Bakassi – NBA gives FG two weeks ultimatum!

We support the NBA – CRS.

Story by crossriverwatch admin

The Nigeria Bar Association NBA, today gave the federal government two weeks
ultimatum to either seek a review of the International Court of Justice ICJ judgment
which ceded the oil rich Bakassi Peninsula to the Republic of Cameroon or face legal
action.

The out-gone President of the NBA Mr. Joseph Dawodu SAN read the statement which was
part of the communique from the NBA conference that ended in Abuja today. Mr. Dawodu
said “the NBA believes that the homeland of the Bakassi people was taken from them
without due consideration for their rights. And in light of prevailing
circumstances, the bar is giving the federal government of Nigeria two weeks to seek
a review of the ICJ judgment” or face legal action.

In a related reaction, the Chairman of the NBA Ikeja Branch, Bar. Onyekachi Ubani
who was also at the conference told crossriverwatch that the NBA had to take that
position because of “the precarious position and persistent abuse of the Bakassi
peoples’ rights by both Nigeria and Cameroon. The ICJ judgment did not take into
consideration the right of Bakassi people to decide where to live. It didn’t
consider their historical and cultural background. And in view of prevailing
circumstances where Cameroon has been breaching the Green Tree Agreement, the Bar
feels Nigeria must seek a review of that judgment or the NBA will be constrained to
go to court “.

Ubani also assured that the incoming national executives of the Bar adopted the
position and they all signed the communique.

In a swift reaction the State Government through the Chairman, Cross River State Law
Reform Commission, Chief Kyrien Kekung-Asu told crossriverwatch that “the state
government adopts fully the position of the NBA. There are several underlying
historical facts about the Bakassi matter that still require interpretation by our
own courts. There was also an impending court injunction baring former President
Obasanjo from implementing the ICJ judgment which he disregarded. We from this end
had already been planning to go to court and pray the court to rely on documents in
our possession to declare Southern Cameroon independent in line with previous
agreements that are still binding”.

An International Court of Justice ICJ, judgment had in October 2002 ceded the oil
rich Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon and the Nigerian government as well as the Cross
River State Government have failed to adequately resettle communities that were
displaced by the ICJ judgment.

- by: Adie, Lawrence unimna
- 12 years ago
I think is wise to sue former president chief olusegun Obasenjo and former cross River State Goovernor, mr Dunald Duke to court for better explanation of the ceding of Bakassi penisula to cameroon without consideration to law of the land.
- by: Emmanuel Usanga
- 12 years ago
The whole debacle of ceding the Peninsula was based on fraud. It started right from the appointment of Prince Bola Ajibola, Federal Attoeny General who had never been a judge in Nigeria, to the World Court in the Hague, There, he was sucked in by the French colleague who presided over the court at the time the Bakassi trial was conducted.Mark you President Obasanjo who nominated ‘Justice” Ajibola are kinsmen from Owu in Ogun State. FRANCE, the colonial god-father of France was instigating the Republic of Cameroon to file the charges.because Elf Petroleum (now Total) was fronting for France to secure oil territories at a time when there was nationalistic scrambles between European and American oil companies for mergers and acquisitions.The whole thing was made to look as if there was a territorial dispute between Nigeria and Cameroon. But in realty there was a scramble offshore for Oil Fields between Mobil Producing Nigeria and Elf Petroleum who operated in the eastern territorial waters offshore Nigeria. The scramble extended to deep offshore where Mobi hadl discovered the Zafiro field and had proposed that the field was in Equatorial Guinea rather than in Nigeria. Elf disputed this and claimed that its own oil field was drilled in Nigeria in order to get the support of the Nigerian Government for a share of the Zafiro field, It was Mobil that got Equatorial Guinea to be wise about the Deep Offshore potentials based on the secret seismic surveys it conducted in the area without the knowldge or permission of Nigeria’s DPR.In the mean time, also without the knowledge and permission of DPR Elf had secretly been conducting seismic surveys on the onshore Bakassi Peninsula and believed there was potential for Oil there.Elf got Cameroon to approve of the Oil blocks as if they were in Cameroon territory since the DPR was not looking. Infact the DPR had turned a blind eye even when they were alerted about Elf’s and Mobil’s activities. By the time the threat posed by the underground activities of the Oil Companies were brought to the attention of General Abacha Nigerians living in Bakassi were being evicted by Cameroonian Police under the supervision of Elf. French troops were sent in to back the Cameroonian Gendarmes. The war was averted based on wise counsel. Under guidnance from France a case was filed at the world court then presidedd by France. In due course the matter was brought the UN Security Council when France was taking its turn to Preisde. Just similar to when Palestinian Autnority filed for membership of the UN with Nigeria presiding. THE BIAS WAS IN FAVOR OF CAMEROON.General Abacha passed away, the Nigerian troops were still on ground and Obasanjo came into office.He was deceived by his kinsman in the World Court to expect a Nobel Prize for Peace if he would peacefully resolve the Bakassi dispute without going to war against Cameroon. This expectation of winning a Nobel Prize made Obasanjo to betray Nigeria and the people of Bakassi Peninsula. In so doing he had held Governor Donald Duke captive on allegations of corruption, trapped Senator Florence Ita Giwa with a political appointment as Liaison with National Assembly. THERE WAS NO ONE AVAILABLE TO RESIST OBASANJO. The Green Tree Agreement was forced on Nigerians by Obasanjo’s search for global applause. The Green Tree Agreement was flagged by the UN as a success story of conflict resolution without violence. France got its Oil Blocks, Nigerians were displaced and national security jeopardised. Because Cross River has been declared no longer a littoral state, she lost Oil Revenue when Calabar Port remains the operating port for companies operating in the eastern offshore. Obasanjo did not care that he had conceeded the right of passage of Nigeria’s Eastern Naval Command to France and Cameroon. If Senator Ita Giwa does not admit her treachery she deserves to be stripped of all honours and titles hitherto bestowed on her by Bakassi people. She dined with the enemy and sold their land for a piece of porridge. Cross River and Bakassi people have the rigjt for self determination. America would love that.
- by: Emmanuel Usanga
- 12 years ago
One of the oldest recognizable ethnic groups in the world are the Ibibios of Nigeria. They had been living in the Cross River basin way back to when the planet Earth was a single entity called Ekondo (Gondwana land in modern geographics). The Efiks of Cross River are kith and kin with the Ibibios lf the mainland Akwa Ibom. Part of them are in Southern Cameroon and Fernando Po. They all used to be fishermen, sailors and seasonal farmers. They all share the Ekpe and Ekpo fraternities as common instrument ofgovernance and manhood. The word Bakassi is an abbreviation for Ibibio phrase ” baka sio’ which means DIVIDE. Across the river channel that separates Bakassi Peninsula is another town in the mainland Ibibio called Ibaka. This word also means DIVIDE (baka, ubaka which in Efik dialect would be poeticised as bahare or ubahare).It is the counterpart of Bakassi and more than all the Colonial Papers, show clearly that Bakassi is part of Nigeria. THE TOWN CALLED AKPABUYO had been there ever before the Efiks arrived their present settlement and ever before any colonial officer set his feet on Nigerian soil.Akpabuyo is a concatenation of two Ibibio words “AKPA UBOYO”.In Ibibio this means the point of CROSSING (boyo) THE SEA (akpa), that is Sea or Wide River Crossing. It can be seen that the Cross River channel derived its anglicised name from the Ibibio words Akpa Uboyo rather than the Efik absorbed town called Akpabuyo. The aboriginal occupants of Bakassi Peninsula and Southern Cameroon are and have always been the Ibibios. Originally Cross River and Akwa Ibom States were one state. The split of the original South Eastern State into Akwa Ibom and Cross River arose out of the excessive population of the Ibibios over the other minority ethnic groups who felt oppressed by the Ibibio majority. Unfortunately the excision of Ibibios has weakened the new Cross River State. But all Ibibios are in full support of the people of Bakassi including their aspiration for self determination. The Ibibios should not be silent over the plight of Bakassi people in spite of tne dispute over the sharing of Oil wells between the two states..
- by: Emmanuel Usanga
- 12 years ago
The people of Bakassi Peninsula should be assured that their kith and kin in Akwa Ibom feel their pains and are prepared to stand bythem if the Federal Government of Nigeria fails to rescind Obasanjo’s fraudulent Green Tree Agreement. THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY MUST RE-INTEGRATE THE PEOPLE OF BAKASSI YO THEIR ANCESTRAL LAND OR GRANT THEM THE AUTONOMY AS AN INDEPENDENT COUNTRY. If Gabon, Rwanda, Burundi, Lesotho can exist as independent nations, there is no reason why Bakssi Peninsula which is larger than these small African nations should not be granted their Independence. Nigerian or Camerounian troops should never be used against Bakassi People and Bakassi people should not resort to violence. They should proceed on their own to challenge the French presided ruling of the World Court and at the same time file their application for plebicite and self determination at the UN. At this moment they are a displaced people who need the protection of the UN.
- by: best betting offers
- 12 years ago
best betting I must say, as a whole lot as I enjoyed reading what you had to say, I couldnt help but lose interest following a whilst. Its as in the event you had a fantastic grasp on the topic matter.
- by: Kamilah
- 12 years ago
My brothers look up to me so much. I can’t let them down.