The American Veterans of Igbo Descent (AVID) has strongly condemned what it described as a “continuing judicial travesty” in the ongoing trial of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, before Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
In a statement issued on Thursday and signed by its President, Chief Dr. Sylvester Onyia, the group expressed grave concern and total condemnation over what it called the erosion of constitutional and judicial standards in Kanu’s trial, warning that Nigeria risks global disrepute if due process continues to be undermined.
AVID alleged that the proceedings lack legal foundation and violate both domestic and international principles of fair hearing.
“Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution (as amended) is clear under Section 36(12) that no person shall be tried for any criminal offence unless that offence and its penalty are defined in a written law. This is a non-derogable constitutional safeguard — a cornerstone of due process and a measure of any civilized nation’s commitment to justice,” the group stated.
The group faulted the Nigerian government for continuing to prosecute Kanu under the repealed Terrorism (Prevention) (Amendment) Act, 2013, despite the enactment of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, which replaced it.
“Yet, before the world and under Justice Omotosho’s watch, the Nigerian state persists in trying Mazi Nnamdi Kanu under a dead law — the 2013 Terrorism Act — which ceased to exist with the 2022 legislation,” AVID noted.
The organization accused Justice Omotosho of failing to take judicial notice of the repeal, contrary to Section 122(2)(a) of the Evidence Act, describing it as “a dereliction of constitutional duty.”
AVID also criticized the judge’s alleged decision to defer rulings on key jurisdictional issues until final judgment, arguing that such matters strike at the root of any criminal trial.
“Jurisdictional defects must be resolved immediately, not deferred. No court, no matter how highly placed, can arrogate to itself jurisdiction it does not possess,” the statement read.
Citing Section 76(1)(d)(iii) of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, AVID argued that the “double criminality” requirement — which mandates that any alleged terrorism committed abroad must also constitute an offence in that jurisdiction — has not been met, as the acts alleged against Kanu did not constitute a crime in Kenya, where he was allegedly abducted.
The group further accused Nigeria’s legal and judicial institutions of “cowardly silence” in the face of “manifest constitutional infidelity.”
“A nation whose lawyers fear to ask, ‘Under what law is this man being tried?’ has surrendered its conscience to tyranny,” the statement declared.
AVID alleged that Kanu has been denied access to his lawyers and family while in DSS custody and that evidence before the court has been disregarded, claiming that these actions amount to “the destruction of every element of fair hearing” guaranteed under Section 36(1) of the Constitution.
The group cited an instance in open court where Kanu allegedly asked for a brief recess in the judge’s chambers to prevent “judicial embarrassment,” but was denied.
“When Kanu raised the question, ‘Under what law am I being tried?’ Justice Omotosho replied, ‘Wait till judgment.’ That a Federal High Court judge can preside over a criminal trial without identifying a subsisting law is the ultimate indictment of Nigeria’s judiciary,” AVID asserted.
Calling for global intervention, AVID urged international bodies — including the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), the U.S. Department of State, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the International Criminal Court (ICC) — to monitor and document what it described as “ongoing judicial abuses in Nigeria.”
“The trial of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, in its present form, is not just a constitutional aberration but an affront to international human rights standards on fair trial and rule of law,” the group emphasized.
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AVID concluded by urging Nigeria to “choose between law and lawlessness,” insisting that the continued trial undermines the nation’s democratic credentials.
“Justice Omotosho’s courtroom has become a theatre of constitutional absurdity — where a man is made to defend himself against a non-existent law. If Nigeria still claims to be a constitutional democracy, it must immediately halt this charade, restore the rule of law, and release Mazi Nnamdi Kanu unconditionally,” the statement added.
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