The detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, failed to open his defense on Tuesday regarding the seven-count terrorism charges leveled against him by the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN).
The court issued an ultimatum of Wednesday, November 5, to Kanu to defend the alleged terrorism charges against him or forfeit his right to do so.
This is the fourth time this has happened, and Kanu, who is now representing himself after disengaging his lawyers, still insists that he has no case to answer, stating that no valid charge has been presented to the court and there is no legal basis to open his defense.
Kanu urged the presiding judge, Justice James Omotosho, to note the judicial notice of the motion he filed as well as a supporting affidavit, arguing against the court’s jurisdiction to try him regarding an offense that Kanu claims is unknown to any extant law.
He also asked the court to grant his immediate release from the detention of the Department of State Services (DSS).
The prosecution challenged the relevance of the documents filed by Kanu, adding that the documents were not properly filed.
The lawyer of the FGN urged the court not to further indulge Kanu, stating that he was wasting judicial time.
Justice Omotosho dismissed the contention of the FGN that the documents filed by Kanu were not competent, adding that the court would take the documents into consideration.
The court also noted that the defendant is not a lawyer; therefore, he would be provided consultation with a legal practitioner to assist in guiding him.