Forum for Justice and Human Rights Defence on Tuesday faulted the pressure on the Federal Government to appeal against the judgment of the International Court of Justice ceding Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon.
The National Coordinator of the group, Mr. Oghenejabor Ikimi, who spoke to our correspondent in Yenagoa, said any attempt by the government to seek the review of the 2002 ruling would amount to an exercise in futility.
Ikimi, a lawyer and human rights activist, said Nigeria had earlier bungled its chances of reclaiming the peninsula by laying claim to Akwa Yafe as its boundary with Cameroon.
He said, “As students of history, we all know that Bakassi was an integral part of the Southern Cameroon until the plebiscite of 1962. Also as geography students, we know that the Nigeria’s boundary in the area in question ends at Akwa Yafe as opposed to Rio Del Rey.
“As a nation, Nigeria had on several occasions claimed Akwa Yafe as its boundary with Cameroon and not Rio Del Rey, which includes Bakassi.
“It would have been a different case if Nigeria had claimed Rio Del Rey as its boundary with Cameroon, then Nigeria’s claim would have been a legitimate one.”
He said persons calling for the review of the judgment were ignorant of the facts of the case, appealing to the government to make copies of the judgment available to members of the public.
Ikimi added, “It is on record that immediately after Independence in 1960 our then Foreign Affairs Minister admitted that Bakassi was not a part of Nigeria. So when did Bakassi suddenly become a Nigerian territory?
“During the course of hearing at the ICJ and having realised the fact, we tried to adjust our map to include Rio Del Rey, but same was evidently too late. We think Nigerians deserve to be properly educated on the issue to avoid overheating the polity.”
next post
