The Court of Appeal in Abuja has dismissed an appeal filed by Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, on the grounds that the case lacked merit and had become academic following his recent conviction for terrorism offenses.
In its ruling on Friday, a three-member panel held that Kanu’s claims of violations of his rights to human dignity, adequate healthcare and religious freedom could no longer stand since he has now been convicted, sentenced to life imprisonment and transferred from the custody of the Department of State Services to a correctional facility.
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Boloukuromo Moses Ugo noted that Kanu’s lawyer, Maxwell Opara, confirmed during the proceedings that Kanu is currently being held in Sokoto prison. The court therefore concluded that it could no longer grant his request to be moved to Kuje prison, the facility he sought during his fundamental rights suit.
Justice Ugo added that because Kanu had previously expressed a preference for prison custody over DSS detention, and has now been committed to prison following his conviction, the reliefs he sought were no longer applicable.
The ruling stemmed from Kanu’s appeal against the July 3 judgment of Justice Taiwo Taiwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which dismissed his suit for failure to substantiate claims of rights violations.
The respondents in the appeal were the Director General of the DSS, the DSS and the Attorney General of the Federation.
