Kanu
A date has been fixed for the hearing of a fundamental rights case instituted by Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra.
A Federal High Court, Abuja, on Monday, fixed February 28 to hear the suit.
Justice Taiwo Taiwo fixed the date after counsel to the Department of State Services (DSS), Idowu Awo, informed the court that his clients had a counter-affidavit that had not been served on Kanu.
Awo, at the resumed hearing prayed the court for more time to change the service of the application on Kanu’s lawyer, Maxwell Opara.
But Opara described the request of the DSS lawyer as an attempt to continue to subject his client to solitary confinement and other inhuman treatments.
He argued that the counter affidavit by the DSS was already filed out of time.
Okpara said even though the application was dated January 28 and counsel to the DSS has his contact, it was not served on him until now.
Also, the lawyer to the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Simon Enock, informed that he had filed a motion for an extension of time to regularise their counter affidavit.
The application was neither opposed by counsel to the IPOB leader, Opara nor the DSS lawyer.
Justice Taiwo, who noted that the matter was coming before him for the first time, fixed the matter until February 28 for hearing.
Kanu had sued the DSS Director-General, DSS and the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami, over the violation of his fundamental human rights.
The IPOB leader through his lawyer had prayed the court to ask the respondents while carrying out their lawful duties should abide by the provisions of Chapter 4 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and the Africa Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act; as regards the rights of citizens of Nigeria.
