Lawyer Faults Supreme Court’s Decision Remitting Nnamdi Kanu’s Trial

A member of the legal team defending the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has faulted the Supreme Court’s decision remitting his terrorism case to the Federal High Court after the Court of Appeal discharged him in 2022.

Barrister Njoku Jude Njoku, a consultant to the Mazi Nnamdi Kanu Global Defence Consortium, stated this in Abuja in a statement issued on Wednesday.

His reaction followed Kanu’s refusal to enter his defence after the Federal Government closed its case, insisting there is no case against him based on the earlier Court of Appeal ruling that discharged him on October 13, 2022.

In the statement titled “A Devastating Critique: The Nigerian Supreme Court’s Unlawful Remittal of Nnamdi Kanu’s Case…”, Njoku criticised the Supreme Court’s December 15, 2023 ruling ordering continuation of trial, arguing it violated constitutional provisions and the principle of finality of appellate decisions.

He said the Court of Appeal’s judgment had extinguished the case, citing Section 36(9) of the Constitution and various legal authorities. Njoku further argued that once an appellate court discharges an accused person, they are constitutionally protected from retrial for the same offence.

Njoku maintained that the apex court lacked jurisdiction to remit the matter without overturning the appellate court’s decision, describing the action as “judicial overreach” and “a constitutional aberration.”

He also alleged that a five-member Supreme Court panel improperly overturned an earlier decision linked to African Charter jurisprudence made by a seven-member bench, insisting that a smaller panel cannot overrule a larger one.

Njoku urged adherence to constitutional provisions and judicial precedents, insisting Kanu remains protected by the 2022 appellate judgment.

Kanu’s trial resumed following the Supreme Court’s ruling ordering continuation of proceedings after his discharge by the Court of Appeal. The Federal Government is prosecuting him on terrorism-related charges.