By Abiola Olawale
Nnamdi Kanu, the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has filed a motion listing a long array of prominent Nigerians, including serving and former top government officials, as his proposed defence witnesses.
The list includes former Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami (SAN), Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, former Minister of Defence, Gen. Theophilus Danjuma (rtd), and former Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Tukur Buratai (rtd).
Other notable names on the list of proposed witnesses include: Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State; Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State; Dave Umahi, Minister of Works; Okezie Ikpeazu, immediate past Governor of Abia State;Ahmed Rufai Abubakar, former Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA); and Yusuf Bichi, former Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS).
Kanu, who is set to open his defence at the Federal High Court in Abuja, categorized these individuals as “vital and compellable witnesses” whose testimonies, he argued, are crucial to his defence against the charges.
This was contained in a motion personally signed and filed by Kanu. In the motion, Kanu informed the court of his plan to call a total of 23 witnesses, divided into “ordinary but material witnesses” and the “vital and compellable witnesses” whom he seeks to subpoena under Section 232 of the Evidence Act, 2011.
The development came after a court ruling in September dismissed Kanu’s no-case submission and ordered him to enter his defence. Kanu is scheduled to commence his defence on October 24, 2025.
However, in the new application, Kanu requested the court to grant him 90 days to enable him to effectively conclude his defence, citing the sheer number and the status of the witnesses he intends to summon.
He also indicated his intention to personally testify to deny the allegations and provide sworn context for his statements and actions.
The New Diplomat reports that Kanu is standing trial at the Federal High Court in Abuja on terrorism charges that stemmed from his alleged violence-inciting separatist campaigns.
The prosecution, which closed its case with five witnesses in June, blamed the killings and destruction of properties in the South-east on Mr Kanu’s inciteful secessionist social media rhetoric.
