Nigeria: 'I Quit As Your Lawyer Since 2023, but Remain Ipob Counsel,' Ejiofor Dares Nnamdi Kanu

What the report says

AllAfrica, carrying a Premium Times report from Abuja dated 28 July 2026, reported that lawyer Ifeanyi Ejiofor has rejected Nnamdi Kanu’s attempt to remove him as counsel, saying he had already stopped representing Kanu personally in December 2023. Kanu, described in the report as the convicted leader of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), had reportedly sent a 22 July letter telling Ejiofor he was no longer his lawyer and warning him not to speak or act for Kanu, his family or IPOB.

Ejiofor responded in a Facebook statement on Tuesday, saying he no longer acts for Kanu but remains IPOB’s legal representative. He said his legal team has continued working for the separatist group and claimed it helped secure the discharge and acquittal of more than 200 people accused of IPOB membership in Nigerian high courts between December 2023 and 2025. He also argued that Kanu did not independently appoint him as IPOB counsel outside Kanu’s earlier personal role.

The dispute is complicated by conflicting claims over IPOB leadership. Premium Times reported that Kanu recently dissolved IPOB’s Directorate of State led by Chika Edoziem and appointed another person, after which Edoziem announced Kanu’s suspension as IPOB leader. Ejiofor attached a 27 July letter signed by Edoziem that purported to reaffirm him as IPOB’s general legal counsel, alongside a 2017 appointment letter signed by Kanu, Uche Mefor and Edoziem.

Ejiofor also questioned whether Kanu’s prison communication was properly authenticated, citing rules he said apply to inmate correspondence. The disagreement matters because it highlights legal and leadership uncertainty within IPOB, a proscribed separatist organization whose members and alleged supporters have faced prosecutions across Nigeria.