Press Conference by the Cap’n, National Association of Seadogs, (Pyrates Confraternity), on the Plight of the Indigenous People of Bakassi
10 years ago, precisely on the 10th of October, 2002, the International Court of Justice, ICJ, sitting at the Hague delivered judgment on the eight-year long legal battle brought before it by Republic of Cameroon in 1994, seeking to transfer the sovereignty of the Bakassi Peninsula hitherto administered as part of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to its jurisdiction. The ICJ judgment ceding Bakassi to Cameroon came to Nigerians as a rude shock and in the spur of the moment, occasioned by anger expressed by Nigerians, the government immediately rejected the verdict. However, four years later, it made a remarkable volte-face by signing an agreement on June 12, 2006 in New York, dubbed the Green Tree Agreement (GTA), to formally hand over the disputed Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon in line with the ICJ ruling. This was done in the presence of Mr. Kofi Ata Annan, then Secretary-General of the United Nations, and representatives of the governments of the United States of America, France, Germany and United Kingdom. President Olusegun Obasanjo signed for Nigeria and President Paul Biya for Cameroon.
What baffled Nigerians then and still confounds them today is the ease with which the Federal Government ceded a part of its territory to another nation, the same territory over which it nearly went to war, between 1981 and 1996. It must be stated for the records that the Anglo-German Treaty of 1913 on which Cameroon hinged it pleadings at the ICJ, not withstanding, it is a known historical fact that the Bakassi Peninsula and its inhabitants have always been part of the old Calabar Kingdom prior to the colonial creation of Nigeria in 1914. Cameroon had never placed great premium on this territory until its oil-bearing potentials were discovered. The whole issue of the Bakassi Peninsula for the National Association of Seadogs is not necessarily about what lies below the surface and the riches of the strip, but on the value which Nigeria as a country should place on her citizens.
It is a well known diplomatic fact that the International Court of Justice in attending to its judgments has limited, if not zero, capacity at facilitating the enforcement of its rulings partly because of the sovereignty of the parties coming before it. This leaves enforcement and compliance of any judgment pronounced by it at the prerogative of the nations in dispute. Several countries have been known to flout these judgments to the extent that it touches on their territorial integrity.
While the National Association of Seadogs is not asking the Federal Government of Nigeria to act irresponsibly by reneging on its agreement to hand over Bakassi, we strongly urge the government to do the needful, by seeking a review of the ICJ ruling, based on fresh facts now coming to fore. Moreover, the people of Bakassi themselves who have suddenly become alienated from a land they had historically occupied and owned need to be consulted on where they would choose to belong: Cameroon, Nigeria or simply remain as Bakassians.
It is sad to note that the Attorney-General of the Federation, AGF, and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Adoke, without as much as batting an eyelid, has already accepted defeat and is worried more over the embarrassment the nation may face in reviewing this judgment rather than the plight of the indigenous people of Bakassi who have become refugees in their own country. According to him, “What most people are putting forward as reasons for us to go back to the ICJ are not tenable”. Our stand is that it’s not his call. Let the ICJ decide that.
Article 61 of the Statute of The ICJ, states that :
“An application for revision of a judgment may be made only when it is based upon the discovery of some facts of such a nature as to be a decisive factor, which fact was, when the judgment was given, unknown to the Court and also to the party claiming revision, always provided that such ignorance was not due to negligence.”
It goes further to state that:
“The application for revision must be made at latest within six months of the discovery of the new fact”.
This part is left for us to determine when we discovered our fresh facts!
In conclusion, the article states that, “No application for revision may be made after the lapse of ten years from the date of the judgment.” Ladies and gentlemen of the fourth estate of the realm, this window closes in 14 days time and we cannot fold our hands and watch this opportunity slip through. Come Saturday, the 29th of September, The National Association of Seadogs (Pyrates’ Confraternity) of which I am the Cap’n, will embark on a peaceful advocacy and awareness march in some cities across the world to draw attention to the plight of the indigenous people of Bakassi, hoping that the government will be persuaded to take action.
Unlike the AGF, most Nigerians including his constituency, the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, believes that Nigeria has strong grounds on which a review of the ICJ ruling can be sought. Media reports have pointed to the fact that the nation has a strong case with the unearthing of fresh documents which according to former Information Minister, Walter Ofonagoro, speaking with the Vanguard Newspapers, pointed out that there exists an 1822 treaty which placed the ownership of Bakassi with the chiefs of old Calabar kingdom.
Also worth investigating is the Southern Cameroon gazette, Volume 7 no.14, which contrary to allegations that the people of Bakassi voted in a February 11, 1961 plebiscite to join Cameroon, shows that voting did not take place in the Peninsula. This brings to question the exact location of the 21 polling stations alleged to have been in Bakassi for the plebiscite. The said gazette indicated that those that were asked to decide where they wanted to belong were the Mamfe, Bamenda, Kumba and Victoria communities.
Outside the issue of grounds of review, is the fact that both countries, Nigeria and Cameroon have not even kept faith with the Green-Tree Agreement. We note with dismay the neglect, abandonment and inexplicable maltreatment of the indigenous people of Bakassi after ceding their land to Cameroon.
Article 3, of the GTA states inter alia, that:
1. Cameroon, after the transfer of authority to it by Nigeria, guarantees to Nigerian nationals living in the Bakassi Peninsula the exercise of the fundamental rights and freedoms enshrined in international human rights law and in other relevant provisions of international law.
2. In particular, Cameroon shall:
- Not force Nigerian nationals living in the Bakassi Peninsula to leave the Zone or to change their nationality;
- Respect their culture, language and beliefs;
- Respect their right to continue their agricultural and fishing activities;
- Protect their property and their customary land rights;
- Not levy in any discriminatory manner any taxes and other dues on Nigerian nationals living in the zone; and
- Take every necessary measure to protect Nigerian nationals living in the zone from any harassment or harm.
The government of Cameroon, has repeatedly violated this agreement especially in the forced change of names of Nigerian communities such as Usaghaedeh which has been renamed Isangele; Abana rechristened Jabana; and Archibong now called Akwa 1- to mention a few. Besides heavy levies and taxation of Nigerians within the ceded territories, molestation and regular assault of Nigerian fishermen on the waterways of the peninsula are regularly recorded.
On its part, the Nigerian government is not even faring better concerning the provision of accommodation and allied needs for the displaced people of Bakassi. It is worrisome to note the conflicting figures of N1billion and N2 billion that have been bandied by the Cross River State and the Federal Governments respectively, on how much they have both released for the resettlement of these people. For us, this is totally unacceptable. We find it disappointing that, from available records, only 208, of the 3,000 buildings earlier planned, have been constructed for the over 150,000 Bakassi returnees. It is equally instructive that several 2-bedroom apartments built by the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs within that same area have been unoccupied, unallocated and already deteriorating.
As a responsible organisation in the fight for justice and equity, NAS believes that the Government of Nigeria cannot, and should not remain inured to the pains of the Bakassi people.
On the strength of the foregoing premise, the National Association of Seadogs urgently demands the following from the respective tiers of Government as appropriate:
- A full movement by the Attorney General of the Federation towards lodging an appeal for a review of the judgment of the International Court of Justice at the Hague, Netherlands, well within the time limited under the Statute of the ICJ for the exercise of this right and with the sole aim of restoring the Bakassi Peninsula to the Status quo ante prior to the said judgment ceding jurisdiction to Cameroon;
- Full provision of accommodation for the displaced people of Bakassi in the New Bakassi and adjoining areas and communities. Funds should immediately be released and duly monitored by all relevant stakeholders to ensure effective and efficient utilisation in meeting the earlier planned number of buildings for the returnees;
- The Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs should as a matter of urgency, hand-over the recently constructed 2-bedroom apartments at Ekpri Obutong to formally and duly documented returnees as part of efforts towards ameliorating their chaotic accommodation difficulties;
- Immediate resolution of all issues pertaining to compensation for acquired land to the owners of the areas carved out of Akpabuyo Local Government Area for the Bakassi returnees in order to enhance the integration of the people into their new abode;
- Immediate legislation and enactments by the National Assembly on the disputes regarding ward delineation between INEC, the Cross River State Government and the Cross River State House of Assembly;
- The immediate completion of the Skills acquisition Centre at Ikot Nakanda in Akpabuyo Local Government Area being handled by the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs in order to offer skills to the displaced youths of Bakassi in tandem with those of other youths of the Niger Delta region;
- A robust engagement with the government of Cameroon on the reports of maltreatment of Nigerians still living and engaged in businesses in the peninsula in order to avert a breakdown of law and order;
- Firm monitoring and implementation of the terms of the Green Tree Agreement by all international parties involved in the process;
- Finally, a firm resolve that never again in the history of this country will one inch of our territory be ceded for any reason whatsoever.
In the spirit of being a responsible organisation with the love of the Nigerian state and its peoples at the core of our essence, NAS remains committed to the wellbeing of all citizens and their inalienable rights guaranteed under the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights, The African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights and Chapter 4 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999.
Thank you and God Bless.
Ide Owodiong-Idemeko
NAS Cap’n
