Clerics Demand Kanu’s Return to FCT Custodial Centre, Say Keeping Him in Sokoto Is Deliberate Frustration

Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Enugu


A group of clerics under the aegis of Concerned Igbo Ministers Commission has vehemently condemned the sudden transfer of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu from Abuja to Sokoto Custodial Centre after his sentencing on November 20, 2025.

“This move has nothing to do with justice, nothing to do with law and order, and everything to do with politics and punishment,” the group said in a statement signed by the Coordinator, Rev. Tony Uzor Anthony.

It faulted the repetitive excuse of “prison insecurity” bandied by government, arguing that instead of fixing the prison facilities, FG now use those same failures as an excuse to keep frustrating one man”.

According to the ministers, since Kanu ongoing legal rights, including appeals and meetings with his lawyers, there was no plausible reason to move him to Sokoto, one of the farthest places from Abuja courts.

“It is clearly meant to make his (Kanu’s) legal work difficult, if not impossible,” the group said, adding that “this case has never been about justice”.

To substantiate their stand, the ministers raised the following posers: “If the government believes its own case is strong, why is it afraid of giving (Kanu) proper access to his lawyers? Why hide him far away? Why block easy communication?”

They decried deliberate frustration of Kanu’sright of appeal, describing it as ” wrong, unfair, and targeted mistreatment.

The ministers stated that court has no business deciding where a prisoner should be kept, insisting that “it is not the job of any court to decide the exact prison where someone should be kept”.

“That duty belongs to the Correctional Service, not judges acting under pressure”.

The ministers alluded that the transfer of Kanu to Sokoto prison was a political order which was dressed in the robe of the judiciary”.

They demanded an immediate reversal of the order and return of Kanu to a custodial centre within the Federal Capital Territory, where he can properly exercise his rights and continue his legal processes “without hidden obstacles”.

“This constant mistreatment of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is not just about one man. It is a test of Nigeria’s commitment to fairness and the rule of law. If this type of behaviour continues unchecked, then no citizen is safe,” the group said.