by crossriverwatch admin
A social critic and human right activist, Comrade Okoi Obono-Obla has called on President Goodluck Jonathan to relieve the Attorney General and Minister of Justice Mohammed Adoke of his position for the alleged plan to frustrate the federal government directive on the appeal against the International Court of Justice, ICJ, ruling that ceded Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon on October 10, 2002.
President Jonathan had constituted a 10 man committee date of October 10, 2012, with Adoke heading the committee.
But it was alleged that the Attorney General was foot dragging towards implementing the directives of the president despite the fact that there was no tito look into the ceding of Bakassi with a view to appealing against the ICJ judgment before the expiration me to waste as the ten year window of opportunity to appeal against the judgment expires on Tuesday.
Infuriated by the development, Obono-Obla an Abuja based human right activist told crossriverwatch that it was treason for any government official to go contrary to the presidential directive which was on the protection of the territorial integrity of the country.
He said, “The president must as a matter of urgency, immediately relieve such officials of his administration of their positions and order security agencies to investigate him for dereliction of official duties and conduct likely to engender sabotage of national security”.
“The action of the official is strongly condemnable. It is treason for such official to undertake to frustrate action on a matter that borders on the territorial integrity of the country. It is gross irresponsibility and the height of indiscipline.
“It is sending wrong signals that President Jonathan is not in charge. Otherwise, how can his appointee flout and indeed disobey clear directives of the president with alacrity and ignominy. President Jonathan must assert his authority and show us that he is in charge,” he said.
Obono-Obla further explained that Cameroon has no right to claim ownership of the oil-rich Bakassi Peninsula, adding that “when the Republic of Cameroon gained independence in 1960, Southern Cameroon including Bakassi was never part of the Republic of Cameroon.
“The country that was admitted to the United Nations on the 30th September 1960 was the French Cameroon. In 1961 the French and British Southern Cameroon purportedly merged to form the Federal Republic of Cameroon.”
Also commenting on the alleged efforts of the government official to frustrate appealing against ICJ ruling, Chairman of Cakebird Development Co-operation, Dr. Chinedu Jideofo-Ogbuagu warned any government official to consider the security implications of not revisiting the ICJ ruling.
Jideofo-Ogbuagu in a statement made available us read, “We have heard reports that top government officials are attempting to frustrate the hard-earned decision of the federal government to apply for a review of the ICJ ruling on the Bakassi Peninsula.
“We always knew that the persons who sold Bakassi would go to any length to scuttle the review process as the megalomaniacs would not want to forgo the price they got from the sale of the Peninsula”.
“But we warn any government official not to play stupid self-serving wicked and unpatriotic politics with Nigeria’s appeal against that judgment as there would be grave consequences to them, to President Jonathan’s administration and to Nigeria by their so doing.
“That review must go ahead and must succeed if not, we would work for sack of the government officials, impeachment of Mr. President and his Vice President and for independence for Bakassi,” he said.
The governorship candidate on the platform of Hope Democratic Party, HDP, in the February 25, 2012 elections in Cross River State, Dr. Theo Onyuku said that the tragedy, the pains and the subterfuge of the loss of Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon following an unenforceable ICJ ruling will forever hunt the Nigeria nation.
According to this medical consultant turned politician, “The ignoble, irresponsible, deceitful and self-serving roles of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, the former Cross River State governor, Mr. Donald Duke and all the elected and appointed leaders of Cross River extraction will hunt them to their graves.
“In 2006, before the first phase of hand over of Bakassi to Cameroon, we warned against the dire consequences of ceding the territory to Cameroon without recourse to the national assembly, the dire security and socio-economic implications, but the PDP leaders in the state branded us as faceless opposition group.
“Today they are now shouting. Have we forgotten that the self-acclaimed Mama Bakassi was the special adviser President Obasanjo on national assembly, what did she do then? she suddenly became blind, deaf and dumb”.
“She was active in the seat of power, she did nothing and shamelessly betrayed the Bakassi people to secure her job and today she is protesting, what an apostate.
”Ex Governor Duke traded off the island for a selfish presidential ambition. Why, Obasanjo ceded Bakassi unconstitutionally in obedience to a useless Green Tree Agreement because he wanted international support for his third term gambit and noble prize for peace.
“All Cross River NASS members shouting today except Prof. Ben Ayade were there when Bakassi was ceded for their political ambition. They shamelessly became blind, deaf and dumb. Today after we have lost Bakassi, they are now shouting.
“They are all traitors and before the cock crowed, they abandoned and betrayed the Bakassi people. They buried their heads in the sand like an ostrich while the island was lost and they left the displaced people in the state of homelessness, want, misery, hardship and starvation.
“Today the Bakassi children are dying of Kwashiokor, marasmus, pneumonia, diarrhea, anaemia and other preventable diseases due to want, poor nutrition, and grinding poverty, while their leaders are speaking big grammer in national assembly in 2012 with no plans to alleviate their hardship,” he said.