The Supreme Court has fixed December 15, 2023, to deliver judgment on the appeals filed by the Federal Government and Nnamdi Kanu, the imprisoned leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
The Federal Government’s attorney, Tijani Gazali (SAN), and Kanu’s counsel, Mike Ozekhome (SAN), submitted their final arguments, and the court decided on Thursday, October 5, 2023, to fix the date.
The Court of Appeal in Abuja had dismissed the treasonable felony charge against Kanu and ordered his release on the grounds that he was wrongfully brought back to the country after jumping bail.
The Federal Government asked the Supreme Court to overturn that decision.
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For his part, the accused requested that the court uphold the Court of Appeal’s decision and overturn the later order that stayed the judgment’s execution.
On October 13, 2022, the Court of Appeal in Abuja ordered Kanu’s release from custody in a ruling it issued.
The appellate court also overturned a 15-count terrorism charge that the Federal Government had brought against the detained IPOB leader before the Federal High Court in Abuja in a unanimous decision by a three-member panel.
The court declared itself satisfied that when FG forcibly extradited Kanu from Kenya to Nigeria to continue his trial, it acted in flagrant violation of all known laws.
It was decided that the trial court lacked the authority to carry on with Kanu’s trial due to the Nigerian government’s arbitrary use of power.
However, dissatisfied with the judgment, FG appealed the case to the Supreme Court because it was unhappy with the ruling.
It further convinced the appellate court to put the judgment’s execution on hold while waiting for the outcome of its appeal.
