Nigeria has continued to accrue huge debt arising from various judgments against the Federal Government as it relates to human rights abuse. Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN) had laid credence to this when he raised the alarm that the current judgement debt against the Federal Government had risen to N150 billion at the presentation of his ministry’s budget to the National Assembly. According to Malami, the large figure arose from bad cases, contract failures, damages and especially fines against human rights abuses.

The minister noted that the country was facing “hydra-headed challenges” meeting up with the obligations. According to Malami, while only N10 billion was paid in 2017, N150 billion remains unpaid; prompting beneficiaries to mount severe pressure on the ministry, even as he requested that a commission of 2.5% of the total recovered loot should be given to the Asset Recovery Unit in his office to service bills.

Meanwhile, the total budgetary allocation for the entire Ministry of Justice for 2020 is a paltry N33 billion. Malami said: “Paucity of funds remains a notorious challenge. Regardless, we shall not relent on what we have set out to accomplish largely because the rule of law is undoubtedly the pillar of democracy the world over.

“The rule of law is good and noble but greatly capital intensive. At the home front, judgement debt kept mounting, threat to peace, breaches of the peace, outside aggressions and allied reprehensible violence, extremism have all combined to constitute suffocating legal challenges with attendant mounting financial demands in servicing them.

“It is in public domain that we are today contending with P&ID judgment prompting us to swiftly move to action to save the country from another $9.6 billion judgement debt. “I want to state on record that no budgetary provision existed as it relates to contentious issues relating to the defence of the federal government for the purpose of setting aside this quoted demand and others.

“This is a clear sign and demonstration of the fact that the Federal Ministry of Justice works under very 2 NEWS SUNDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2019 SUNDAY TELEGRAPH difficult circumstances for the purpose of addressing issues with huge financial demands leading to circumstances where no budgetary provision exists for the purpose of addressing the challenges that kept arising day-in-day-out.

“In any event, there is a glimmer of hope within the foreseeable future we shall triumph over this hazard of international conspiracy and dramatic irony that is packaged for the purpose of creating serious economic setback for the country.

“There are several protocols and agreements which Nigeria is obligated that requires constant travels to keep faith at these fora. “I will like to reiterate my earlier request for a dedicated expenditure item to service these crucial international obligations in order not to renege our responsibilities as a nation.

“Critical functions associated with elections among others clearly as it relates to the execution of election and election associated matters keep cropping up and have serious financial demands that are in no way captured in our budgetary provisions at times.

“This platform provides another excellent opportunity for me to push for approval of 2.5% as requisite commission arising from recovery of our stolen assets stashed off the shores of Nigeria. A unit of asset recovery in the Federal Ministry of Justice has evidently deposited all recoveries so far into the Federal Government treasury is true enough we need a sizeable commission to replenish our efforts. “Billions were recovered and have been recovered and are being pursued without any supporting budgetary provision for the purpose of pursuing the illicit finances being recovered day in day out through the Federal Ministry of Justice.”

Asides the recent P&ID judgement fine against Nigeria, there are lot of pending debts also being owed by the FG. The debt arose from various court cases filed by groups and individuals against the abuse of human rights by the agencies of the Federal Government.

Among such cases are:

N100m fine for demolished Imo houses

Among the said the judgement was the one delivered by the ECOWAS Court on July 6, 2018 wherein the court asked the Nigerian government and the Imo State government to pay N100.09 million as special damages to a family whose property was demolished four years ago in Imo State.

The said property was demolished under a 2009 Imo State law. The law allowed the government to pull down any property linked to anyone accused to be involved in kidnapping activities in the state. In suit number ECW/CCJ/APP/13/14, Damian Onwuham and 22 others alleged the violations of their rights to fair hearing and effective investigation; right to presumption of innocence; right to property and right to dignity of the human person as guaranteed in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

They also accused the Imo State government of failing to carry out an impartial and effective investigation on the owners of the properties. They described the continuous detention of the suspects as unlawful, as none of the applicants nor the suspected kidnappers has so far been charged to court.

They demanded N50 million as general damages; N100.09 million as special damages for the reconstruction and furnishing of the demolished buildings, and exemplary damages N500 million. The Federal Government is the first defendant in the case while the Imo State government is second defendant. But, the court in its judgment delivered on Tuesday said the April 12, 2014 demolition of the property was not only illegal, but also unlawful.

$75,000 fine over human rights violation

Similarly, the same regional court had in 2017 awarded the sum $75,000 damages against the Federal Government of Nigeria for the act of violation of fundamental human rights of the son of retired Wing Commander Danladi Kwasu. Justice Nwoke Chijoke, who delivered the judgment, held that the right to life of the deceased was violated in contravention of article 4 of the African Charter pertaining to right to life. Also, it ordered that the defendant should set up a committee of enquiry to investigate with a view to unravelling those culpable for cutting down the life of the deceased in his prime when he was pushed into water during training without a life jacket. In the suit filed by Kwasu against the Federal Government, he accused the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), of deliberately pushing his 19-year -old son, Elshadai Kwasu, into a 100-metre-deep lake, and drowning him during watermanship training during training near Kaduna State on April 30, 2015. The Federal Government had argued that the court lacked jurisdiction as the protocol establishing the court only vests in it cases of fundamental human rights and that the case is in tort the argument was overruled by the court. The Federal Government also argued that by signing a consent form he was unshackled by the principle that he who consent to an infraction cannot later complain. A ground faulted by the court.

N15m fine over unlawful detention

Equally, the ECOWAS Court on October 4, 2016 imposed a N15 million fine on the Federal Government over what it described as unlawful arrest and detention of former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd). The court also held that the government’s further arrest of Dasuki on November 4, after he was granted bail by a court of law, amounts to a mockery of democracy and the rule of law. Dasuki is facing multiple trials for alleged diversion of $2.1 billion meant for the purchase of arms in the immediate past administration.

He approached the ECOWAS Court after he was rearrested by operatives of Nigeria’s Department of State Services (DSS), shortly after meeting his bail conditions in November last year. He was only released on the eve of Christmas. A three-member panel, led by Justice Friday Nwoke, said Nigeria’s government was wrong in arresting Dasuki without a search warrant, adding that the pattern of arrest negates the provisions of Section 28 of the Nigerian Police Act. It, however, decided that the arrest was unlawful, arbitrary and a violation of local and international rights to liberty. The court ruled that Federal Government should pay a sum of N15 million as damages to the former army colonel. It also decided that the cost of litigation will be summed up and charged against the Nigerian government.

N88bn compensation for Biafra war victims

In a similar vein, the ECOWAS Court also on October 30, 2017 after an agreement between parties okayed the payment of about N88 billion by the Federal Government as compensation to victims of Biafra war which took place about 47 years ago as compensation for their loses. A breakdown of the compensation adopted by the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice as consent judgment for government and the victims showed that N50 billion will go direct to the victims of the war in eleven affected states in Southeast, South south and part of the North central regions, while the remaining N38 billion will go for the evacuation of abandoned bombs and other lethal weapons and construction of schools, courts, churches and mosque among others in the affected areas.

In the consent judgment read by Justice Friday Chijioke Nwoke, the Federal Government is expected to pay the N50 billion into the United Bank of Africa (UBA) account with number 1018230076 belonging to Chief Noel Agwuocha Chukwukadibia, the nominated counsel for the war victims and another N38 billion to be paid into another UBA account with number 1016296801 belonging to Deminers Concept Nigeria Limited for RSB Holdings Nigeria Ltd and Deminers Concept Nigeria Ltd who are expected to evacuate all the abandoned bombs and other dangerous weapons in the farmlands, schools, churches and mosque of the war victims and to also carry out construction works. Besides, the Federal Government will by the consent judgment establish a National Mine Action Centre in Owerri, Imo State for victims in the Southeast region. In order to ensure transparent and accountability, the Federal Government is expected to also set up a Special Purpose Vehicle that will comprise of all necessary stakeholders in the terms of settlement. The consent judgment further indicated that medical experts employed on behalf of the Federal Government to screen and identify true victims of the war, acknowledged that 685 persons were selected and classified as survivors while 493 of them including those who sued the Federal Government were confirmed as victims of either landmines or other dangerous military ordinance including locally fabricated weapons and confirmed to be entitled to compensation.

The consent judgment further acknowledged that a total of 17,000 bombs were recovered in the war ravaged communities and destroyed by RSB Holdings Ltd and Deminers Concept Nigeria Ltd, while a total of 1,317 bombs are still in the stockpile located at the Mine Action Centre, Owerri in addition to large quantities of live bombs that still litter the communities of the war victims. It further indicated that the Federal Government as part of its responsibility undertook to remove and destroy without further delay all the stockpiles bombs at the Nigerian Mine Action Centre located at plot 108, Ndubuisi Kanu Street, New Owerri, Imo state. Parties, according to the consent judgment agreed that the war victims apart from their direct physical injuries, their families and community at large have been deprived of the use of their farmlands since the Civil War hostilities ended in 1970, hence the agreement to clear the war affected areas of the post war ordinances.

It was also agreed that RSB Holdings Nigeria Ltd and Deminers Concept Nigeria Ltd having satisfactorily performed the first phase of clearing and destroying the post war bombs should be mobilized back to site to complete the final phase of the ongoing demining process.

The representatives of the victims of the Civil War, including the 493 victims prey enumerated by the Federal Ministry of Defence has through their agents, Vincent Agu and 19 others dragged the Federal Government before the ECOWAS Court demanding N100 billion and another order of the court compelling government to clear and destroy all post-Civil War bombs and other dangerous weapons of war abandoned in their various communities and farmland since 1970.

The plaintiffs claimed that apart from physical injuries, the abandonment of the war weapons has deprived them of the use of their farmlands, schools and churches, hence their demands for compensation. Though the suit was filed at the regional court in 2012, the Federal Government opted for out of court settlement with the war victims, prompting the court to adopt the terms of settlement by government and the war with as consent judgment delivered.

Other fines incurred by FG

Also, the Federal High Court sitting Lagos in a judgement in a suit filed by Wale Babalakin (SAN) against the FG and AMCON imposed the fine of N3 billion on the defendants. The case instituted since 2012, was decided in favour of Babalakin as the Court answered all his prayers and ordered AMCON to pay N3 billion for damages caused by publishing his name as a chronic debtor in This Day Newspaper. Babalakin and his company, Resort International Limited sued AMCON and the Attorney General of the Federation demanding compensation over the libellous print and online newspaper publication that listed him as a debtor, when the Federal Government still owe him a judgement debt of N132, 540, 580, 304. The N132.5 billion judgement was given by the same Justice Ibrahim Buba in 2011.The court also dismissed AMCON’s debt recovery suit filed against Babalakin. (New Telegraph)

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