Justice James Omotosho dismissed the application after Kanu’s lawyer announced his withdrawal from the case.
The Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday dismissed an ex parte application filed by the imprisoned leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, seeking his transfer from the Sokoto Correctional Facility.
Justice James Omotosho dismissed the application after Kanu’s lawyer announced his withdrawal from the case.
Kanu’s lawyer, Demdoo Asan, a senior legal officer with the Legal Aid Council, at the resumed hearing of the application on Tuesday, informed the court of his decision to step aside from the matter, citing irreconcilable differences between him and the applicant.
Asan told the court that since the last adjourned date, he had maintained regular telephone communication with Kanu’s relatives, who were expected to visit the Legal Aid Council office to depose to the application.
However, he said they failed to do so despite repeated calls and assurances, according to Channels Television.
Asan further disclosed that Kanu had attempted to dictate how the case should be conducted in court, including insisting on scripting what counsel would say during proceedings.
He said such conduct was unacceptable and incompatible with his duties as an officer of the court.
“He wants to write down what I would say while in court. But as an officer of the court, I cannot, in good faith, accept that,” he told the judge.
According to Asan, consultations with his superiors at the Legal Aid Council yielded a unanimous position that they could no longer continue with the representation under such conditions.
“As officers of the court, when a matter comes to us, we handle it as we see fit; otherwise, the applicant can find legal help elsewhere,” he added, while invoking Order 50, Rule 1 of the Federal High Court Rules to formally withdraw from the case.
In his ruling, Justice Omotosho praised the counsel for maintaining professional integrity and upholding the dignity of the court.
He granted the application for Asan and the Legal Aid Council to withdraw from representing Kanu.
The judge also held that the ex parte motion seeking Kanu’s transfer was incompetent.
He noted that, in the interest of justice, other parties ought to have been properly served, adding that there was no evidence of service before the court since the last hearing on December 8, 2025.
Consequently, Justice Omotosho ordered that the ex parte motion be struck out for lack of competence.
Kanu was convicted on seven terrorism-related counts on November 20, 2025, by Justice Omotosho after years of trial disruptions, detention, and legal disputes between his defence team and the Nigerian authorities.
The IPOB leader was subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment and moved from Abuja to Sokoto Prison.
However, Barrister Aloy Ejimakor, Kanu’s legal consultant, had raised concerns that transferring Kanu to a correctional facility in Sokoto, hundreds of kilometres from Abuja, poses a serious threat to his right and ability to file and pursue an appeal in his case.
Ejimakor warned that Kanu’s constitutional rights under Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria were at risk.
Ejimakor, who served as Kanu’s Special Counsel until the IPOB leader opted to retain him only as a legal consultant, stressed that the appeal process requires immediate and detailed actions that are impossible to execute without close access to the relevant courts and legal support.
Ejimakor said the legal community and observers were stunned to learn that Kanu was moved from Abuja to a prison in Sokoto shortly after his sentencing.
He questioned how Kanu could meet the strict procedural demands required to initiate an appeal, adding that the Sokoto division of the Court of Appeal has no jurisdiction over Kanu’s case.
Ejimakor noted that the trial judge did not order Kanu’s incarceration in Sokoto, arguing that several facilities closer to Abuja, such as Suleja and Keffi, would have better preserved Kanu’s access to legal assistance and family members.