Request to free separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu rejected by Nigerian court

Separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu remained in jail on Friday after a Nigerian court rejected a request to free him. 

Kanu, who leads the banned Indigenous People of Biafra group, has been in and out of detention since 2015, when he was first arrested on charges of terrorism and treason. He denies all wrongdoing and his supporters say he’s being targeted in an effort to stifle the separatist campaign. 

The court found that prosecutors had presented enough evidence for him to stand trial. Friday’s verdict comes a year after Nigeria’s supreme court reinstated terrorism charges against him. 

His lawyers say he’s ill and are trying to get him medical treatment. 

“We are disappointed. Our client remains ill and he remains detained. And we are not happy about that,” said lawyer Aloy Ejimakor.

The separatist group is seeking independence for Nigeria’s southeastern region, which is primarily inhabited by Igbo people. Many people have been killed in southeastern Nigeria in violence blamed on the group - accusations it denies.

Obi Aguocha, who serves in Nigeria’s house of representatives, was at the courthouse supporting Kanu.

“In this country, (there are) two sets of rules. One rule for the Igbos and one rule for every other Nigerian. This is a unique opportunity for Nigeria to be circumspect, look towards a political solution to this matter,” he said.

The campaign for an independent state of Biafra follows the short-lived Republic of Biafra, which fought and lost a civil war from 1967 to 1970 to break away from Nigeria. An estimated one million people died in the war, many from the southeast.

About four weeks ago, Simon Ekpa, another separatist leader who rose to prominence after Kanu’s detention, was sentenced in Finland to six years in prison for terrorism and tax fraud.