Nnamdi Kanu can’t eat, lawyer says, seeks release

The legal team of the detained leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, has demanded his immediate and unconditional release from custody of the Department of State Services, to enable him have access to medical personnel of his choice.

The demand was based on alleged excruciating pains on Kanu occasioned by his gastro intestine disorder.

Kanu’s lead lawyer, Ifeanyi Ejiofor, in a statement on Friday, in Abuja, said that the detained IPOB leader had not been able to eat in the past 48 hours due to his poor health status.

Ejiofor who issued the statement after another routine visit to Kanu in the custody of the Department of the State Service in Abuja explained that from all indications, the security agency had no facility to cope with health challenges of his client.

The statement read in part, “As usual, the court-ordered routine visit to our client – Nnamdi Kanu – was conducted today, at the Department of State Services’ Headquarters, Abuja, where Kanu is still being held in solitary confinement for over 14 months.

“Today’s visit was centered on our curiosity to ascertain the DSS level of compliance with providing Kanu the requisite medical treatment that would address his deteriorating health condition.

“Sadly, we made startling discovery that despite the alarm raised on Monday, calling for the intervention of responsible foreign governments and institutions, on the DSS flagrant disobedience of orders of court, particularly in denying Kanu access to his personal medical doctor and medication, the DSS immediately resorted to local chemist store to procure substandard drugs to be administered on Kanu.

“Since it is now obvious that the DSS does not have the facility, capacity and or resources to manage Kanu’s deteriorating health condition, we are compelled to publicly implore the DSS, to allow us have Kanu back unconditionally, or better still, allow us to purchase the prescribed drugs for Kanu pending his unconditional release from their custody.

“May we also seize this medium to inform the world that Kanu has not eaten anything in the past 48 hours due to the concomitant excruciating pains occasioned by his gastro intestine disorder, which the DSS have deliberately failed to avail him with the prescribed possible medical relief.

“With this development, we are now convinced that the Federal Government is ostensibly afraid of the anticipated positive outcome of the Court of Appeal’s judgment.

“Hence, they are doing everything possible to subject our client – Kanu, to severe torture, inhumane and degrading treatment before he finally regains his freedom.”

“Nevertheless, we assure UmuChineke that our defense team led by Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), is not relenting in all actions we are taking to correct this anomaly and to put to a halt degrading treatment of Kanu.”