Details have emerged on why the Department of State Services (DSS) continues to deny lawyers access to Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB)who faces terrorism charges at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Nnamdi Kanu has been detained since June 2021, following his controversial repatriation from Kenya.
The legal team representing Mr Kanu has repeatedly alleged that the DSS obstructs their access to him. On October 17, the court issued a warning to the DSS Director-General, Adeola Ajayi, threatening jail time if he continued to deny lawyers access to Mr Kanu.
In a subsequent hearing, the court summoned the DSS DG to appear and justify this denial, which reportedly stems from orders by the SSS leadership.
Judge Binta Nyako had previously mandated on May 20 that the IPOB leader be allowed visitors three days a week—Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. This order specified that Nnamdi Kanu must be provided with a secure and clean room to meet with up to five counsel members and prepare his defence.
A court document, obtained by Premium Times, detailed the requirements for the legal team’s access to him, allowing them adequate space and the ability to take notes as needed.
However, unnamed DSS officials argue that the court order only grants access to Kanu for trial preparation, which they claim is on hold.
According to one source familiar with the case, Nnamdi Kanu’s demand for Justice Nyako’s recusal had temporarily disrupted proceedings.
Although Justice Nyako has since resumed handling the case, no date has been set to restart the trial, leading the DSS to assert that access is only warranted once the trial is officially back underway.
Kanu’s lawyer, Nnaemeka Ejiofor, called the DSS’s stance “childish,” stating, “It’s so childish in the sense that an order of the court does not ordinarily elapse unless it is set aside by another order of the court.” He contended that the DSS lacks the authority to limit visitation when a court order is in place, adding, “If they are saying we cannot see him until the trial has started. Is it when the trial resumes that we then start preparing our client (Kanu) for trial?”
Ejiofor further argued that if the DSS claims the court order allowing legal access expired with Justice Nyako’s temporary recusal, then Kanu’s detention should also be considered invalid.
“It means that Nnamdi Kanu has no business being in SSS detention. It also means that his further detention at the SSS facility is illegal because the order has expired according to the SSS,” he asserted.
