The Nigerian government has appealed a Court of Appeal decision that released separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu and dismissed terrorism-related charges against him in the Supreme Court.
The appeals court ordered Kanu’s release last week, stating that the government had violated due process when it sent him from Kenya to Nigeria and that the federal court lacked jurisdiction to hear the case.
Following the appellate court decision, the government was debating its next course of action.
On Friday, representatives of the government claimed that the state had filed an appeal with the Supreme Court because the appeals court had ignored the fact that Kanu had jumped bail in 2017 and had delayed showing up in court until his re-arrest.
Despite last week’s decision, Kanu is still in detention, according to one of his lawyers, who also mentioned that he had visited Kanu on Thursday.
Kanu is the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, a group that advocates for the secession of a region of southeast Nigeria where the Igbo ethnic group predominates. IPOB has been classified as a terrorist organisation by Nigerian authorities.