A High Court sitting in Enugu has ordered the South-East Governors to pay the sum of N8,000,000,000.00 (Eight Billion Naira) to the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu.

Justice A. O. Onovo declared the proscription of Kanu by the South-East Governors’ Forum as illegal, unconstitutional, and null.

Recall that in 2017, the South-East Governors Forum, led by former Ebonyi State governor, David Umahi proscribed IPOB activities. The development led to the Federal Government listing IPOB as a terror organisation three days later.

However, IPOB leader through his counsel, Mr Aloy Ejimakor, approached the court to seek the reversal of the prescription.

Mazi Nnamdi Kanu prayed the court to declare his “arrest  and consequent detention and prosecution as illegal, unlawful, unconstitutional and amounts to infringement of the applicant’s fundamental rights.”

He urged the court to make a declaration that “self-determination is not a crime and thus cannot be used as a basis to arrest, detain and prosecute the applicant.”

He further prayed the court to compel the defendants to pay him N8bn in damages “for the physical, mental, emotional and psychological trauma he was subjected to.

Justice Onovo on Thursday agreed with Kanu and declared IPOB proscription “unconstitutional and illegal.”

“Ordered the Respondents, jointly or severally, to issue official Letter(s) of Apology to the Applicant (MAZI NNAMDI KANU) for the infringement of his said fundamental rights; and publication of said Letter(s) of Apology in three (3) national dailies.

Ordered the Respondents to, jointly or severally, pay the sum of N8,000,000,000.00 (Eight Billion Naira) to the Applicant (MAZI NNAMDI KANU), being monetary damages claimed by the Applicant against the Respondents jointly and severally for the physical, mental, emotional, psychological, property and other damages suffered by the Applicant as a result of the infringements of his fundamental rights by the Respondents.”

Speaking shortly after the judgment, Kanu’s lawyer, Ejimakor, said, “We are grateful that justice has prevailed over this matter since 2017. The court has reaffirmed the hopes of the common man in the judiciary. You have saved thousands of lives.”