Barrister Ifeanyi Ejiofor, the lawyer for Nnamdi Kanu, the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has raised concerns about Kanu’s deteriorating health while in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS).
Kanu, according to Ejiofor, required immediate advanced medical treatment and an ear surgical procedure.
The lawyer, speaking after Kanu’s legal team, led by Chief Mike Ozekome (SAN), visited him in Abuja on Monday, said Kanu bitterly lamented the lack of proper medical care for the barrage of life-threatening illnesses he was facing.
According to Ejiofor, the most concerning and potentially dangerous aspect of the situation was that the DSS lacked adequate medical facilities to treat Kanu’s deteriorating health condition, as he complained of severe pains, particularly in his left ear.
Kanu also told Ejiofor that a previous scan at the request of the State Security Service (SSS) revealed that he needed an advanced surgical procedure to repair his left ear drum, which had been severely damaged by the severe torture and beating he received from Nigerian government agents “when he was forcibly kidnapped in Kenya and savagely renditioned back to Nigeria in June, 2021.”
“He narrated how the DSS doctor had emphatically told him that if after 45 days from November 18, 2022, when he was examined, his case had not improved, then he must undergo immediate surgery to save whatever remains of his left ear.
“He lamented that several reminders and pleas that the DSS carried out their own medical doctor’s instructions have met a brick wall.
“Being held in solitary confinement, the DSS has also bluntly refused him access to his private doctor for independent medical assessment as ordered by the court.
“Our legal Iroko, Ozekhome, painstakingly took comprehensive notes of Onyendu’s entire medical concerns and has immediately swung into action with full legal initiatives to forestall any untoward eventualities.”
Ejiofor however noted that the suit the legal team had earlier filed to compel the DSS and its Director-General to allow Kanu access to his medical doctors and medical records comes up this week before the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja.