Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja has recused herself from the trial of the detained leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
This is coming after Kanu, in the open Court, asked Justice Nyako to recuse herself from his trial, on grounds of her alleged disobedience of orders of the Supreme Court.
The trial of the IPOB leader took a dramatic turn as Justice Binta Nyako bowed to Kanu’s direct attack during the Court proceeding, and announced that she was recusing herself from the case.
On Tuesday, Kanu’s Counsel, Alloy Ejimakor attempted to persuade the Court to suspend the trial, citing the detained IPOB leader’s lack of preparation for his defense.
However, Kanu unexpectedly interrupted Ejimakor, ordering him to sit down, and expressed his loss of confidence in the Court presided by Justice Binta Nyako, requesting the trial judge to recuse herself.
Despite attempts by the Prosecution Counsel Adegboyega Awomolo to urge the Court to proceed with the trial, Justice Nyako agreed to step down from the case.
The case file will now be forwarded to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court for reassignment to another trail judge and further actions.
Following the Court’s adjournment, Kanu spoke to Journalists where he criticized the handling of his case and the escalating insecurity in the South East region of the country.
Judicial analysts told ait.live that what may become the outcome of this latest development in the Court, remains uncertain, but it clearly points to a fact that Nnamdi Kanu’s prolonged trial has entered a critical phase.
(Editor: Ken Eseni)
