The detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has petitioned the World Medical Association (WMA) over what he described as serious health challenges and inadequate medical care while in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS).
In a letter dated October 3, 2025, and signed by his international counsel, Bruce Fein, on his behalf, Kanu appealed to the WMA President, Dr. Jacqueline Kitulu, to intervene and ensure that he receives the “highest professional standard of medical care” while in detention.
He claimed that his health condition had deteriorated due to “insufficient medical attention,” warning that the situation had reached “a life-threatening threshold.”
“He has been detained in a Nigerian facility in solitary confinement for more than four years without a trial. He was arrested in Nairobi, Kenya, in June 2021,” the petition stated.
The letter, which was copied to the Registrar of the Federal High Court, Abuja, the DSS, the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, and the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), urged the WMA to engage with the NMA to ensure that medical personnel attending to him are allowed to work “without intimidation or interference.”
Kanu also requested the WMA, either directly or through the NMA, to review alleged “irregularities in his medical records” during his detention and to protect independent doctors “from any possible retaliation for providing medical care to Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.”
The IPOB leader demanded the release of the NMA medical team’s report of September 22, 2025, which the Federal High Court had ordered to be filed within four days, cautioning that “any delay could create the real danger that a replacement panel may be assembled, thereby undermining the medical truth.”
Kanu said his health problems began after his arrest in Nairobi, Kenya, in June 2021, alleging that his treatment there left him “physically weakened” before his transfer to Nigeria.
He further claimed that a blood analysis conducted at the DSS facility revealed a “critical potassium deficiency,” which remained unstable despite prescribed supplements.
“Whenever potassium supplements were withdrawn, MNK’s levels dropped again to the same life-threatening range,” he said, adding that a South African laboratory later confirmed the deficiency.
According to him, inconsistencies in medical test results emerged under one of the physicians assigned to his case.
“From the moment he assumed control, the doctor began recording normal potassium levels when in reality they were low,” Kanu alleged.
He said inadequate treatment had left him suffering from nosebleeds, fainting spells, chest pains, headaches, and swelling of the feet, adding that over 50 blood samples had been taken with no improvement.
Kanu praised Emeritus Professor Martin Aghaji, a renowned surgeon, for his intervention in stabilising his condition.
“It is no exaggeration to say that without Emeritus Professor Martin Aghaji’s intervention, my health would have deteriorated beyond recovery,” he said.
Fein, in the letter, noted that Professor Aghaji identified multiple health concerns affecting Kanu’s liver, kidneys, bladder, prostate, and white matter, as well as sleep apnea and severe tinnitus.
“Among the gravest threats to MNK’s survival today is tinnitus. It robs him of sleep, exacerbates hypertension, magnifies chest pain, and places him in immediate danger of stroke, collapse, or sudden death,” Fein wrote.
He added that sleep deprivation, combined with hypertension, organ strain, and potassium instability, “places MNK in immediate danger of stroke, collapse, or sudden death.”
The letter stated that the NMA’s assessment of September 22, 2025, corroborated Professor Aghaji’s findings and identified an additional condition requiring nasal surgery.
“The Federal High Court has ordered that the report of this assessment be submitted within four days,” Fein wrote. “Any delay creates the real danger that a replacement panel may be assembled, thereby undermining the medical truth.”
Fein urged the WMA to ensure the immediate release of the NMA report, safeguard Professor Aghaji’s role as Kanu’s physician, and review the treatment provided by the DSS medical team.
“Neglect of tinnitus and sleep deprivation shows a disregard for the life-threatening impact of untreated conditions,” the petition added.
Fein warned that failure to act promptly could have fatal consequences.
“Without immediate decisive action by the WMA and NMA, the medical neglect of MNK may prove fatal,” he cautioned.
