MIRIAM NNOLI 
The detained leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) Nnamdi Kanu, on Wednesday requested that his case be transferred to the South-East if no judge at the Federal High Court in Abuja is willing to preside over it apart from Justice Binta Nyako.
Kanu made this request in a statement issued by his lead counsel, Aloy Ejimakor, following a routine meeting with his legal team at the Department of State Services (DSS) facility in Abuja.
New Telegraph recalls that the development comes after Justice Nyako, on September 24, 2024, recused herself from handling Kanu’s case, citing the IPOB leader’s lack of confidence in her handling of the trial.
The case was subsequently referred to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice John Tsoho, who later returned it to Justice Nyako for continuation.
In his statement, Ejimakor disclosed that Kanu had instructed his legal team to prevent Justice Nyako from presiding over his trial.
The statement reads, “The central issue arising at today’s visitation is the upcoming court date for the continuation of MNK’s case.
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“Due to its constitutional implications, Onyendu instructed the legal team to take certain prompt steps to ensure that his case is not handled by the same Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako, who had withdrawn from the case by virtue of the order of recusal entered on 24th September 2024.
“The point was stressed that should the case still lie with Justice Murtala-Nyako, it would mean that the same court is disobeying an order that it made.”
Kanu’s legal team emphasized the importance of assigning a new judge to the case and suggested that, if necessary, the trial be moved to any Federal High Court within the Southeast, where the alleged offences were said to have occurred.
“If no other judge in Abuja is willing to handle the case, the Chief Judge is free to transfer the case to Umuahia, Awka, Enugu, Asaba, Port Harcourt, or any other Federal High Court within the former Eastern Nigeria, where the alleged offences were said to have occurred or had their impact,” the statement added
