• Says attempts to convict Kanu under repealed law ‘null and void’

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has warned the Federal Government to desist from what it described as a “judicial conspiracy” aimed at securing the conviction of its detained leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, saying no amount of political manipulation would succeed.

In a statement issued on Tuesday by its spokesperson, Comrade Emma Powerful, IPOB accused the administration of President Bola Tinubu, the British government, and some “morally bankrupt judicial officers led by Justice James Omotosho” of plotting to impose a “sham conviction or death sentence” on Kanu.

The group claimed that the alleged plan was part of a broader political and judicial arrangement “built on falsehood, intimidation, and manipulation.”

“Mazi Nnamdi Kanu was called by God Almighty to lead his people out of bondage, and no mortal power, foreign or local, can alter that divine mission,” the statement read.

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‘Trial Based on a Dead Law’

IPOB argued that Kanu’s prosecution was legally defective because the statute under which he is being tried — the Terrorism (Prevention) Amendment Act, 2013 — had been repealed and replaced by the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.

Citing Section 36(12) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the group maintained that no person can be convicted of a crime unless the offence and its punishment are clearly defined in an existing law.

“Any attempt to convict Mazi Nnamdi Kanu under a dead law is null and void ab initio,” IPOB said. “Even the Supreme Court has ruled that no court can revive a repealed law. Only the National Assembly can make or restore laws — not a trial judge, and certainly not Justice Omotosho.”

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Accuses Judge of ‘Legal Misconduct’

The separatist group launched a scathing criticism of Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja, accusing him of ignoring a Supreme Court directive to amend what it described as a “defective charge.”

“A judge who refuses to obey a Supreme Court order is in contempt of superior judicial authority and desecrates the very Constitution he swore to uphold,” IPOB alleged.

It further accused the judge of “performing political theatre for his paymasters,” warning that he was “destroying his own career by persecuting a man who carries the mandate of heaven.”

“In trying to jail God’s anointed prophet, he has chosen the path of disgrace. History will record that he presided over one of the most embarrassing miscarriages of justice in Nigeria’s legal history,” the statement continued.

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‘You Can’t Defeat a Divine Mission’

IPOB also cautioned the British government, “Igbo political jobbers,” and “ethnic bigots” allegedly complicit in Kanu’s trial, insisting that their efforts would ultimately fail.

“You cannot defeat Mazi Nnamdi Kanu because his mission is divine. Every attempt to silence him only strengthens the resolve of millions who believe in his message of freedom, justice, and truth,” it said.

The group concluded by describing Kanu’s ordeal as symbolic of a broader struggle for justice and self-determination in Africa.

“This is not just about Mazi Nnamdi Kanu,” IPOB said. “When you conspire to convict a man without law, you are not fighting him — you are fighting God Himself, and no one has ever prevailed in that battle.”