Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed November 20 for judgment in the terrorism trial of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
The judge announced the date on Friday after Kanu failed to open his defence within the six days allocated to him by the court.
Justice Omotosho ruled that since the IPOB leader did not utilise the opportunity to present his defence, he cannot claim to have been denied his constitutional right to a fair hearing.
Earlier, the court had given Kanu until November 5 to either open his defence or waive his right to do so.
The directive followed his repeated refusal to enter a defence after the prosecution closed its case and his no-case submission was overruled.
On October 27, the court adjourned until November 4 for Kanu to file his final written address or proceed with his defence. However, at the resumed sitting, Kanu, who is representing himself, told the court that he had not filed any final address but had instead submitted a motion and a supporting affidavit.
He insisted that he would not present any defence, arguing that there was no valid charge pending against him under Nigerian law. The IPOB leader further demanded immediate release, declaring that he would not return to detention.
Prosecuting counsel, Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), opposed Kanu’s position, contending that the fresh documents were improperly filed.
He accused Kanu of deliberately attempting to delay the proceedings and urged the court to treat the filings as his final address before fixing a date for judgment.
In his ruling, Justice Omotosho held that Kanu’s documents were properly filed and would be considered in the final judgment.
He also observed that since Kanu is not a trained lawyer, he should be allowed the opportunity to seek legal advice and necessary assistance before judgment is delivered.
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