Leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Mr. Nnamdi Kanu, who will be facing four out of the five amended charges, has declared his determination to get the charges quashed for being “grossly incompetent” and for “want of diligent prosecution”.
Kanu, has queried the competence of amended five-count treasonable charge the Federal Government lodged against him and four other pro-Biafra agitators-Chidiebere Onwudiwe, Benjamin Madubugwu, David Nwawuisi and Bright Chimezie- before the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Kanu and his co-defendants are expected to enter their fresh plea to the amended charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/383/2015, before trial Justice Binta Nyako, on October 17.
The IPOB leader, through his team of lawyers led by Mr. Ifeanyi Ejiofor, accused FG of violating an express order of the trial court that forbade any of the parties from filing any form of interlocutory application pending the commencement of full-blown trial of the defendants.
Ejiofor accused FG of deliberately stalling the case while fishing for evidence against the defendants.
According to him, rather than to open its case on June 22, FG, served an amended five-count charge on the defendants, “in clear breach and violation of an order the court made on April 25, 2017, wherein his Lordship warned, that the court will not entertain further interlocutory application or process capable of delaying the trial”.
He alleged that FG joined the 5th defendant, Chimezie, in the case after a Federal High Court in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State had on May 24, not only ordered his immediate release from custody of the Department of State Service , DSS, but equally directed that he should be paid N5million as damages having been illegally detained for period that exceeded the constitutional provision.
Besides, the IPOB leader has filed a motion asking trial Justice Nyako to vary some of his bail conditions which he maintained were arbitrary and unconstitutional.
Justice Nyako had in a ruling on April 25 released Kanu on bail after he had spent a year and seven months in detention, though the court okayed his co-defendants to remain in prison custody.
The court which stressed that it released Kanu on health ground, however compelled him to produce three sureties, including “a Jewish leader” and a “highly placed person of Igbo extcraction”, who all deposited N100million each.
He was formally released to Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, a Jewish High Chief Priest, Immanuu-El Shalom and a Chartered Accountant residing in Abuja, Mr. Tochukwu Uchendu, on April 28.
As part of his conditions for bail, Kanu was expressly barred by the
