National News
ECOWAS COURT DISMISSES NGOS’ APPLICATION SEEKING COURT ORDER COMPELLING NIGERIA TO SUPPORT HAITI’S REQUEST FOR ADMISSION INTO AFRICAN UNION

ECOWAS COURT DISMISSES NGOS’ APPLICATION SEEKING COURT ORDER COMPELLING NIGERIA TO SUPPORT HAITI’S REQUEST FOR ADMISSION INTO AFRICAN UNION
By: Michael Mike
The ECOWAS Court on 14 March 2024 dismissed an application brought by two non-governmental organisations (NGOs) which asked the Court to hold the Federal Republic of Nigeria liable for violating the right to development of the Africans in the diaspora particularly people of Haiti.
The action was premised on Nigeria’s alleged failure to take measures to ensure the admission of Haiti into the African Union at a 2016 Summit of the AU, in Addis Ababa, which the Applicants claimed would have enabled Haiti to take advantage of developmental initiatives on the continent such as the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Justice Dupe Atoki, judge rapporteur who delivered the judgment said the Court declined jurisdiction to hear the matter and dismissed it on the grounds that the alleged violation occurred outside the ECOWAS sub-region. Both parties were ordered to bear their cost of litigation.
The initiating application with suit number ECW/CCJ/APP/54/22 was filed on 24 November 2022 by two NGOs – The Incorporated Trustees of Prince and Princess Charles Offokaja Foundation, Nigeria, and Prince and Princess Charles Offokaja Foundation, Switzerland. In the suit, they claimed that the Nigerian government failed to protect the right to development of persons of African descent in the diaspora, particularly those in the Caribbean country of Haiti, by its failure to formulate and execute a policy in line with Article 22(2) of the African Charter that would have supported Haiti’s 2016 request for membership of the African Union (AU).
Mr Charles Offokaja who represented the NGOs said that such membership could have forestalled Haiti’s economic crisis and enhanced the development of Haiti and other Afro-American individuals and peoples and ensured their full participation in the affairs of the AU including the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
He asked the Court for a declaration that Nigeria breached Article 22(2) by not formulating and executing a policy to support Haiti’s application for membership of the AU. He also demanded an order of Court compelling Nigeria to formulate and execute such policy to support Haiti application for consideration at the next ordinary or extraordinary session of the Assembly of the AU.
In response, Mrs Maimuna Lami Shiru, lead counsel representing Nigeria filed a preliminary objection challenging the competence of the Court to hear the matter relating to Afro-Americans who are not citizens of the ECOWAS Community, adding that the NGOs’ pleadings were not in accordance with Article 9 of the Court’s Protocol as amended.
In addition, she argued that the ECOWAS Court was not the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights and therefore not empowered to determine cases not related to the ECOWAS sub-region. She also said that the subject matter had been determined by the African Union Commission and published in a press release issued in May 2016.
Mrs Shiru asked the Court to dismiss the suit for lack of jurisdiction and reasonable cause of action against the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
In its analysis, the Court noted that though an allegation of human rights violation was invoked, the alleged violation did not occur in any Member State of ECOWAS as required under Article 9(4) of the Supplementary Protocol of the Court. The Court therefore dismissed the case for lack of jurisdiction.
Also on the panel were Justices Edward Amoako Asante (presiding) and Sengu Mohamed Koroma (member).
ECOWAS COURT DISMISSES NGOS’ APPLICATION SEEKING COURT ORDER COMPELLING NIGERIA TO SUPPORT HAITI’S REQUEST FOR ADMISSION INTO AFRICAN UNION
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
National News
Farida Waziri Tasks Benue Leaders to Unite, Act and Save Their People

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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