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ECOWAS Court Throws Out Dasuki’s Suit Against FG

Published

2 weeks ago

June 10, 2024

Editor

The ECOWAS Court on Monday set aside an application filed by the former National Security Adviser, retired Col. Sambo Dasuki, who approached the court to order the Nigerian government to enforce a previous judgment delivered in his favour.

Recall that Dasuki, a former NSA under President Goodluck Jonathan, dragged the Federal Government before the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, where he claimed that his life was in danger.

Dasuki claimed that he had been kept under house arrest by armed operatives of the Department of State Services.

In a fundamental rights enforcement suit he filed against the Federal Government, Dasuki pleaded with the court to uphold his rights to dignity and security of life as the DSS operatives laid siege to his house and prevented him from travelling abroad for medical treatment.

Dasuki filed the same suit at the ECOWAS court where he obtained a favourable judgment delivered on October 4, 2016, ordering his release from illegal custody.

In a suit marked: ECW/CCJ/JUD/23/16, Justice Friday Nwoke, declared the government’s action against Dasuki as “arbitrary, unlawful, a mockery of democracy and the rule of law, and a violation of local and international rights to liberty”.

The court held that Dasuki’s arrest and detention by the Nigerian government was unlawful and a violation of his rights.

The court further held that the government’s action violated Dasuki’s rights under the African Charter of Human and People’s Rights and the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights.

It, therefore, ordered the release of all the seized properties of Dasuki, as well as a payment of N15,000,000 in damages to the applicant.

The Federal Government however failed to comply with the judgment and refused to enforce the said judgment.

This led Dasuki to file an application before the court asking for its enforcement.

The federal government on its part, during the trial, denied Dasuki’s allegations, stressing that the properties being claimed by Dasuki were subjects of ongoing criminal proceedings, which he did not disclose in the suit.

The respondent’s counsel had argued that the government had already fulfilled its obligations, adding that the court’s Chief Registrar had issued a Writ of Execution, making the relief prayed for by the applicant unnecessary.

Delivering judgment in his application for enforcement of fundamental rights, today in Abuja, Justice Sengu Koroma, the Judge Rapporteur, dismissed it on the ground that the court lacked jurisdiction to entertain or enforce the earlier judgment.

Koroma said the court was guided by laid down procedures regarding the enforcement of its judgments as enshrined in the Community Law, and the proper party to institute an enforcement failure claim.

“Having thoroughly assessed the claims and constitutive texts of the Court, it lacks the competence to adjudicate the present claim,” the court said.

The panel, which comprised Justice Edward Asante, Justice Sengu Koroma and Justice Ricardo Claúdio Gonçalves awarded no costs to parties in the suit.

Headline

Second Southern Mexico Mayor Killed In One Week

Published

1 hour ago

June 23, 2024

Editor

A second southern Mexico mayor has been killed in less than a week, local authorities announced Saturday, after he went to visit an indigenous community.

The murder of Acacio Flores, who represents Malinaltepec, comes days after the killing of Salvador Villalba Flores, another mayor from Guerrero state elected in June 2 polls.

The body of Flores was discovered with a bullet wound to the back of the head in the back of a van in Malinaltepec, a human rights campaigner told AFP.

The rights activist had been involved in negotiations to free the politician after he was detained Thursday in an indigenous village.

Guerrero’s public prosecutor said an investigation into aggravated murder had been opened, with a possible land ownership dispute part of the probe.

Since Mexico’s campaign season began last September, around 30 political candidates have been killed, according to Data Civica, a non-governmental organization.

Guerrero, one of the states most affected by drug cartel violence given its location along Mexico’s Pacific coast, recorded 1,890 murders in 2023.

AFP

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Flights Cancelled At UK’s Manchester Airport After Power Cut

Published

1 hour ago

June 23, 2024

Editor

Flights at the UK’s third-busiest airport were being delayed or cancelled Sunday after a major power cut, the airport operator said.

The Manchester Airports Group, which also operates London Stansted and the East Midlands airports, said Manchester Airport had been “affected by a major power cut in the area earlier this morning.”

Power has now been restored at the international airport in the north of England, but passengers due to travel from Terminals One and Two were told to “not come to the airport” as all flights were cancelled “until further notice”.

Passengers for Terminal Three were told to come to the airport as normal, but were warned they “could be affected by delays”.

The airport operator said that while passengers already checked in were scheduled to depart as planned, the disruption meant “some baggage may not be on those flights”.

“We will work with airlines and handling partners to reunite affected passengers with their luggage as soon as possible”, the group added.

The airline Jet2 — which operates from both terminals — said that as well as cancelling dozens of flights, it was unable to load bags onto planes as the airport’s baggage system remained “inoperable”.

Airline easyJet, which operates flights from Terminal One, warned of “very long queues” for security, and said passengers could only board flights with cabin bags.

In addition, some arriving flights were being diverted to other airports according to the airport statement, including London Heathrow and Birmingham.

Some flyers took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to describe the “chaos”, with one passenger saying they had been waiting for their bags after landing after midnight and another saying they were “stuck on the plane”.

The UK’s travel industry has been hit by a series of disruptions in the last few years, including technical problems and industrial action affecting rail and air passengers.

Last month, a nationwide outage of immigration e-gates caused long delays for thousands of passengers.

In August last year, the country faced its worst air traffic control disruption in almost ten years due to a technical fault.

AFP

Headline

Ruto Ready For ‘Conversation’ With Youth Protesters, Says Kenya’s Presidency

Published

2 hours ago

June 23, 2024

Editor

Kenya protesters

Kenya’s President William Ruto said he was ready for “a conversation” with thousands of young protesters who held nationwide demonstrations this week to oppose proposed tax increases, a presidency official said Sunday.

Led largely by Gen-Z Kenyans who have livestreamed the demonstrations, the protests caught the government off-guard, as discontent mounts over Ruto’s economic policies.

“Our young people have stepped forward to engage on the affairs of their country. They’ve done their democratic duty, to stand and be recognised. I’m proud of them,” Ruto said in quotes shared by presidency spokesman Hussein Mohamed on X, formerly Twitter.

“We’ll have a conversation with you to identify your issues and work together as a nation,” he added, making his first public comments on the protests.

Two people have died and dozens of others were injured in Thursday’s demonstrations in the capital Nairobi, according to rights campaigners.

The demonstrations were mostly peaceful, but officers fired tear gas and water cannon throughout the day in an attempt to disperse protesters near parliament.

The rallies began in Nairobi on Tuesday before spreading nationwide, with protesters calling for a national strike on June 25.

Ruto’s administration has defended the proposed levies as necessary for filling its coffers and cutting reliance on external borrowing.

AFP