By Anamati Inyang,November 25, 2025
Aloy Ejimakor, Special Counsel to the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu, has raised concerns that relocating the separatist leader to the Sokoto Custodial Centre will seriously hinder his ability to pursue an appeal against his life imprisonment sentence.
Kanu was last week convicted by Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court Abuja who sentenced him to life imprisonment and ordered that he be transferred to serve his term in Sokoto State.
The IPOB leader has faced trial for the past 10 years over his agitation for the actualisation of Biafra. Although he had previously secured court discharges and acquittals, the Federal Government continued his prosecution until last week’s conviction. Until then, he had been in the custody of the Department of State Services DSS.
Speaking during an interview on Channels Television, Ejimakor said moving Kanu away from Abuja where his legal processes must be initiated creates a major barrier to accessing justice.
He stressed that Kanu is entitled to a fair hearing under Section 36 of the Nigerian Constitution, adding that the right is expected to be exercised before the Court of Appeal.
“But see, after the sentencing, I was surprised like everybody else who was monitoring this case, that he was plucked from Abuja and taken all the way to Sokoto which is in the northernmost part of northwest Nigeria.
“So you begin to ask, how can he effectively prosecute his appeal or even take the initial steps toward initiating it” Ejimakor said.
He explained that filing an appeal requires several processes, including filing a notice of appeal, requesting and paying for court transcripts, reviewing records, and engaging in several legal procedures all of which demand close access to his legal team.
Ejimakor also noted that the situation is worsened by the fact that Kanu currently lacks legal representation physically available to navigate these processes in Sokoto.
As at the time of filing this report, there had been no official response from the relevant authorities regarding the concerns raised.
