The detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, has filed a fresh motion before the Federal High Court in Abuja, urging the court to strike out all charges against him and order his immediate release from detention.
In the new motion titled “Motion on Notice and Written Address in Support,” dated October 30, 2025, Kanu insisted that none of the charges filed by the Federal Government are valid under Nigerian law. He described the case as “a nullity ab initio,” arguing that the prosecution relied on repealed and non-existent statutes.
Kanu, who is representing himself in the case, filed the motion under several constitutional and statutory provisions, including Sections 1(3), 6(6)(b), and 36(12) of the 1999 Constitution, the Evidence Act 2011, and the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022. He maintained that the charges, being rooted in repealed laws, violate the constitutional principle that no person shall be tried for an offence not defined in any existing law.
According to him, the government’s reliance on the repealed Customs and Excise Management Act (CEMA) and the defunct Terrorism Prevention (Amendment) Act 2013 invalidates the entire prosecution. He cited Section 36(12) of the Constitution, which states that “no person shall be convicted of a criminal offence unless that offence is defined and the penalty prescribed in a written law.”
Read Also:
- Nnamdi Kanu withdraws plan to call witnesses, says no valid charges against him
- Sowore, Ejimakor, Kanu’s brother, 10 others released after perfecting bail conditions
- Obi explains why he met with late Gen. Abacha
The motion also raised jurisdictional objections over alleged offences said to have occurred in Kenya. Kanu contended that counts one to six of the charge contravene Section 76(1)(d)(iii) of the TPPA 2022, which requires a Kenyan court to validate that such acts constitute crimes under Kenyan law before trial can proceed in Nigeria.
He argued that Nigeria’s exercise of extraterritorial jurisdiction without such validation breaches Article 7(2) of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. Quoting Section 1(3) of the 1999 Constitution, Kanu asserted that any proceeding inconsistent with the Constitution “shall be void.”
The IPOB leader also drew from earlier court decisions such as Aoko v. Fagbemi (1961) 1 All NLR 400 and FRN v. Ifegwu (2003) 15 NWLR (Pt 842) 113, where courts nullified convictions based on non-existent offences.
Kanu concluded his motion by asking the court to compel the prosecution to respond strictly on points of law within three days and to deliver its ruling by November 4, 2025. He emphasized that his application “hinges solely on questions of law” derived from the Constitution, the TPPA 2022, the Evidence Act 2011, and the court’s record, and therefore required no supporting affidavit.
In his final submission, Kanu stated that he had complied fully with the court’s directive of October 27, 2025, by filing a comprehensive written address “asserting that no valid or cognisable charge subsists against him either under existing Nigerian statutes or any law recognized in Kenya.”
The latest legal move marks a significant twist in the long-running trial of the IPOB leader, whose detention has continued to stir political and human rights debates both in Nigeria and abroad.
