Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the banned Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has sued the Commissioner of Police in Imo State, Aboki Danjuma, demanding billions of naira in damages over allegations he describes as defamatory.
Court documents filed on 14 August at the Abuja High Court show that Kanu is seeking ₦10 billion in general damages, ₦50 million in exemplary damages, and an injunction restraining the police from further statements linking him or IPOB to violence. He is also asking the court to compel Danjuma to issue a public apology in at least two national dailies and on national television.
The suit stems from a police press release on 25 July, which attributed killings in Arondizuogu, Ideato LGA, to IPOB/ESN members. Kanu’s lawyer, Maxwell Opara, argued that the remarks were made without evidence, amounted to “trial by media,” and prejudiced ongoing legal proceedings, including IPOB’s pending appeal against its terrorist designation at the Supreme Court.
The filing asserts that the police statement was malicious, unsubstantiated, and intended to damage Kanu’s reputation nationally and abroad.
