Nnamdi Kanu’s Family Slams NBA for Silence Over ‘Unlawful’ Trial Under Repealed Law

The family of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has criticized the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) for remaining silent on what it calls an illegal trial against him.

In a detailed statement signed by Prince Emmanuel Kanu, titled “The NBA’s Silence Is Helping an Unlawful Court Case Against Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, And It Is Breaking Our Constitution”, the family condemned the association for failing to challenge a trial anchored on a repealed law.

The family argued that Kanu’s prosecution is based on the Terrorism (Prevention Amendment) Act 2013, a law repealed by the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act 2022, making the ongoing trial unconstitutional. “The Constitution is clear: no person may be tried for an offence under a law that is not in force at the time of trial,” the statement read.

It further stated that the trial lacks jurisdiction, citing Section 76(1)(d)(iii) of the 2022 Act, which mandates double criminality for terrorism-related offences involving acts allegedly committed abroad. Since Kenya has not charged Kanu, the family argues, the trial is legally invalid.

The statement accuses the NBA of failing in its duty to defend the rule of law and protect the Constitution. “The NBA has spoken no word, taken no action, and made no attempt to educate the public or correct the dangerous misunderstanding surrounding this trial. This is not neutrality; it is aiding injustice by doing nothing,” the family said.

They warned that NBA’s silence could set a dangerous precedent, normalizing unconstitutional prosecutions, empowering judges to ignore legal limits, and leaving ordinary Nigerians vulnerable to abuse of the law.

The Okwu-Kanu family urged the NBA to publicly affirm that no Nigerian can be tried under a repealed law, to highlight the constitutional requirement of double criminality, and to challenge judicial misconduct where courts ignore constitutional limits. “If the NBA cannot defend the Constitution, then it has lost the moral authority to claim leadership of the Nigerian legal profession,” the statement added.

The family concluded by stressing that the matter is broader than Kanu, noting that “history will remember the NBA as the body that watched the Constitution being violated and chose to do nothing” if the association continues to remain silent.