Court of Appeal Affirms IPOB’s Terrorist Designation

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has upheld the proscription of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) as a terrorist organization, affirming the previous ruling by the Federal High Court in Abuja.

In a unanimous decision delivered by a three-member panel headed by Justice Hamma Barka, the appellate court dismissed the appeal filed by IPOB, stating that the Federal Government acted lawfully in proscribing the group. The court found that the activities of IPOB posed a significant threat to the security and integrity of Nigeria, and there were no grounds to overturn the original judgment.

The case stems from a ruling by the late former Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Abdul Abdu-Kafarati, who on September 15, 2017, declared IPOB’s activities illegal, particularly in Nigeria’s Southeast and South-South regions. The decision followed an ex-parte motion filed by the then Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, on behalf of the Federal Government.

Justice Kafarati’s ruling also prohibited anyone from participating in IPOB’s activities, and mandated the publication of the proscription order in the official gazette and two national newspapers. In a subsequent ruling on January 22, 2018, the court dismissed IPOB’s motion challenging the legal validity of the order, which the group had argued was improperly obtained.

Dissatisfied with these decisions, IPOB appealed to the Court of Appeal, arguing that the proscription unfairly labeled over 30 million Igbo Nigerians as terrorists and that the Federal Government misrepresented facts in its application. The group, represented by Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Chukwuma-Machukwu Umeh, had called for the reversal of the ruling.

However, the Court of Appeal found the appeal to be without merit, upholding the earlier decision and affirming the Nigerian Government’s actions.