The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has vehemently criticized the ongoing trial of its leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, labeling the proceedings as a glaring indictment of Nigeria’s judicial system and exposing the Federal Government’s reckless misuse of legal processes.
In a statement issued on Friday, IPOB spokesman Emma Powerful highlighted the events at the Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday, describing the trial as a desperate attempt by the government to link Kanu to the 2020 #EndSARS protests. Powerful insisted that the trial is a contrived conspiracy built on fabrications and media distortions.
“Thursday, June 19, 2025, marks a pivotal moment in a case that has from inception been sustained by a toxic cocktail of deceit, media manipulation, evidentiary fraud, and a calculated campaign to criminalise self-determination,” Powerful said.
After the prosecution, led by Chief Awomolo, SAN, concluded its case, the defense, headed by Chief Kanu Agabi, SAN, announced plans to file a ‘No-Case Submission’ due to the prosecution’s failure to produce any credible evidence linking Kanu to terrorism or any other crime. Justice James Omotosho adjourned the case until July 18, 2025, for final submissions.
Powerful emphasized that the court proceedings revealed the government’s reckless abuse of the judiciary. The prosecution’s final witness, an intelligence officer identified as PW5-EEE, faltered under rigorous cross-examination by Dr. Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN, appearing evasive and unprepared. Even the prosecution’s lead counsel cautioned the witness publicly, while the judge expressed visible frustration.
The government’s attempt to blame Kanu for sparking the #EndSARS protests—a youth-led movement that began in Ughelli, Delta State—was described by Powerful as “absurd,” “intellectually bankrupt,” and “morally obscene.”
Further, the prosecution failed to present any credible evidence to support claims that IPOB was responsible for the deaths of 200 security operatives in the South-East, with no death certificates, names, or ranks provided. The assessment report linking IPOB to security breaches was only fabricated in June 2025, despite the incidents allegedly occurring in 2020.
“The autopsy reports and coroner’s certificates were unsigned, unverifiable and riddled with forgeries,” Powerful added. “This is not law—it is fiction.”
IPOB challenged the Nigerian media for ignoring these courtroom revelations and urged Nigerians and the international community to obtain certified copies of the court proceedings to witness the collapse of the government’s case.
“Kanu is a man of peace. He is not on trial for violence. He is on trial for daring to speak truth to power and for demanding justice for a long-oppressed people,” the statement concluded. “History will record those who stood by while injustice was clothed in the garments of legality. It will also remember those who rose to expose it.”
