The detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, on Monday declared that “God is a God of justice” as he arrived at the Federal High Court in Abuja for the continuation of his long-running trial.
Flanked by his lawyers, Kanu, who was brought to court by officials of the Department of State Services (DSS), made the remarks while addressing journalists and observers present inside the court room as he arrived for the trial.
“They are here that distort the news. They don’t know what law is. They don’t know what justice is.
Where is News Agency of Nigeria? You don’t know that God is a God of justice? You don’t know that God in heaven is a God of justice?” Kanu said, gesturing toward members of the press.
The IPOB leader, who faces charges bordering on treasonable felony and other alleged offences, has consistently maintained that his trial is a persecution, politically motivated and characterized by irregularities
On Friday, October 24, the Global Defence Consortium of Kanu accused the Federal High Court in Abuja of continued bias and denial of fair hearing, following what it described as fresh irregularities during Friday’s court proceedings presided over by Justice James Omotosho.
In a statement released on Friday by Barrister Onyedikachi Ifedi, after the sitting, the defence consortium said the events of the day,
“once again exposed the structural injustice and procedural violations that have marred the ongoing trial.”
According to the statement, Kanu informed the court that his legal team had been disengaged only a day earlier, and that Thursday, being a non-visitation day at the DSS facility where he is detained, made it impossible for him to receive his legal files.
His Special Counsel and his brother, who usually deliver such materials, are both reportedly in government detention.
The defence maintained that Kanu’s request for time to study his file was a constitutional demand under Section 36(6)(b) of the 1999 Constitution and not a ploy to stall the trial.
Kanu also sought an extension of his legal and medical consultation days from three to five per week.
Justice Omotosho reportedly granted the request but claimed the defendant had failed to utilise earlier opportunities for consultation provided by the court.
The defence, however, faulted the claim, arguing that it was unreasonable to compel a defendant in a capital offence trial to begin his defence after only “three hours of consultation.”
They described the move as “perverse and contrary to the principle laid down in Abacha v. State (2002).”
The statement further alleged that the DSS continues to bug Kanu’s privileged conversations with his lawyers, in violation of Sections 35 and 36 of the Constitution and Rule 14 of the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers.
The defence team said Justice Omotosho’s admission that he vacated his courtroom to allow Kanu meet his lawyers “amounted to a confirmation that fair hearing had already been viol
Kanu raised serious concerns over his deteriorating health, accusing the Nigerian government of deliberately keeping him in custody until he dies.
Addressing journalists on Friday shortly after his court session at the Federal High Court in Abuja, Kanu, who has been held by the Department of State Services (DSS) since his controversial re-arrest and extradition from Kenya in June 2021.
He said that he is suffering from congestive heart failure and other severe medical complications.
“I have congestive heart failure. From the medication, you can tell.
They are basically trying to keep me alive so that when they calculate that I’m about to give up, that my heart is about to pack up, they will then say I should go so that when I go outside, I will die outside.
That is what they are trying to do,” the IPOB leader said.
He lamented that the treatment he is receiving in DSS custody has not improved his condition.
“The medication they have been giving to me is not working. If it is working, why should I have lumps under my armpits?” he asked.
Kanu’s health has been a growing concern for his family, lawyers, and human rights organisations.
His lead counsel, Barrister Aloy Ejimakor, and others in his legal team have repeatedly told the court that the IPOB leader requires urgent medical attention beyond what the DSS clinic can provide.
In previous court sessions, the defence argued that Kanu’s continued detention under harsh conditions has worsened his cardiac issues and aggravated his hypertension.
Reports from his legal representatives also indicated that he suffers from recurring chest pain, dizziness, and difficulty sleeping due to his deteriorating health.
Despite multiple court orders directing that Kanu be granted access to independent medical care, the Nigerian authorities have allegedly failed to comply fully.
Ejimakor and IPOB have repeatedly warned that the government would be held responsible should anything happen to Kanu.
The Court of Appeal had in October 2022 discharged and acquitted Kanu of terrorism-related charges, ruling that his extraordinary rendition from Kenya to Nigeria was unlawful.
However, the Supreme Court later set aside the Appellate Court judgment in December 2023, allowing his trial to resume at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Since then, Kanu’s lawyers have maintained that his prosecution is politically motivated and that the government is disregarding his fundamental rights.
The IPOB leader himself has consistently accused the Nigerian authorities of persecution rather than prosecution.
Civil society groups, including Amnesty International and the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, have called for his unconditional release, citing violations of his rights and the worsening state of his health.
As his trial drags on with his defence that commenced on Friday, October 24, 2025, concerns are mounting that Kanu’s life may be in danger if he remains in DSS custody without specialised medical intervention.
This is more worrisome, as despite the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) listing a series of illnesses Kanu is suffering from in its report, the professional medical body still told the court that Kanu is fit to stand trial.
Kanu’s lawyers, IPOB, and human rights organisations have faulted the NMA’s medical report, with his lawyer publicly accusing the body of compromise, alleging that the NMA never conducted any test on Kanu but produced a fake medical report.
