The Department of State Services (DSS) has been instructed by the Federal High Court in Abuja to provide optimum convenience to Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the proscribed IPOB group, while he remains in their custody.
On Thursday, trial judge Justice Binta Nyako issued an order directing the DSS to provide Nnamdi Kanu with a change of clothes, medical attention, and the freedom to practice his faith.
The subject for the day, according to Justice Nyako, was for abridgment of time because the questions of bail and the court’s jurisdiction did not come up for determination.
The judge also moved the case’s next hearing date forward a day (January 18, 2022) from the original date (January 19) for a hearing on pending applications, including the court’s jurisdiction and the charge’s competency.
The Judge allowed the abridgment of time after a request to that effect, hence the trial date has been shifted.
Ifeanyi Ejiofor, Kanu’s lawyer, had applied with the court, requesting that the trial be rescheduled for November and December this year instead of January 19.
A counter affidavit contesting the federal government’s motion has been prepared and served on Kanu, according to federal government counsel Shuaib Labaran.
Justice Nyako, on the other hand, caught Kanu’s lawyer off guard and advised him that the application for time abridgment could not be heard because there is no judicial time available for such a matter.
As a result of the demand, Justice Nyako decided to reschedule other cases scheduled for January 18 to make room for the trial, which will go until January 19 and 20.
She also directed the DSS to allow Kanu to practice his faith, change his clothing, and be provided with as much comfort as possible while in jail.
In the absence of Nnamdi Kanu, these instructions were issued.