Justice Musa Liman of the Federal High Court in Abuja has returned a motion filed by Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), to the Chief Judge for reassignment.
In his ex parte motion, Nnamdi Kanu is seeking a court order to be transferred to the National Hospital in Abuja for urgent medical treatment.
In a brief ruling, Justice Musa Liman directed that the case file be returned to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court. This followed an application by Kanu’s counsel, Uchenna Njoku, SAN, in light of the court’s annual vacation ending today, September 15.
Counsel for the Department of State Services (DSS), Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, did not oppose the application.
Earlier during the resumed hearing, the judge indicated that the vacation court lacked sufficient time to rule on Kanu’s motion.
Justice Liman noted that the registrar had listed no fewer than 30 cases for the day’s proceedings. Since the court could not handle all of them, the number of cases was reduced to six.
He further explained that, according to Section 46(8) of the Federal High Court Rules, any case that cannot be completed during the vacation period must be referred back to the Chief Judge for reassignment.
Although Justice Liman acknowledged that Kanu’s motion was urgent due to health concerns, he pointed out that it was filed too late.
In response, counsel for the Department of State Services, Awomolo, stated that the court has the overriding authority to decide which cases proceed and which do not during case management.
Awomolo expressed regret that the matter was brought up so late, saying, “Had the application been filed earlier, it could have been heard during the vacation. However, we are ready to hear the motion at any time.”
Following this, Justice Liman ordered that the case file be sent to the registry for reassignment.
