The detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, on Tuesday, November 4, 2025, urged the Federal High Court in Abuja to order his immediate release, insisting that he has no case to answer.

Kanu, who has been in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) since 2021, refused to open his defence in the seven-count terrorism charge brought against him by the Federal Government, arguing that the charges lack any legal foundation.

Representing himself after dismissing his team of lawyers, Kanu told the presiding judge that the court lacks jurisdiction to continue with his trial since, according to him, the law under which he was charged has been repealed.

“You cannot ask me to begin my defence when you have not stated the law under which I am being charged,” Kanu declared.

“The records of this court show there is no law backing these charges. I request to be released. My Lord, please take judicial notice of all the records before this court.”

Citing Section 36(12) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), Kanu argued that no Nigerian can be prosecuted for an offence not defined under any existing law.

He further contended that the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act, which forms the basis of the charges against him, has been repealed, and therefore cannot be relied upon for his continued prosecution.

“In Nigeria today, the Constitution is the supreme law. There is no valid charge against me. I will not go back to any detention today,” he said.

“Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act has been repealed. I cannot put in a defence under a repealed law. I won’t do that.”

Kanu also accused the court of violating a Supreme Court judgment which, he claimed, condemned his extraordinary rendition from Kenya by the Federal Government in 2021.

When the court reminded him that the Supreme Court had ordered a fresh trial, the IPOB leader maintained his stance, saying that trying him under a repealed law amounts to a violation of his fundamental rights.

“Tell any lawyer to show me the valid charge. Prosecuting me under a repealed law is a violation of my rights,” he insisted.

In response, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), counsel to the Federal Government, urged the court to dismiss Kanu’s claims, describing them as “a deliberate attempt to waste judicial time.”

Awomolo argued that the documents Kanu filed in his defence lacked legal merit and should be disregarded.

He urged the court to deem Kanu’s filings as his final written address and proceed to judgment, stressing that the defendant’s arguments hold no probative value under Nigerian law.