National News
ECOWAS Court Takes Decision on Mali Versus Société Damou-So SARL Case
ECOWAS Court Takes Decision on Mali Versus Société Damou-So SARL Case
By: Michael Mike
The ECOWAS Court of Justice, on Tuesday October 31, 2023, delivered its decision in the case between the State of Mali and Société Damou-So SARL in which the applicant requested a review of Judgment No. ECW/ CCJ/JUD/22/21 rendered on June 25, 2021 by the Court in case no. ECW/CCJ/APP/10/18.
The applicant, Republic of Mali mentioned that Société Damou-So SARL, a real estate development company registered in Mali, acquired plots of land from the government of Mali, but irregularities were discovered in the records of these land transactions. In 2015, the National Directorate of Lands and Cadastre canceled these transactions, including those of Damou-So SARL.
The applicant explained that Hamady Kindy, manager of several companies, including Damou-So SARL, contested the revocations by bringing the case before the Supreme Court of Mali. In October 2015, the Supreme Court annulled the revocations made by the National Directorate of Lands and Cadastre, thus restoring the property rights of Damou-So SARL.
Nevertheless, a case was brought by Damou-So SARL before the ECOWAS Court and in the judgment:
It declared that the applicant’s property rights had been violated by the respondent.
It dismissed other allegations of violation of the applicant’s rights.
It ordered the respondent to pay compensation to the applicant for seven expropriated lands.
Also, it ordered the respondent to submit a report on the measures taken to implement the Court’s orders.
The applicant now (Republic of Mali) sought a review of the decision of the ECOWAS Court citing two new facts discovered after the Court’s decision.
In its response, the defendant, La Société Damou-So SARL, explained that although it held copies of the land titles, they were no longer useful because the land to which these titles relate are no longer in its possession. According to Société Damou-So SARL, a bailiff noted in January 2017 that the plots had been divided and inhabited by occupants and construction sites. Despite warnings from local authorities, the new occupants continue to occupy these plots.
The defendant indicated that another bailiff noted in January 2018 the presence of houses under construction, completed houses, construction materials, and bricks on its land. It claimed that the local mayor justified these divisions, based on decisions to cancel administrative acts of transfer.
According to the defendant, it is evident that its land has been expropriated, which, in its view, prevented the applicant from requesting and obtaining a review of the decision under Article 25(2) of the July 1991 Protocol relating to the Court.
By its decision of October 31, 2023, the Court retained its jurisdiction to hear the request for review explaining that the contested decision – judgment no. ECW/CCJ/JUD/22/21 of June 25, 2021 – was rendered by the Court at its seat, and it is the only one authorised to rule on the request for review.
However, it declared the applicant inadmissible in its request for review of judgment no. ECW/CCJ/JUD/22/21 of June 25, 2021. It explained that the facts invoked by the applicant did not exist at the time of the pronouncement of the contested judgment and that it cannot therefore validly serve as a basis for an appeal for review.
The Court emphasised that both facts relied on by the applicant to support its request for review of judgment no. ECW/CCJ/JUD/22/21 of June 25, 2021 do not meet the criteria set by Article 25 of Protocol A /P1/07/91 relating to the Court which provides that “The request for review of a decision is only opened before the Court when it is based on the discovery of a fact likely to exercise a decisive influence and which, at the time of the decision, was unknown to the Court and the applicant, provided, however, that such ignorance is not the result of negligence. »
It added that in the absence of such a fact in the present case, the request for review filed by the applicant in violation of the relevant provisions of article 25 of Protocol A/P.1/07/91 of 6 July 1991 must be declared inadmissible.
The panel of three (3) judges on the bench is composed of:
Hon. Judge Gbéri-Bè Ouattara, Presiding / Judge-Rapporteur
Hon. Judge Dupe Atoki, Member
Hon. Judge Claúdio Monteiro Gonçalves, Member.
ECOWAS Court Takes Decision on Mali Versus Société Damou-So SARL Case
National News
VP Shettima Mourns Late Alhaji Aminu Dantata, Says Nigeria Has Lost An Irreplaceable Institution
VP Shettima Mourns Late Alhaji Aminu Dantata, Says Nigeria Has Lost An Irreplaceable Institution
By: Michael Mike
Vice President Kashim Shettima has expressed deep grief over the passing of prominent Nigerian businessman and philanthropist, Alhaji Aminu Alhassan Dantata, saying the nation has lost an irreplaceable institution.
The late Dantata, an uncle of Africa’s richest man, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, passed away at the age of 94 in Abu Dhabi in the early hours of Saturday in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), according to Mustapha Abdullahi Junaid, his Personal Private Secretary (PPS), who confirmed the death.
In a condolence message, Vice President Shettima praised the late businessman for his lifetime of service, describing him as “a living bridge that connected us to our past.
“We have not just lost a leader; we have lost an irreplaceable institution,” Senator Shettima said, describing Dantata as “one of the greatest titans in Nigeria’s philosophical history” whose departure marks the end of a vital chapter in the country’s economic and democratic evolution.
“In African tradition, when such an elderly person transitions, a vital chapter of our history departs with them. He was indeed among the great titans, a living bridge that connected us to our past,” VP Shettima added.
The Vice President extended heartfelt condolences to the Dantata family, expressing hopes that they would “find the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss,” even as he prayed that Almighty Allah would grant the deceased Jannatul Firdaus.
Born into the legendary Dantata family of Kano, Alhaji Aminu built on his father’s commercial legacy to become one of Nigeria’s most influential business figures. His empire spans construction, manufacturing, banking, agriculture, and the oil and gas sectors.
Beyond business, Dantata was renowned for his extensive philanthropic work, funding schools, mosques, health centres, and supporting widows and the underprivileged across Nigeria.
VP Shettima Mourns Late Alhaji Aminu Dantata, Says Nigeria Has Lost An Irreplaceable Institution
National News
Nigeria-EU Senior Officials Meet in Abuja to Prepare for Upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting
Nigeria-EU Senior Officials Meet in Abuja to Prepare for Upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting
By: Michael Mike
The Senior Officials Meeting between Nigeria and the European Union (EU) will be held on Tuesday 1st and Wednesday 2nd July 2025 in Abuja to prepare for the upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting and to explore areas of cooperation.
A statement on Saturday by the Press Officer, EU Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Modestus Chukwulaka, read: “The Delegation of European Union to Nigeria and ECOWAS wishes to inform that the Senior Officials Meeting between the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the European Union (EU) will be held on Tuesday 1st and Wednesday 2nd July 2025 in Abuja.
“The agenda of the very important meeting is to prepare for the upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting and to explore areas of cooperation.”
According to the statement, the Senior Officials Meeting will be co-chaired by the Regions, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nigeria, Ambassador Janet Olisa, Director, and the Deputy Managing Director for Africa Department, European External Action Service, European Union, Mr Mathieu Briens.
The statement revealed that the agenda of the meeting is expected to entail wide-ranging discussions that would focus on various aspects of the Nigeria – EU partnership, such as: Cooperation on multilateral and regional issues; Peace, Security and Governance; Humanitarian situation; Trade and Investment; Human Development: Health, Education, Social Protection; Science, technology, innovation and digital transition; Migration; Energy, climate change and green economy transition among others.
Nigeria and the European Union share a deep, long-standing partnership inspired by mutual values and interests as well as support for multilateralism and rule-based international order, the statement said.
Nigeria-EU Senior Officials Meet in Abuja to Prepare for Upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting
Farida Waziri Tasks Benue Leaders to Unite, Act and Save Their People
…. Donates relief materials to displaced persons in Yelwata, IDP camp
By: Michael Mike
Former Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC), Mrs. Farida Waziri has charged former governors, legislators, traditional rulers and other stakeholders in Benue state to set aside rivalry, unite and act with urgency to save their people from incessant attacks and killings.
Waziri, a retired Assistant Inspector General of Police and Principal Partner, Brookfield Chambers Abuja stated this on Saturday 28th June 2025 while donating relief materials to victims of the recent gunmen attacks in Yelwata community and displaced persons at the internally displaced persons (IDP) camp in Makurdi, the Benue state capital.
Some of the items donated under the banner of Women, Youth, Children and Crime Organisation (WYCCO), a non-governmental organization founded by her, include: bags of rice, sugar, tubers of yam and other household items.
She said: “This is no time for division. It is no time for political squabbling or ego-driven manoeuvring. Among us are men and women who have led this state — former governors, legislators, traditional rulers — individuals with influence and authority. The time has come to set aside our differences and stand united, for the sake of the ordinary Benue man, woman, and child.
“That is why I stand here today to make this urgent and heartfelt appeal to our leaders: cast aside rivalry, unite, and act. Act with urgency. Act with purpose. Because what we face now increasingly resembles a deliberate, coordinated effort to erase our people and our heritage.
“We must take heed of the words of Sir Winston Churchill, who once said:
‘Our difficulties and dangers will not be removed by closing our eyes to them.’
Another of Churchill’s warnings is just as relevant to our present predicament:
‘If you will not fight for right when you can easily win without bloodshed… you may come to the moment when you will have to fight with all odds against you and only a precarious chance of survival.”
Waziri, while stating that her call was a build up to the earlier proposal by President Bola Tinubu during his recent visit Beforehand Benue, noted that meetings alone would not solve the problem, urging that: “But let us be sincere: peace will not come from meetings alone. To end the cycle of violence, we must confront its roots. Before the Yelwata massacre, communities in Gwer West, Apa, and Guma had already endured weeks of killings, kidnappings, and raids. These horrors did not emerge in a vacuum; they are symptoms of deeper issues.
“We must therefore confront the real causes — ethnic and religious tensions, unchecked banditry, and the rise of cultism as well as the abuse of illicit drugs. These forces must be tackled, along with the herder-farmer conflict, with honesty and courage. We cannot afford to keep going in circles. And there is no room for blame games. Our leaders — and indeed, all of us — must be pragmatic. So today, let us commit, as one people, to healing our wounds, reclaiming our land, and ensuring that never again will a child in Benue grow up in a camp instead of a home”
She said the development in Benue must be of “concern to all sons and daughters of Benue regardless of whether we live within its borders or far away in the diaspora to find out the root cause of these attacks with a view to proferring solutions that will bring an end to these barbaric acts”
Farida Waziri Tasks Benue Leaders to Unite, Act and Save Their People
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