hello there.: Justice Ahmed Mohammed exempts self from Nnamdi Kanu’s trial

Justice Ahmed Mohammed of a Federal High Court in Abuja has excused himself from the trial of treason brought against the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.

The Judge excused himself from the trial on Wednesday after Kanu objected to the case, arguing that the trial was not necessary as the Federal Government had repeatedly flouted the orders of previous courts to release him from detention.
The government brought a six count charge of treasonable felony against Kanu, accusing him of planning to form a Biafra Republic from the South South, South East regions and parts of Kogi and Benue States.
Kanu told the court he would rather be kept in detention than be involved in a trial, the outcome of which the government would not respect.
The counsel to the prosecutor, the Federal Director of Prosecution, office of the Attorney General, Mohamed Diri, told the court that based on section 396 (2) of the constitution, the defendant had no right to object to being tried by the court until after the plea is heard.

 But the judge overruled him, stating that Kanu has the right to reject the trial, “after all justice is rooted on confidence.”

“If any of the parties has no confidence in the court, he has the right to say so,” Mr. Mohammed ruled. “Assuming it was the prosecution, if they had no confidence in the court of jurisdiction; would they not have done so?” I hereby remit the case file to the honourable chief judge of this court to reassign it,” he concluded.
Below are his pictures in court on Wednesday courtesy of vanguard: