The Federal High Court in Abuja has denied Nnamdi Kanu’s request to be transferred from Sokoto Correctional Centre to a facility closer to Abuja, citing the need to hear from the Federal Government and Nigerian Correctional Service first.
“You are from the Legal Aid Council. Do you think it is by ex parte motion that this application ought to be granted?” Omotosho asked Kanu’s lawyer, Demdoo Asan, noting that judgment in the case had been delivered with both parties present.
Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), was sentenced to life imprisonment for terrorism-related offences on November 20, a verdict his family plans to appeal.
The court had previously ordered his transfer to Sokoto, deeming Abuja’s Kuje Centre unsuitable.
Kanu wanted to move to Suleja or Keffi for easier access to appeal proceedings.
Justice Omotosho questioned the wording of the application, particularly the use of the word “compel,” and asked whether such relief could be granted without notifying the respondents.
Asan agreed that the parties needed to be put on notice, and Relief One of the application was struck out.
“Don’t you think this application should have come by motion on notice?” the judge asked. Asan replied, “Yes, my Lord, they should be heard.”
The judge ordered that the prosecution and the correctional service be served before any further hearing, remarking that “a law school student will know that this application cannot be granted ex parte.”
The judge struck out part of the application, faulted the premature notice of appeal filed before judgment, and adjourned the case to January 27, 2026, ordering the respondents to be served before further hearings.