• As Court strikes out 6 amended charges

The detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu, has told Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court, Abuja that he did no jump the bail earlier granted him, but had to leave the country involuntarily.

Kanu, through his lead counsel, Mike Ozekhome (SAN), told the court on Wednesday while applying for a fresh bail that the reason why he had to fled the countryis in the public domain.

Ozekhome had applied to the court to vacate its earlier order that Kanu should be tried in absentia following his inability to attend the court in person, arguing that the court was misled to make that order.

He insisted that facts are on ground to show why Kanu fled the country involuntarily, adding that the application shows the circumstances surrounding the fleeing of Kanu.

Specifically, Ozekhome urged the court to set aside the order for trial in absentia and revert to its earlier status accorded bail to Kanu.

The judge has however fixed May 28 to rule on the application.

Justice Nyako had refused to grant bail to Kanu, saying, she was not convinced as to why Kanu breached his previous bail conditions. 

The court therefore insisted that Kanu must explain why he jumped bail before he could enjoy another favourable discretion from the court.

"Until the issue of absence of the defendant for his trial, with all the bail conditions breached, is determined, the instant application of the defendant for bail will at best be premature and it is refused.

"However, the defendant is at liberty to refile the application", Justice Nyako held.

It will be recalled that Kanu fled the country in 2017 before he was arrested and extradited back to the in June 2021 from Kenya.

One of his sureties, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe had told the court that Kanu did not jump bail but ran for his life after his home invasion by Nigerian Army. Justice Nyako had remoked the bail and issued a warrant of arrest on the IPOB leader since 2017.

Meanwhile, the Court had on Wednesday struck out a 6-count amended charge preferred against Kanu by the Federal Government following the withdrawal of the charge by the FG.

Ozekhome had complained to the court that the prosecution was delaying trial by continuous amendment of the charge against his client, saying that the current amendment was the 7th time the FG amended its charge.

However, the court agreed with Ozekhome's objection to the fresh charge and consequently struck it out.

The court noted that Kanu's trial had since 2015, suffered various setbacks owing to over 19 interlocutory applications that have been filed in the matter.

The trial judge therefore, advised parties in the matter to allow the case to proceed on trial to enable the charge determined.