Detained and prosecuted leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has written a letter he tagged “Formal Letter of Complaint and Appeal” to the President of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), stating therein that he wrote with a deep sense of urgency and gravity to place before the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) the true and detailed account of his medical ordeal.

He wrote: “My health, already weakened by my violent abduction in Kenya, has been compromised further by inconsistent, falsified, and sometimes outright negligent medical practices within Nigeria.”

Kanu has been detained in a DSS facility in Abuja since his extraordinary rendition from Kenya in June 2022, and has been standing trial on various charges, and has not been granted bail despite his applications for the same.

Reportedly, he also filed applications seeking medical attention, care, and treatment from his chosen hospitals and doctors.

In his letter dated 29 September 2025, marked “GRAVE CONCERNS REGARDING MY MEDICAL TREATMENT AND HEALTH MANAGEMENT IN DSS CUSTODY – REQUEST FOR URGENT INTERVENTION, PROTECTION OF INDEPENDENT PRACTITIONERS, AND IMMEDIATE RELEASE OF NMA MEDICAL ASSESSMENT REPORT”, the IPOB Leader (Kanu) told the NMA President that his health, already weakened by his violent abduction in Kenya, has been compromised further by inconsistent, falsified, and sometimes outright negligent medical practices within Nigeria.

He informed the NMA that his letter is intended not only to bring his condition to the formal attention of the NMA, but also to invoke the ethical responsibilities of the medical profession under both Nigerian law and international human rights standards.

“I specifically call on the NMA to investigate and address the manipulation of my medical records in DSS custody, and to protect independent practitioners, particularly Emeritus Professor Martin Aghaji, whose intervention has been lifesaving.”

His other appeals to the NMA were: “Ensuring the immediate release of the NMA medical team’s report of 22 September 2025, which the Federal High Court has directed must be filed within four days; and recognising and responding to the grave risks posed by untreated conditions, especially tinnitus-induced sleep deprivation, which continues to endanger my life.”

Urging the NMA, therefore, to act with urgency and integrity to protect both his life and the ethical standing of the medical profession in Nigeria, Kanu lamented: “Today, I continue to face grave risks, not least from tinnitus-induced sleep deprivation, which exacerbates every other condition I suffer from. Without decisive action, this neglect may prove fatal.”

As indicated, copies of his letter were sent to: the Registrar, Federal High Court, Abuja (Attention: Justice James Omotosho); Director-General, Department of State Services (DSS), National Headquarters, Abuja; and the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, Abuja.(The Guardian)