The legal team representing Nnamdi Kanu, the arrested leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, stated Kanu staged a protest by refusing to leave the Department of State Services’ (DSS) holding facility after the DSS allegedly prevented his legal team from visiting him (Kanu) three times.
Ifeanyi Ejiofor, IPOB’s principal lawyer, said this in a statement to newsmen in Owerri on Tuesday, following a visit to Kanu at the DSS on Monday.
He stated that the DSS may face legal penalties if it violated court orders in a brazen manner.
He said: “Our routine court-ordered visit to our indefatigable Client was led by the distinguished Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Prof. Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN, who is also the Lead Counsel in Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s case.
“Our esteemed team of Lawyers comprising of the Learned Silk, myself and Bar. Aloy Ejimakor were all cleared most promptly upon our arrival, and consequently allowed to proceed with the business of the day- to visit Nnamdi Kanu as his lawyers.
“We were immediately ushered into the room designated for the visit. All the protocols were duly observed, as we willingly submitted ourselves to the same, in line with the DSS stipulated routine guidelines. We waited until minutes turned into an hour, and there was no signal that we would have Onyendu brought to us.
“Consequently, the erudite Silk leading our team raised alarm and demanded to have the attention of the DSS superiors for an explanation on why a court-ordered visit which, ordinarily, should not extend beyond two hours was taking almost one and a half hour waiting time, with no hope of meeting with Onyendu.”
“Following the stout protest by the erudite Silk, we were consequently brought in, to meet with some superior officers at a meeting where all superior personnel connected with the matter were invited. Far-reaching contacts were made to establish the fact that our Client- Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu was presumably protesting the previous three visits which were aborted by the DSS.
“All efforts made to move the visit to his very location of detention were not granted by the DSS, as they insisted that our request ran contrary to their procedure and guidelines.”
“Effort is presently being intensified to pacify Onyendu to have a one-on-one discussion with his legal team, to enable us to brief him on legal steps we may be compelled to take and measures to be adopted to assure him that there are legal consequences for flagrant violations of court orders by the DSS.
“We are quite hopeful that this needless impasse will be resolved between now and tomorrow morning, to enable the legal team led by Chief Ozekhome, SAN, to conduct the visit tomorrow. That has so far been assured us,” IPOB legal team said.
