The move by detained Biafra agitator, Nnamdi Kanu, to secure his transfer from the Sokoto Correctional Centre to a facility in the Federal Capital Territory or Nasarawa State has suffered its first setback, following a ruling of the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Kanu, through the Legal Aid Council, had approached the court with an ex-parte application urging the judge to grant his request without hearing from the Federal Government.
He asked the court to order the Nigerian Correctional Service to “forthwith transfer him from the Sokoto Correctional Facility to a custodial facility within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court.”
He also prayed the court to alternatively move him to “immediate environs, such as the Suleja or the Keffi Custodial Centre, for the purpose of enabling the applicant to effectively prosecute his constitutionally guaranteed right of appeal.”
But Justice James Omotosho on Monday refused the application, insisting it would not serve the interest of justice for the request to be determined without the respondents being heard.
The court directed Kanu to convert the ex-parte motion to a motion on notice and properly serve all parties involved.
Justice Omotosho thereafter fixed January 27, 2026, for hearing of the substantive application.
The judge had earlier, last week, refused to recognise the appearance of Kanu’s younger brother, Prince Emmanuel, who attempted to speak for the IPOB leader despite not being a legal practitioner.