Korede Abdullah in Lagos
The terrorism trial of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), resumed on Tuesday, April 29, 2025, at the Federal High Court in Abuja with testimony from the first prosecution witness delivered behind closed doors.
The court granted the Federal Government’s request to shield witnesses for security reasons. Despite the secrecy, the judge ruled that Kanu must see the witnesses’ faces.
The witness, a Department of State Services (DSS) operative identified as PWAAA, described how Kanu was arrested in Lagos in 2015 and provided evidence seized from his hotel room.
Kanu’s defense team headed Chief Kanu Agabi, SAN, grew stronger as four additional Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) joined his legal representation, bringing the total number of lawyers on his side to 19, including six SANs.
The Federal Government had earlier re-arraigned Kanu in March on an amended seven-count terrorism charge before Justice James Omotosho. Kanu, who has been in detention since 2021, pleaded not guilty to the charges and issued an apology through his lead counsel, Chief Kanu Agabi, to the court, the prosecution, and his former legal team.
Justice Omotosho, acknowledging the delays that have plagued the trial for over a decade, issued an apology to Kanu and ordered an accelerated hearing.
The Supreme Court had previously upheld the Federal Government’s appeal against a lower court ruling that quashed the charges, mandating Kanu to face trial on the remaining counts. At the latest proceedings, some charges were renumbered by the court, with Kanu once again pleading not guilty.
The prosecution alleges that Kanu used Radio Biafra to incite violence and threaten citizens who disobeyed his calls for sit-at-home orders between 2018 and 2021.
He is also accused of importing a concealed radio transmitter into Nigeria and encouraging IPOB members to manufacture explosives. These actions, the government argues, contravene terrorism and criminal code laws in Nigeria. The defense, however, maintains that Kanu’s actions are protected under the right to self-determination.
The DSS witness presented video footage and a written statement in which Kanu admitted founding IPOB and operating Radio Biafra from London without registering with Nigerian authorities.
He insisted that his campaign for the emancipation of the South-East and other regions was peaceful and lawful. He also claimed his statement to the DSS was made without legal representation.
Justice Omotosho scheduled May 2, 2025, for the cross-examination of the witness as the high-profile trial continues.
