Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja has scheduled the trial of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, for Friday, March 21.
This decision was confirmed on Wednesday after the case file was transferred to Justice Omotosho following a reassignment.
Kanu is facing a seven-count terrorism charge brought against him by the Federal Government.
Justice Omotosho was assigned the case after Justice Binta Nyako, the previous judge presiding over the matter, recused herself.
Justice Nyako’s recusal on September 24, 2024, followed allegations of bias raised by Kanu and his legal team, who requested the transfer of the case to another judge.
However, the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court initially returned the case to Justice Nyako, insisting that Kanu and his legal team must file a formal application for the recusal to be accepted.
Meanwhile, Kanu opposed being made to appear before Justice Nyako in the next proceedings, which led to his case being adjourned sine die (indefinitely).
On February 20, 2025, Kanu’s legal team wrote to the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, seeking her intervention.
They requested that the case be reassigned to another judge in the Federal High Court in Abuja or transferred to the Southeast.
Kanu’s lead counsel, Aloy Ejimakor, in a statement on Saturday, March 8, revealed that they had received two separate letters regarding the case.
One letter from the CJN and the other letter he said was from the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice John Tsoho, informing them that the case had been reassigned to another judge of the Federal High Court.
Justice Omotosho will now preside over the case, with proceedings set to resume on March 21, 2025.
