The detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, has asked the Federal High Court to send him to Kuje prison, alleging that there is a conspiracy for him to die in the DSS custody.
Kanu made this known before Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court Abuja, on Tuesday, after she denied him bail.
The IPOB leader is facing charges bordering on treasonable felony,
He said his health is worsening and the Department of State Services has no medical facility to treat him.
The IPOB leader, who has been in the custody of the DSS since his unlawful extradition in June 2021, told the court that he is being treated poorly by the DSS.
Earlier, counsel for Kanu, Aloy Ejimakor, asked that his client be transferred to the Kuje Correctional Centre.
Kanu then requested to address the court and was granted permission by Justice Nyako
He said, “People will come to see me they will not allow them. They don’t have a medical facility. I have congestive heart failure. They are patching me up.
“My foot is swollen. I asked them to conduct surgery, and they said they couldn’t. There is a conspiracy to die in detention. I want to be transferred to Kuje.”
Kanu told the court that he is suffering from Cognitive Heart Disease. He pulled off his shirt in the courtroom to show the judge his ribs and chest, as evidence of the treatment he is receiving in the custody of the DSS.
However, Justice Nyako was not impressed.
Kanu had querried why he was brought back to court when the Supreme Court held that he did not jump bail.
He told the court that he wished to go to Kuje prison to get proper treatment as demanded by the law as the DSS has refused him access to quality healthcare.
But Justice Nyako adamantly said she will keep him where she likes but not at Kuje.
According to her some suspects who were remanded in Kuje had escaped.
However, an angry Kanu maintained that he can’t go into trial without proper medical attention. He asked for an alternative, even if it’s house arrest, and alleged that his trial was politically motivated.
The judge ultimately adjourned the case to April 17, 2024 for commencement of trial.
Earlier, Justice Nyako denied Kanu’s bail application.
She however granted an accelerated hearing instead.
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