The controversy surrounding the prolonged detention of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) leader, Nnamdi Kanu, took a fresh turn on Tuesday as both the National Assembly and the Abia State House of Assembly intensified calls for urgent medical intervention and his possible release.
At the House of Representatives plenary, lawmakers agreed to take up a motion later this week seeking immediate medical attention for Kanu, who has been in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) since his extradition from Kenya in 2021.
The move followed an intervention by the Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, after the member representing Ikwuano/Umuahia North/Umuahia South Federal Constituency of Abia State, Hon. Obi Aguocha, raised a point of order lamenting the federal government’s silence on what he described as Kanu’s “deteriorating health condition.”
Aguocha told the House that despite writing to the leadership of the National Assembly and the Federal Government, no response had been received regarding the urgent need to attend to Kanu’s health.
Kanu was first arrested on October 14, 2015, and charged with 11 counts bordering on terrorism and treasonable felony. Since his re-arrest and extraordinary rendition in 2021, he has remained in detention amid ongoing legal disputes over his case and multiple court orders granting him bail.
Presiding over the session, Speaker Tajudeen Abbas asked Aguocha to step down his motion for proper presentation, noting that he had invoked the wrong House rules.
Intervening, Deputy Speaker Kalu said the matter would be reintroduced before the House in the coming days for proper debate.
“Mr Speaker, I’m also from Abia State. On the issue being raised by my colleague, we will present it properly before the House in the course of the week,” Kalu said. “We will come properly so that due hearing will be given to it. I beg that you give us audience, maybe tomorrow (Wednesday) or the day after.”
Responding, Abbas assured that the House was open to deliberating on the issue once the motion was properly filed.
“No problem. It’s just the procedure I was challenging, not the substance of the issue. We will be willing and ready to give you all the time to present it,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Abia State House of Assembly in Umuahia has announced plans for a peaceful rally in Abuja to demand Kanu’s release on medical grounds.
During its Tuesday plenary, the state legislature aligned itself with Governor Alex Otti and South-East stakeholders in urging President Bola Tinubu to comply with court orders mandating Kanu’s release.
The resolution followed a motion of urgent public importance moved by Deputy Speaker Austin Mmeregini, who represents Umuahia East Constituency.
Mmeregini expressed concern over Kanu’s worsening health and called on Governor Otti to intensify efforts to secure his release. He further urged South-East lawmakers in the National Assembly and the Ohanaeze Ndigbo to “sustain pressure for his medical attention and unconditional release.”
Supporting the motion, Hon. Isiehi Boniface (Ikwuano Constituency) proposed that the Assembly should send a delegation to the National Assembly to meet with Senate President Godswill Akpabio and House Speaker Tajudeen Abbas on the matter, followed by a press conference.
Another lawmaker, Hon. Kalu Mba Nwoke (Ohafia South), lamented that Kanu’s continued detention had worsened insecurity in parts of Abia, despite efforts by the state government to restore peace.
In his remarks, the Speaker of the Abia Assembly, Rt. Hon. Emmanuel Emeruwa, criticised what he called a double standard in the application of justice and faulted the Federal Government for ignoring court orders granting Kanu bail.
“Most of us agree that the continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu is out of the ordinary and against the law, unless there’s something we don’t know,” Emeruwa said. “We can only urge the President to show mercy and grant his release. Every citizen deserves fundamental human rights, and it will be tragic for Nnamdi Kanu to die in detention. His trial is not concluded, and I don’t think his offence is unbailable.”
Emeruwa also urged Governor Otti, South-East lawmakers, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, and other stakeholders to keep pushing for Kanu’s medical care and freedom.
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