A High court in Nairobi, Kenya has declared illegal the 2021 abduction of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu by Kenya authorities, ruling that his detention, torture and forcible removal from the country was unconditional and a gross violation of his fundamental rights.

The detained leader of the Indigenous people of Biafra (IPOB) had through his counsel in Kenya challenged the manner he was detained, tortured and extraordinarily renditioned to Nigeria without due process, contrary the Constitution of Kenya and the Africa Charter which Kenya is signitary.

The court ruled that Mr. Nnamdi Kanu,was abducted without warrant, detained, tortured and later taken out of the country without any order of court order .

“The respondents admitted that there was no record in any police station that Mr. Nnamdi had been lawfully arrested. They also admitted that there was no deportation order issued by a court in Kenya.

“They did not argue that there was a warrant or order issued by any other court outside Kenya or even a request from any country to surrender or extradite Mr. Nnamdi Kanu from Kenya.

“That being the case, no one had constitutional or legal mandate and power to arrest Mr. Nnamdi Kanu within the territory of Kenya except those authorized by the laws of Kenya, namely; officers from the National Police Service. Even then, they had to do so in compliance with the constitutional standards of human rights and fundamental freedoms as required by article 244 (c) of the Constitution”.

Stressing the supremacy of the Keyan constitution as it applies to protection of individual rights and freedoms, whether or not the person is a citizen, the court in its June 24,2025 ruling emphasised the “when the Constitution speaks, it does so not as mere suggestions, but commands whose compliance is without question”

“The Court of Appeal affirmed this position in Attorney General & 2 others v Kituo Cha Sheria & 7 others [2017] KECA 773 (KLR) that “rights have inherent value and utility and their recognition, protection and preservation is not an emanation of state largesse because they are not granted, nor are they grantable, by the State.”

“The court emphasized that under Article 20, the Bill of Rights applies to all law and binds all State organs and ail persons so that no one is exempt from its dictates and commands. This is so, because rights attach to all persons by virtue of their being human and respecting rights is not a favour done by the state or those in authority. They merely follow a constitutional command to obey.

“The Constitution enjoins every person to act lawfully in so far as rights and fundamental freedoms are concerned, bearing in mind the theme of maximization and expansion in matters enjoyment of rights and fundamental freedoms.

“The facts of this petition and more so, the way Mr. Nnamdi Kanu was treated point to clear pattern of violation of the Constitution and the law right from the time he was abducted; held incommunicado and forcibly removed from the territory of Kenya.

“The government of Kenya owed Mr. Nnamdi Kanu a duty to respect and protect his rights and fundamental freedoms, including his personal security guaranteed by article 29 of the Constitution. If he was to be arrested, there had to be justifiable cause for doing so, and even then, he was to be subjected to due process.

“Those involved, were required to act within the tenets of the rule of law and human rights, foundational values in our Constitution. The rule of law requires that all public power be sourced in law, which means that state actors should exercise power within the formal bounds “, the court ruled.

Consequently, the court ruled granting all pleas made by the IPOB leader, especially that he entered Kenya legally and had not committed any crime

The court makes the following declarations and orders it considers appropriate;

*A declaration is hereby issued that the abduction of Mr. Nwannekaenvi Nnamdi Kenny Okwu Kanu; holding him in incommunicado confinement, torturing him and denying him food, water, medication and other basic necessities was a violation of his rights and fundamental freedoms.

*A declaration is hereby issued that the abduction and subsequent forcible removal of Mr. Nwannekaenvi Nnamdi Kenny Okwu-Kanu from Kenya to Nigeria was in violation of the laws of Kenya; his rights and fundamental freedoms, including freedom of movement and security of the person guaranteed by the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 and, therefore, unconstitutional and illegal.
*An order for compensation is hereby issued awarding Mr. Nwannekaenvi Nnamdi Kenny Okwu-Kanu general damages of Kshs 10,000,000 against the Attorney General of Kenya on behalf of the government of Kenya for the violation of Mr. Nwannekaenvi Nnamdi Kenny Okwu-Kanu’s constitutional rights and fundamental freedoms.

*The Attorney General shall also pay costs of the petition and interest.
Dated and delivered at Nairobi this 24” Day of June 2025 .