Nnamdi Kanu Slams Reno Omokri With ₦60 Billion Lawsuit Over Defamation Claims

Detained leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has filed a ₦60 billion lawsuit against social commentator Reno Omokri, accusing him of publishing defamatory and prejudicial statements.

Filed on 31 July at the Enugu State High Court, the suit was instituted by Mr. Kanu on behalf of himself and IPOB. Omokri is named as the sole defendant.

According to court documents obtained by Premium Times, Mr. Kanu—currently facing terrorism charges at the Federal High Court in Abuja—alleges that Omokri falsely linked him and IPOB to a series of violent attacks and killings in the South-East.

Through his lawyer, P.N. Agazie, Kanu stated that a pre-action notice was served to Mr. Omokri on 10 July 2025. The notice demanded a retraction, public apologies in two national newspapers, and a written undertaking to cease further defamatory publications. The lawsuit was filed after Omokri allegedly failed to respond.

Central to the complaint is a 6 July 2025 post on Omokri’s X (formerly Twitter) handle, in which he allegedly accused Kanu and IPOB of orchestrating the killing of security personnel and supporting the actions of so-called “unknown gunmen” in the region. Omokri also allegedly described IPOB’s armed wing, the Eastern Security Network (ESN), as a terrorist group.

Kanu’s legal team argues that these claims are false, damaging, and prejudicial.

“The said statements are false, baseless, prejudicial, and defamatory, as they portray the plaintiff as a criminal and terrorist, thereby injuring his reputation, character, and exposing him to public hatred, contempt, and ridicule, while also prejudicing his ongoing trial at the Federal High Court in Abuja,” Kanu said in court filings.

He further emphasized that no Nigerian court has convicted him of terrorism or the murder of security personnel.

The IPOB leader insists that Omokri’s publication amounts to contempt of court and infringes upon his constitutional right to a fair hearing and the presumption of innocence, as enshrined in Section 36(5) of Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution (as amended).

Kanu is demanding ₦50 billion in general damages for reputational harm and emotional trauma, and an additional ₦10 billion in aggravated damages, describing Omokri’s post as “malicious and reckless.”

He also seeks:

• A court order compelling Omokri to publish a retraction and public apology within seven days of judgment in two national newspapers and on his X handle.

• A perpetual injunction restraining Omokri, his agents, and associates from further publishing or disseminating similar defamatory statements.

As of now, the court has not scheduled a date for hearing the case.

Kanu was controversially extradited from Kenya to Nigeria in June 2021 and has since remained in custody, standing trial on terrorism-related charges. IPOB, which is pushing for the creation of an independent Biafran nation from Nigeria’s South-East and South-South regions, has been accused of masterminding violent attacks—allegations the group consistently denies.