by Dolapo Adelana
The Indigenous of People of Biafra (IPOB) on Wednesday kicked against the secret trial of their leader, Nnamdi Kanu.
The group anything of such would spell doom for the Nigerian legal system.
In a statement made available to newsmen in Awka, Anambra, by the spokespersons for IPOB, Dr. Ikenna Chinaka and Mrs Grace Ukpai, the group condemned Justice Binta Nyako’s assent to try Kanu secretly.
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The group cited some cases and the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria that condemned secret trial as a method of justice administration.
The statement read in part, “It is prudent to remind Justice Nyako and the entire Nigerian public and the world at large that there are existing legal interpretations of the provisions of the constitution of Nigeria regarding the mode of criminal trials in civil courts which cannot be departed from.
“The provision dealing with fair hearing under section 36 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria is for the protection of all the parties to a case — the plaintiffs and the defendants alike. It will be oppressive to interpret the provision as conferring protection on just one of the parties to a case.”
Dolapo is a writer and journalist who works with YNaija. He has interests in Christianity, politics and sports.
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