-O. Adejo
The Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday denied bail to Nnamdi Kanu, the detained leader of the Proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
In her ruling, Justice Binta Nyako stated that the suit was a gross abuse of the court process and an attempt to continue litigating on issues that had already been decided.
She did, however, advise the applicant to appeal the court’s decision on bail to the Court of Appeal if he felt wronged.
The trial judge stated that since the ruling in July 2017 when Kanu was granted bail, the case has been adjourned 15 times and has yet to enter a substantive hearing.
She also expressed her dissatisfaction with the reason given by the IPOB leader for his failure to appear in court for the continuation of his trial.
According to the court’s records, Kanu was represented by his lawyer on the day his bail was revoked, as were his sureties, and he has never been denied a fair hearing.
She ruled that a court could overturn a previous order if presented with a compelling and verifiable reason.
“In the instant case, I have not been given any, nor have I been given any reason to set aside the order,” the trial judge said.
She insisted that the IPOB leader explain why he violated the previous bail granted to him before he could benefit from another favourable discretion.
The case was then adjourned until November 14 for further consideration and to await the outcome of Kanu’s appeal at the appellate court.
The ruling on Tuesday comes a month after the court denied bail to the embattled IPOB leader on May 18.
Court Denies Nnamdi Kanu’s Bail Application