Mr Aloy Ejimakor, the Special Counsel to the Leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, has demanded the unconditional release of his client by the Nigerian and Kenyan governments.
Ejimakor, in a statement on Tuesday, said that both Nigeria and Kenya had violated their own laws and international treaties in the abduction, extraordinary rendition and continued detention of Kanu.
He argued that none of the procedures for repatriation as provided for in the law was followed in the case of Kanu, who was “abducted in Kenya and renditioned” to Nigeria in June 2021.
“Nigerian & Kenyan laws, plus treaties Nigeria ratified provide steps that MUST be taken in returning an accused to face trial in another country. Failure to take such steps, like in the case of #MNK, PERMANENTLY robs the Court of jurisdiction. The only option is to #FreeMNK,” Ejimakor said on his X (formerly Twitter) handle on Tuesday.
Kanu was discharged of all 15 counts of treason preferred against him by the Court of Appeal in Abuja in October 2022, which faulted how he was renditioned to Nigeria.
The court also ordered his immediate and unconditional release.
However, the Nigerian government has refused to release Kanu, who has since then remained incarcerated in solitary confinement at the Abuja headquarters of the Department of State Security.
Ejimakor urged the Nigerian and Kenyan governments to comply with the judgments of the courts and release Kanu unconditionally.
He also urged the international community to pressure the two governments to do so.
