The battle over Nnamdi Kanu’s health crisis comes to a decisive head today as the Federal High Court in Abuja hears a motion for his transfer from the Department of State Services (DSS) custody to the National Hospital.
His lead counsel, Chief Kanu Agabi (SAN), insists the IPOB leader faces “a worrisome decline” in detention. Medical reports presented by Emeritus Prof. Austin Agaji’s team point to kidney and liver complications, dangerously low potassium levels, and a swelling under his armpit requiring urgent intervention.
“The applicant’s health is seriously deteriorating,” Agabi told the court, stressing that the right to health is inseparable from the right to life. Doctors, he noted, had already written the DSS Director-General with no response.
Justice Musa Liman had earlier allowed the matter to be heard during the court’s vacation, citing urgency: “The right to health is as important as the right to life.”
Kanu has been in DSS custody since 2021 following his extraordinary rendition from Kenya. His bail application filed in May remains pending, leaving his defence arguing that the DSS would suffer no prejudice if the transfer is granted.
Observers say today’s ruling will shape not just the legal case but also Nigeria’s handling of fundamental rights under security detention.
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