DSS Blocks Nnamdi Kanu and Lawyers from Secret Meeting, Says Ejimakor

Aloy Ejimakor, the legal representative for Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has accused the Department of State Services (DSS) of disregarding a court order. According to Ejimakor, the DSS operatives did not allow Kanu to have a private meeting with his lawyers, as directed by Justice Binta Nyako of the Abuja Federal High Court.

Justice Nyako had specifically instructed that the secret police should permit Kanu to meet with up to five lawyers in a private room to adequately prepare for his trial. Ejimakor emphasized that this order was issued on May 20, 2024, as part of an “Order modifying the conditions of Counsel visitation to Mazi Kanu.”

The purpose of this modification was to ensure that Kanu’s legal team could adequately prepare him for a fair trial.

The court ordered that Kanu be allowed to meet with his lawyers as a team, not individually as previously done, and that these consultations take place in a private room at the State Security Services where Kanu is currently being held.

In a signed statement, Ejimakor expressed his dissatisfaction with the actions of the DSS. He stated that despite notifying the DSS about the four lawyers who were scheduled to meet with Kanu as a group, the DSS insisted that the lawyers meet with Kanu separately, which goes against the court order.

Ejimakor argued that this refusal to allow the lawyers to meet with Kanu as a group supports their claim that detaining Kanu at the DSS hinders his chances of receiving a fair trial.

They have filed applications to restore Kanu’s bail, transfer him to prison custody, or place him under home detention, but the court rejected all of these applications.

Ejimakor also raised concerns about the room where the lawyers were taken to meet with Kanu, stating that it was not a private room and may have been monitored.

Additionally, the DSS not only disallowed team visitation but also confiscated their eyeglasses and prohibited them from bringing in papers, making it difficult for some of the lawyers to read and prepare Kanu’s defense. Ejimakor concluded that the prosecution’s push for an accelerated trial lacks fairness and disregards the principles of fair play.