ABUJA, Sept 26 (The African Portal) – Nigeria’s federal government on Friday rejected a medical report by private doctors for detained separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu, arguing he could be treated at the Department of State Services (DSS) facility rather than being transferred to the National Hospital in Abuja.
Kanu’s medical team, led by retired University of Nigeria cardiologist Dr. Martin Aghaji, recommended that the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) leader be moved to either the National Hospital or abroad for treatment, citing what it described as a deterioration in his health.
But government lawyer Adegboyega Awomolo told the Federal High Court in Abuja that DSS doctors, led by Dr. Mohammed Nasir, had assessed Kanu and found he could be “properly treated” in the security agency’s medical unit.
Awomolo said the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) had set up a seven-member panel to review discrepancies between the two reports. He added that “a group of powerful medical practitioners” had also visited Kanu in custody to evaluate his condition.
The government described the private medical report as “exaggerated” and “suspicious,” noting it recommended treatment in the United States. Officials also accused Aghaji of unilaterally altering Kanu’s medication without consulting DSS doctors who had managed his health for four years.
“The exclusion of DSS medical officers who have been treating him punctured the credibility of the report and its recommendations,” Awomolo argued, adding that transferring Kanu to the National Hospital would disrupt services for “thousands of patients” already receiving treatment there.
The court is awaiting the NMA’s independent assessment before ruling on Kanu’s application for transfer.
