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The detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has written to the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), alleging grave medical negligence, falsification of his health records, and intimidation of independent doctors while in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS).
In a letter dated September 29, 2025, and addressed to the NMA President at the association’s national secretariat in Abuja, Kanu said his health has deteriorated severely since his abduction in Kenya and subsequent detention in Nigeria.
He urged the NMA to urgently intervene, protect independent medical practitioners, and release the findings of a recent medical assessment conducted by the association.
“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 stated.
He accused DSS-appointed doctors, particularly Dr. Nasiru Mohammed, of falsifying his potassium test results and ignoring life-threatening symptoms such as fainting, chest pains, and severe light-headedness.
“From the moment he assumed control, Dr. Nasiru Mohammed began falsifying my test results, recording normal potassium levels when in reality they were dangerously low,” Kanu alleged.
Kanu recounted his ordeal in Nairobi, Kenya, claiming he was violently abducted by masked operatives at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and held incommunicado for eight days.
He said, “On arriving at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, I was violently abducted by masked operatives, manhandled, and dragged into captivity.
“For eight days, I was chained by the leg to a wall in a pitch-dark, windowless room.”
He said his blood pressure spiked dangerously, and he was forced to ingest unidentified drugs before being renditioned to Nigeria in what he described as a breach of international and domestic law.
“During this period, on the very first day, my head was slammed against the edge of a car door, resulting in an open wound that bled onto my clothing,” he said.
“The pain was sharp, my vision blurred, and dizziness set in almost immediately.”
According to him, for the first five days, “I was denied even the basic essentials of life: no food, no water, and none of my long-prescribed medications.
“This deprivation nearly suffocated me, producing severe difficulty in breathing and overwhelming weakness.”
Kanu said that on the fifth day, when his body began to fail, a doctor was summoned, and his blood pressure was found to be dangerously high, and he was given a 40mg dose of Amlodipine along with a strange, red wine coloured liquid.
He said, “Soon after, a cardiologist performed an ECG examination, but its results were never disclosed to me.
“I was treated as an object, not as a patient, with strict instructions issued to the doctors not to explain or converse.
“From the evening of that fifth day until my forced rendition on the eighth, I was compelled to ingest 40mg Amlodipine daily, an unidentified white tablet, and an unmarked gel-like substance.
“This treatment in Kenya – characterized by brutality, secrecy, and denial of basic medical rights-left me gravely weakened by the time of my unlawful transfer to Nigeria, which itself violated international, Kenyan, and Nigerian law.”
According to Kanu, medical examinations in Nigeria revealed a life-threatening potassium deficiency, with his levels crashing to “life-ending 1.9 mmol/L.”
He alleged that despite over 50 blood samples taken in custody, his condition has not improved under DSS-appointed doctors.
“When challenged as to why a potassium-sparing drug like Eplerenone was still prescribed if my potassium was supposedly normal, he (Dr. Mohammed) provided no medical justification,” Kanu said.
“Under his so-called care, I continued to experience: Frequent nosebleeds; Fainting episodes and near-collapse; Severe light-headedness; Unrelenting chest pains on my left side; Debilitating headaches; Swelling of the feet.
“Over 50 blood samples have been taken during my time in DS custody, but these have yielded no improvement in my health under the management of DSS-appointed doctors.”
He credited Emeritus Professor Martin Aghaji with saving his life, noting that under Aghaji’s care, his potassium levels improved modestly and many of his debilitating symptoms eased.
