Nnamdi Kanu's lawyer criticizes Nigerian Bar Association over detention silence

Lawyer Christopher Chidera has criticized the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) for its silence regarding the continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra. Chidera, representing the Mazi Nnamdi Kanu Global Defence Consortium, issued an open letter questioning the legal basis for Kanu’s imprisonment.

Kanu was convicted of treason-related charges by the Federal High Court in Abuja in 2025, a conviction he is currently appealing. However, Chidera alleges that while the Court of Appeal quashed the charges against Kanu on October 13, 2022, a civil stay of execution was obtained eight days later to prevent his release. Chidera argued that “liberty is not a debt” and questioned the use of a civil stay to suspend an order concerning a person’s physical freedom.

The lawyer further noted that Kanu had previously spent 14 months in detention without charge following his rendition to Nigeria. He asserted that the state continued to detain Kanu despite the alleged discharge order from the Court of Appeal, leading to previous contempt proceedings against the Department of State Services and the former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami.