile back to the CJ for it to be reassigned to another judge.
While Mr. Uchenna Njoku, SAN, announced his appearance for Kanu, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, represented the Federal Government.
Njoku, SAN, told the court that he was just served a 37-paragraph counter affidavit the FG filed to oppose Kanu’s application.
He said he would need time to respond the counter affidavit and therefore applied for an adjournment, a request that was not opposed by counsel to FG.
Before he ended the proceeding, Justice Liman said he would while returning the casefile to the CJ, make recommendation for speedy hearing of the motion since it involves the health of the Applicant.
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