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Breaking: Court Dismisses Nnamdi Kanu’s N1bn Rights Suit Against Government, SSS

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Nigeria’s Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, presided over by Justice James Omotosho, dismissed a N1 billion fundamental rights enforcement suit fil ed against the Federal Government by Nnamdi Kanu, the detained leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra.

The Federal Government, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, SSS, and its Director General are the first through fourth respondents in the suit.

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Kanu, through his lawyer Aloy Ejimakor, requested eight reliefs in the originating summons marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1633/2023, dated and filed on December 4, 2023.

Among other reliefs, the plaintiff had prayed for “a declaration that the respondents’ act of forcible seizure and photocopying of confidential legal documents pertaining to facilitating the preparation of his defence, which were brought to him at the respondents’ detention facility by his lawyers, amounted to denial of his rights to be defended by legal practitioners of his own choice.”

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Kanu also asked the court to rule that the respondents’ refusal to allow his counsel to take notes on the details of the counsel’s professional discussions/consultations with him while in DSS custody was illegal.

However, Justice Omotosho ruled on Monday that Kanu failed to provide credible evidence to support the defendants’ alleged violation of his fundamental rights.

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The court ruled that Kanu did not provide credible evidence to back up the defendants’ claims of violating his fundamental rights.

The court determined that the claims that SSS operatives denied Kanu unrestricted access to his lawyers and eavesdropped on his conversations with his lawyers while preparing his defence could not be proven.

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Remember that Kanu had also requested a declaration that the respondents’ act of eavesdropping on his confidential consultations/conversations with his lawyers amounted to a denial of his right, among other things.

As a result, Kanu petitioned the court for an injunction prohibiting the respondents from forcibly seizing and photocopying confidential legal documents delivered to him by his lawyers at the detention facility.

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Furthermore, he sought an order directing the respondents to jointly and severally pay N1 billion in damages for the mental, emotional, psychological, and other harms he suffered as a result of the violation of his rights.

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