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‘Show Me the Law’: Lawyer Questions FG’s Reluctance to Defend Kanu’s Conviction

Published

2 months ago

August 20, 2026

leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu with some of his lawyers

‘Show Me the Law’: Lawyer Questions FG’s Reluctance to Defend Kanu’s Conviction

A lawyer and member of Kanu’s legal consortium has challenged the Federal Government to identify and defend the specific law under which the IPOB leader was convicted, arguing that the government cannot hide behind “public legal illiteracy” to justify a conviction that may have been based on a repealed statute, as Barrister Christopher Chidera, a member of the Global Legal Consortium to Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, has backed the Okwu-Kanu family’s call for the immediate hearing of Kanu’s pending matters before the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal, with the challenge stemming from Kanu’s conviction and life sentence on November 20, 2025, by Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja.

Chidera based his argument on Section 36(12) of the 1999 Constitution, which provides that a person shall not be convicted of a criminal offence unless the offence and its penalty are defined in a written law, and he questioned the “extant written law” governing the offence and punishment at the time Kanu was convicted, arguing that if the law under which Kanu was convicted had been repealed, reliance on a savings provision could not, on its own, resolve the constitutional question. He emphasized that a savings clause is not a penal statute, does not create the offence, does not prescribe the punishment, and is not, by itself, the written criminal law contemplated by Section 36(12), while explaining that savings provisions generally preserve specified legal consequences, including proceedings, investigations or liabilities, subject to the precise wording of the relevant legislation, and maintaining that such a provision should not be interpreted as automatically transforming a repealed criminal statute into an extant penal law.

The defence team cited Section 97 of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022 (TPPA 2022), which provides for proceedings commenced under repealed legislation to be continued and completed under the 2022 Act, but Chidera maintained that the existence of such a savings provision should not end the constitutional inquiry, asking that if the answer is that a savings provision preserved the old proceedings, the next question remains: where is the extant written law satisfying Section 36(12) under which the conviction itself was entered. He further explained that Section 98(3) of the TPPA 2022 only preserves past actions such as arrests, searches, or charges, but does not preserve a repealed law or authorize a conviction under it, noting that the Terrorism Prevention (Amendment) Act 2013 was repealed in its entirety by the TPPA 2022, which came into force on May 12, 2022.

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Chidera identified questions he believes require judicial determination, including what law was in force when the conviction was entered, what written law defined the offence, and what written law prescribed the punishment, stating that these were not matters of public relations or political rhetoric but legal issues that should be addressed by the courts, and that they are not complicated questions but questions of law. The lawyer recalled that Kanu had raised similar questions during his trial, particularly through the demand, “Show me the law,” and said Kanu was now effectively asking the Court of Appeal to answer the same question, adding that if the Federal Government believes the answer is favourable to it, it should come to court and give that answer.

The Okwu-Kanu family has drawn local and international attention to what it described as the Federal Government’s unwillingness to join issues on proceedings seeking Kanu’s freedom, and in a letter dated August 18, 2026, the family expressed concern over the delay, saying Kanu has written to the Chief Justice of Nigeria and President of the Court of Appeal requesting immediate listing of his cases. The family disclosed that Kanu commenced proceedings before the Supreme Court on November 7, 2025, challenging the legality of the Supreme Court’s remittal judgment of December 15, 2023, and said the Federal Government was duly served but had not filed a substantive response or caused the case to be listed for hearing more than nine months later. Kanu also has a separate appeal before the Court of Appeal challenging his November 20, 2025 conviction and life sentence, with his Appellant’s Brief filed on June 5, 2026, and served on the Federal Government, but the prescribed period for filing the Respondent’s Brief had elapsed without one being filed.

The family based its demand on the Court of Appeal’s October 13, 2022 judgment, which discharged Kanu and quashed the criminal charges against him, and recalled that the Federal Government subsequently obtained a stay of execution on October 28, 2022—just 14 days after the judgment—preventing Kanu from regaining his freedom, stating that fourteen days were enough for a differently constituted panel of a functus officio Court of Appeal to deploy civil procedure against an acquittal-equivalent discharge, and that months cannot now be acceptable merely to list proceedings in which that same man’s liberty is at stake. The family stressed that Kanu was not asking the courts to rule in his favour, but to hear and determine his cases in accordance with the law, adding that if the Federal Government believes the Supreme Court remittal was lawful, it should appear and defend it, and if it believes the conviction and life sentence are lawful, it should file its papers and defend them.

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has claimed that the Federal Government, in its cross-appeal filed in response to Kanu’s appeal, admitted that Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court acted without jurisdiction in convicting and sentencing Kanu, with IPOB spokesman Emma Powerful stating that the government’s cross-appeal expressly admitted that Justice Omotosho acted without jurisdiction when it imposed the sentence of life imprisonment instead of death penalty. The separatist group argued that if the trial court lacked jurisdiction to impose sentence, then the same trial court lacked jurisdiction to produce the conviction from which the sentence arose, and stated that any attempt by the Court of Appeal to affirm the conviction while simultaneously accepting the Federal Government’s admission regarding jurisdiction would require the creation of an entirely new species of criminal jurisprudence unknown to Nigeria, unknown to the Commonwealth, and unknown to the common-law world. The family has disclosed plans to formally notify the United States Congress, Israeli Knesset and International Bar Association of what it described as an “unacceptable delay” in the handling of Kanu’s cases, saying the relevant chronology and court records would be presented to the international bodies for consideration.

‘Show Me the Law’: Lawyer Questions FG’s Reluctance to Defend Kanu’s Conviction

Related Topics:Conviction Featured FG Kanu lawyer questions

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Ex-APC Women Leader Found Dead With Throat Slit in Bauchi

Published

13 minutes ago

October 5, 2026

Trends Admin

Ex-APC Women Leader Found Dead With Throat Slit in Bauchi

A former APC Women Leader in Bauchi South, Jemimah Dutse, has been found dead inside her residence in Bauchi State, with her throat allegedly slit by unidentified assailants.

Dutse was discovered in a pool of blood at her residence in Muazu New Layout, Yelwa, Bauchi, on Saturday, October 3, 2026.

The Bauchi State Police Command said the incident was reported at about 2:07pm by a 49-year-old man, following which detectives visited the residence and documented the scene.

Her body was subsequently evacuated to Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH), Bauchi, for medical examination and autopsy.

The Commissioner of Police, Sani-Omolori Aliyu, directed that the case be transferred to the Homicide Section of the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for a discreet and thorough investigation.

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The police said the investigation is focused on establishing the circumstances surrounding Dutse’s death and identifying the person or persons responsible.

The motive for the killing remains unknown, and authorities have not established any link between the death and Dutse’s previous political activities.

The command has appealed for calm and expressed condolences to Dutse’s family, friends and political associates, while assuring them that efforts are underway to unravel the circumstances surrounding her death.

The incident has also generated concern among residents and groups in Bauchi, with calls for a comprehensive investigation and improved security in the area.

The Take-It-Back Movement, Bauchi chapter, condemned the killing and called on security agencies to intensify efforts to identify and arrest those responsible.

The group also urged the authorities to conduct a high-powered investigation into the incident and strengthen security measures across Bauchi metropolis and surrounding communities.

Police said further developments would be communicated as the investigation progresses.

Ex-APC Women Leader Found Dead With Throat Slit in Bauchi

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Kidnappers torture abducted corps members, slash ransom to N100m

Published

1 hour ago

October 5, 2026

Trends Admin

Kidnappers torture abducted corps members, slash ransom to N100m

Relatives of 20 abducted corps members have raised fresh concerns over the safety of the victims, alleging that kidnappers have subjected them to physical torture while reducing their ransom demand to N100 million.

The prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members were reportedly travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states when gunmen attacked two buses along the Owerri–Onitsha Road in Umunoha, Mbaitoli Local Government Area of Imo State, on October 1.

The abductors initially reportedly demanded N50 million from each victim, putting the total ransom at N1 billion.

However, relatives said the kidnappers have now reduced the demand to N5 million per victim, bringing the total to N100 million.

The families also alleged that the abducted corps members were being beaten in captivity, including female victims, raising fears over their physical condition as the rescue operation continues.

A relative of one of the victims, Alimot Akande, said the situation had become increasingly frightening, appealing to the authorities to intensify efforts to secure the victims’ safe release.

According to the relatives, the abductors have maintained contact with some families through the phones of the captives and have used the communication to demand ransom.

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The families had earlier appealed to the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, for intervention after the kidnappers reportedly demanded the initial N1 billion ransom.

Meanwhile, security agencies have intensified efforts to locate the kidnappers’ hideout and rescue the victims.

The Imo State Police Command said its operatives had traced the suspected kidnappers to a location in the bush. However, the operation has reportedly been complicated by intelligence that the area may have been planted with improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

The police said drone surveillance was used to identify the suspected location of the captives, with plans underway to deploy additional operational equipment to safely access the area.

The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, has also deployed the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of Operations, Shehu Umar Nadada, to Imo State to coordinate the rescue operation.

Nadada subsequently reviewed the security deployment and directed additional tactical resources towards efforts to rescue the abducted corps members.

Police authorities have assured the families that efforts are ongoing to locate the victims and bring them home safely.

There have also been varying reports over the exact number of people abducted and those already rescued. The police initially reported that some victims had been rescued after the attack, while relatives continued to maintain that 20 prospective corps members remained affected by the abduction.

The two buses involved in the incident have reportedly been recovered as security agencies continue operations around the area.

The Oyo State Government has also joined efforts to secure the release of the victims, maintaining contact with the Imo State Government and security agencies.

The incident has renewed concerns about the safety of prospective corps members travelling to NYSC orientation camps, particularly along major highways where kidnapping remains a persistent security challenge.

For the affected families, the immediate priority remains the safe return of their loved ones as security agencies work to overcome the reported explosives threat and reach the suspected kidnappers’ hideout.

Kidnappers torture abducted corps members, slash ransom to N100m

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Family seeks N10m to free kidnapped newlywed, other victims

Published

14 hours ago

October 4, 2026

Trends Admin

Family seeks N10m to free kidnapped newlywed, other victims

The family of a newlywed woman kidnapped in Kwara State has appealed to Nigerians for financial assistance to raise ₦10 million being sought for the release of her and other victims still held by their abductors.

The victims were among six passengers reportedly abducted along the Eruku-Iyemero Road, a route linking communities in Kwara and Kogi states.

The incident involved newlyweds Funmilayo Bamidele and Rev. Abiodun David, who were travelling with other passengers when suspected kidnappers intercepted their vehicle.

Following the abduction, the victims’ vehicle was reportedly found abandoned around Ayetoro in Ekiti State, prompting security agencies and authorities from Kwara, Kogi and Ekiti to intensify efforts to locate the victims and rescue them.

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The family of Precious Alonge, one of those abducted, has now appealed for public support, saying they need to raise ₦10 million to secure the release of the captives.

The appeal comes amid growing concern over the safety of travellers using the route, which has witnessed security challenges and kidnapping incidents.

One of the six abducted passengers has reportedly been rescued, while efforts are continuing to secure the release of those still in captivity.

The families of the victims have continued to appeal for assistance as security agencies work to locate the kidnappers and secure the safe return of the remaining captives.

The incident has renewed concerns about kidnapping along inter-state roads in Nigeria, particularly routes connecting communities across Kwara, Kogi and Ekiti states.

Security authorities have yet to provide a full account of the circumstances surrounding the abduction or disclose details of any arrests made in connection with the incident.

The families are urging members of the public, community leaders and other well-meaning Nigerians to support their efforts to secure the safe release of the remaining victims.