Court Declines Hearing Of Kanu’s Motion Seeking Transfer From DSS To Hospital

Justice Musa Liman of the Federal High Court in Abuja has refused to hear a motion filed by Biafra nation agitator, Nnamdi Kanu, seeking an order transferring him from the custody of Department of the State Services (DSS) to the National Hospital in Abuja, for urgent medical attention.

The Judge said his fiat to sit as a vacation judge ends this Monday and, therefore, lacked jurisdiction to open such a new matter for hearing.

He ordered that the case file be returned to the registry for the Chief Judge to reassign it to another judge.

During the proceedings, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, appeared for the Federal Government while Uchenna Njoku, SAN, stood in for the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

When the matter was called up, Kanu’s lawyer informed the judge that the motion by his client was filed on September 1 while a counter affidavit of 37 paragraphs opposing the transfer request was served on him by government in the open court.

The senior lawyer said that he had not read the counter affidavit for him to respond.

He, therefore, applied for an adjournment to enable him to respond to the counter affidavit and in view of the fact that the vacation of the judge had come to an end.

On his part, Awomolo, SAN did not oppose the adjournment request and that he would be ready to be in court anytime, anyway, when a new date is fixed.

In a brief ruling, Justice Liman ordered that the case file be returned to the Registry for the Chief Judge to reassign the matter to another Judge.

Justice Liman said that he would make recommendation to the Chief Judge for the speedy hearing of the motion since the health of the applicant was involved.

Kanu had in the motion with charge number: FHC/ABJ/CR/383/2015, sought an order of the court for the DSS to move him from their custody to the National Hospital for urgent medical care.