By Eric Ikhilae,The Nation

Copyright thenationonlineng

…judge returns file for reassignment

The scheduled hearing on Monday of a fresh motion filed by the detained self-acclaimed leader of the proscribed separatist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, was stalled before a Federal High Court in Abuja.

Kanu is, by the motion, seeking an order for his transfer from the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) to the National Hospital in Abuja for urgent medical attention.

At the mention of the case on Monday, Kanu’s lawyer, Uchenna Njoku (SAN), said his client’s motion was filed on September 1.

Njoku said the respondent (the DSS) served him with a counter-affidavit of 37 paragraphs in the open court before the commencement of proceedings.

He said he had yet to read the document to enable him to respond. He prayed the court for an adjournment to enable him to file a response before the court’s ongoing vacation runs out.

Lawyer to the DSS, Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN) did not object to Njoku’s request for an adjournment and expressed his willingness to attend court at any time and on any day chosen.

Ruling, Justice Musa Liman granted the adjustment sought by Njoku.

The judge noted that there was nothing much his court could do about the case since the fiat issued to him to serve as a vacation judge expired on Monday, thereby denying him the jurisdiction to further sit on the case.

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He then ordered that the case file be returned to the court’s Registry for the Chief Judge to reassign it to another judge.

Justice Liman said that he would make a recommendation to the Chief Judge for the speedy hearing of the motion since the health of the applicant is involved.

In the motion, Kanu claims to be suffering from health challenges that require attention outside the facility of the DSS, in whose custody he is currently being held.

In a supporting affidavit deposed to by his junior brother, Emmanuel, it was claimed that Kanu recently complained of weakness and pains in his body.

Emmanuel said Kanu’s complaint “prompted the invitation of a team of doctors, led by the Eminent Emeritus Professor Austin A.C. Agaji, who on September 1, 2025, at about 2:30 pm, told him that several tests were conducted on Kanu in August

He said the doctor told him, in Kanu’s lawyer’s office, that it was discovered that the IPOB leader was suffering from issues relating to his liver and kidneys, as well as a dangerously low level of potassium.

Emmanuel added, “He was further diagnosed with a swelling around his armpit area, which requires urgent attention to ascertain the cause and thereafter to seek appropriate medical treatment.”