The detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, has filed a fresh motion before the Federal High Court in Abuja, seeking the dismissal of all charges against him and his immediate release.
In the motion dated October 30, 2025, and titled “Motion on Notice and Written Address in Support,” Kanu argued that there is no valid or subsisting charge against him under any existing Nigerian law.
He described the charges currently pending before the court as “a nullity ab initio for want of any extant legal foundation.”
Acting as his own counsel, the IPOB leader filed the motion pursuant to Sections 1(3), 6(6)(b), and 36(12) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the Evidence Act 2011, and the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022.
Kanu contended that the Federal Government’s case relied on repealed and non-existent laws, including the Customs and Excise Management Act (CEMA), which was replaced by the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023 and the Terrorism Prevention (Amendment) Act 2013, which was repealed by the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022.
According to him, prosecuting him under repealed laws contravenes Section 36(12) of the Constitution, which forbids trying any person for an offence not defined under an existing law.
Kanu therefore urged the court to strike out the charges in their entirety, insisting that they disclose no known offence in law.
