The bail conditions handed out to the leader of the
Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, by Justice Binta
Murtala-Nyako is not only defective but also smirks of judicial recklessness,
rascality, and reeks of tribal and religious bigotry. At best, the bail
conditions are booby traps to perpetually gag, ensnare, and render lameduck,
Mazi Nnamdi Kanu whose only crime is the peaceful demand for the enforcement of
the rights of Indigenous People of Biafra to self-determination as enshrined in
the 2007 United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People
(UNDRIP). We posit that Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako has brought the Nigerian
Judicial System to the lowest ebb by virtue of these bail conditions.
For those who do not know, on the 25th of April, 2017,
Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako granted Mazi Nnamdi Kanu bail on health grounds but
with the following strings attached:
1) Produce three sureties and two of whom must be; (a)
highly respected and recognized Jewish leader and (b) highly placed Igbo person
such as a Senator. The third surety must be resident in Abuja with a landed
property in the same Abuja. Above all, the three sureties must deposit one
hundred million naira (N100million) each.
2) Barred from attending any rally and granting any form of
interview.
3) Must not be in a crowd exceeding 10 persons.
4) Must surrender his British and Nigerian passports even
when these passports are still in the custody of the DSS.
5) Must sign an undertaking to avail himself for trial at all
times.
Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako has turned the Judiciary on its
head with these laughable and ludicrous bail conditions. She has made history
in the Nigerian Judicial System as the first Judge to introduce religion and
tribe into bail conditions in a
non-religious court case. Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako has defamed the Nigerian
Judicial System by violating the fundamental human rights of an accused person
as stipulated in the various United Nations Conventions as well as in the
relevant sections of Chapter Four of the Retired General Abdulsalami
Abubakar-unilaterally written Constitution of Nigeria.
We can confirm from the immediate family of Nnamdi Kanu that
his official religion is Christianity, hence we are at loss on why a respected
Jewish leader must be one of the sureties. As far as we know, Nnamdi Kanu has
British and Nigerian passports, so why stipulate a respected Jewish leader as
one of the sureties? Secondly, why specify that another surety must be of Igbo
extraction? Is Igbo the only tribe in Biafra or in Nigeria for that matter? Has
there been any precedence where a surety was required to come from a particular
tribe?
If truly Justice Binta Nyako’s court is a Federal High
Court, why restrict a third surety to be a resident of Abuja? Even at that, is
it out of place for an Abuja resident to have a landed property elsewhere
within Nigeria or is Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako not confident in the ability
of the relevant Nigerian Agency to identify and seize any property outside of
Abuja if such an Agency is required to do so?
Furthermore, we ask Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako to explain
what she meant by not allowing Nnamdi Kanu to be found in the presence of more
than 10 persons. From our investigation, Nnamdi Kanu’s siblings and their
immediate families plus Nnamdi Kanu’s parents all numbered more than 20
persons. On the other hand, Nnamdi Kanu’s in-laws numbered more than 12
persons. So what happens if Nnamdi Kanu with his wife and children decide to
visit his siblings and his parents or to visit his in-laws? Outside of the
family and in-laws, so Nnamdi Kanu cannot attend church services, go to the
market, or be in any mode of public transportation system because in all these,
it is impossible to have just 10 persons or less.
Of what use is granting someone bail on health grounds while
at the same time refusing the person to travel to any place in the world where
he or she wishes to have satisfactory medical services? Why should Justice
Binta Murtala-Nyako restrict Nnamdi Kanu to receiving medical treatments only
in Nigeria through the seizure of his
International Passports? What has Nnamdi Kanu attending any rally got to do
with the ongoing court case? If in the process of receiving medical treatments,
the physician determined that Nnamdi Kanu should be put on bed rest, so should
the bail be revoked because he will not avail himself of trial at all times?
From these bail conditions deviously handed out by Justice
Binta Murtala-Nyako, it is obvious that this is a case of the voice of Jacob
and the hands of Esau. In other words, those bail conditions were written by
Retired Major General Muhammadu Buhari and handed over to Justice Binta
Murtala-Nyako to read out in court. We therefore, call upon the Chief Justice
of Nigeria to intervene and salvage whatever remains of the tattered image of
the Nigerian Judiciary.
These bail conditions are laughable and defective and must
be totally overturned. In addition to granting an unconditional release to
Nnamdi Kanu, we demand that the other three detained Biafrans, namely
Chidiebere Onwudiwe, Benjamin Madubugwu, and David Nwawuisi must also be
released unconditionally. Nothing less will be acceptable to Biafrans. Justice
Binta Murtala-Nyako must jettison the bail conditions she handed out to Mazi
Nnamdi Kanu and proceed to unconditionally release all four Biafrans
immediately.
Barrister Emma Nmezu
Dr. Clifford Chukwuemeka Iroanya
Spokespersons for IPOB
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