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Nnamdi Kanu’s Lawyer To Sue Media Organisations Publishing Further Reports That IPOB Leader ‘Jumped Bail’

IPOB-leader-Nnamdi-Kanu
November 23, 2022

Kanu gave the warning through his special counsel, Alloy Ejimakor, in a legal notice, titled: "General Statutory Legal Notice with subject heading: All Media Operators (Print And Electronic) And The General Public In Nigeria Must Cease And Desist Forthwith From Any Further Publications Stating Or Purporting That Mazi Nnamdi Kanu Jumped Bail," made available to SaharaReporters on Wednesday.
 

 

Detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, has warned media houses in Nigeria against reporting that he jumped bail which was granted to him by Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
Kanu gave the warning through his special counsel, Alloy Ejimakor, in a legal notice, titled: "General Statutory Legal Notice with subject heading: All Media Operators (Print And Electronic) And The General Public In Nigeria Must Cease And Desist Forthwith From Any Further Publications Stating Or Purporting That Mazi Nnamdi Kanu Jumped Bail," made available to SaharaReporters on Wednesday.
Ejimakor in the notice stated that he would have no option than to sue any media house which continues to report that his client jumped bail after the High Court in Umuahia had condemned the military invasion of Kanu’s home, which led him to flee the country.
Maintaining that any such publication henceforth would be false, libellous, defamatory, and injurious to Kanu’s legal interests, he appealed to various Media platforms to respect his client and laws of the country.
According to him, “To be sure, if in point of fact and law, our Client’s flight from the military invasion legally constituted an act of jumping bail, the High Court of Abia State would not have ruled in his favour and he would not have won his related and subsequent cases at the Federal High Court (Umuahia), the United Nations and the Court of Appeal.
“In view of the foregoing, our Client hereby respectfully demands (and states) as follows: a) That media operators, members of the media and all and sundry must henceforth cease and desist from uttering or otherwise causing any further publications stating or purporting that our Client jumped bail.
“b) Without prejudice to the right of the media to inform, our Client will not hesitate to take vigorous legal actions (civil and criminal) against any person(s) and entity uttering or otherwise causing any such defamatory publications. And he shall do so without any further legal notice.”
Although a lower court in Umuahia had fined the federal government N1 billion for the military invasion of Kanu’s home, matters associated with the IPOB leader are presently before the Supreme Court.
There is also an existing order of the Court of Appeal which had quashed all charges against Kanu citing “executive lawlessness” but another panel of the same division stayed the judgment awaiting the decision of the highest court in the land.
Going memory lane, Ejimakor stated that "In April 2017, our Client was released on bail after nearly eighteen (18) months in pretrial detention. Consequently, our Client returned to his ancestral home in Isiama Afaraukwu Ibeku, Umuahia North LGA, Abia State, and remained there, awaiting his next trial date set for October 20, 2017.
"On or about 10th September 2017 to 14th September 2017, while our Client was resting at home with some family members and friends, the Nigerian Army launched military invasion at our Client’s said ancestral home in Umuahia.
 "In the course of the invasion, our Client (as a human being menaced by a mortal danger) resorted to self-help and self-preservation, whereby he successfully fled from the mortal danger to save his life.
"In September 2021, based on said military invasion and its aftermaths, our Client levied a fundamental rights Suit (through the undersigned Counsel) against the Nigerian Army, the Federal Republic of Nigeria and others before the High Court of Abia State, in Suit No: HIN/FR.14/2021, wherein our Client was the Applicant and the Federal Republic of Nigeria was the First Respondent."