Nnamdi Kanu’s case has been assigned to a new judge.
The Chief Jugde of the Federal High Court in Abuja, Justice John Tsoho, has reassigned the case of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra to a different Judge.
Kanu’s lead counsel, Aloy Ejimakor disclosed this development. Previously, Kanu had requested that Justice Benita Nyako recuse herself from overseeing his trial, which involves a seven count terrorim charge brought against him by the Federal Government.
Although Justice Nyako initially stepped down and retuned the case file to the Chief Judge for reassignment, the file was later given back to her, a decision Kanu strongly opposed.
On February 20, Kanu’s legal team wrote to the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekum, seeking her intervention to ensure the case was reassigned.
In a statement released today, Ejimakor revealed that on Friday, March 7, the legal team received two official letters concerning Nnamdi Kanu’s case, one from the Chief Justice of Nigeria and the other from the Chief Jugde.
“Yesterday, before our legal team’s routine visit to Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, we received two separate official letters regarding his case. These letters are significant, though somewhat bittersweet” Ejimakor stated.
One of the letters was from the Honorable Chief Justice of Nigeria, responding to a previous request for her prompt administrative intervention. As the administrative head of the Nigerian Judiciary, she addressed the need for a proper and lawful reassignment of Nnamdi Kanu’s case following the recusal of the previous judge handling it.
The second letter came from the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, officially notifying them that the case had been reassigned to another Judge within the Federal High Court.
Upon receiving the letters, Ejimakor noted that Kanu express
“sincere gratitude to the CJN for her sound administrative discretion and the promptness with which she responded to their request.”
He also expressed deep appreciation to members of the general public who supported their just demands for Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s case to be reassigned to another judge as required by law.
To clarify, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu has always been prepared to stand trial, firmly maintaining his innocence. However, the troubling developments over the past six months (since the recusal in September 2024) posed serious threats to his constitutional rights, particularly his right to these challenges, extraordinary measures were taken to ensure his case was properly reassigned and handled in accordance with the law.
Now that the authorities have taken the initial steps to uphold the law, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and his legal team will take stock and focus on zealous preparation for his defence,” Ejimakor said.
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