The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has accused the Nigerian Federal Government of using a “planted mercenary” as a prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of its leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
In a statement issued by IPOB’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Comrade Emma Powerful, the group condemned the introduction of a witness identified as Prosecution Witness BBB (PW-BBB), alleging he has no authentic affiliation with the Department of State Services (DSS) and was strategically coached to pose as an informed insider.
Describing the development as “disgraceful”, IPOB claimed that PW-BBB was not part of the original list of prosecution witnesses submitted to Kanu’s defence team. The group labelled the sudden inclusion of the witness as “trial by ambush” and an act of prosecutorial misconduct.
“IPOB strongly condemns the Nigerian government’s continued abuse of legal process and deployment of deception in the ongoing trial of our leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu,” the statement read.
“The latest disgraceful development is the presentation of an individual referred to as Prosecution Witness BBB (PW-BBB), a man who does not work for the Department of State Services (DSS) and who has been exposed under cross-examination as a government-planted mercenary.”
The group urged trial judge Justice James Omotosho to take judicial notice of what it called an abuse of process and to protect the integrity of the court proceedings.
IPOB also accused the Nigerian government of manipulating the judiciary in a continued effort to prolong Kanu’s detention, asserting that the DSS has kept Kanu in solitary confinement—an assertion it said is supported by independent reports and regular visits from UK consular officials.
“This individual is receiving strategic coaching to impersonate an informed insider when in reality, he has no legitimate connection to DSS operations or the detention regime under which Mazi Nnamdi Kanu has been unjustly held,” the group asserted.
“His courtroom performance, peppered with statements like ‘I don’t know’, ‘It’s not my job’, and ‘No one informed me’, reveals a witness wholly ignorant of the facts and unqualified to provide any reliable testimony.”
IPOB vowed to unmask PW-BBB’s true identity and expose what it claims is a deliberate attempt to derail justice through false testimony. It also called on the international community to hold the Nigerian government accountable for its actions in the trial.
Reiterating its demand for Kanu’s unconditional release, IPOB concluded: “The attempt to lend credibility to the lies of a coached stranger is not only a disservice to justice but also a profound insult to the Nigerian judiciary.
IPOB calls on media houses to resist becoming echo chambers for state propaganda. Upholding truth, objectivity, and constitutional principles is more urgent now than ever.”
