FORMERChief of General Staff, Admiral Mike Akhigbe, Coalition to Save Nigeria (CSN) and the National Association of Seadogs (NAS) yesterday called on the Federal Government to appeal the International Court of Justice' (ICJ) decision ceding Bakassi Peninsula to the Cameroun in line with agitation from Nigerians and the people of the area.In a telephone conversation with journalists from Germany, Akhigbe cautioned that it would amount to treasonable felony if the Federal Government did not appeal the judgment on the disputed oil-rich area.He said it was irresponsible on the part of the then civilian administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo to have ceded the area to Cameroun without considering the plight of Nigerians who live in the area.His words: 'This is one issue the corporate existence of our nation is being threatened. The Camerounians don't live there, only Nigerians live there, all they cared was the oil and that is why it was irresponsible the way and manner the issue was handled by the civilian administration in Nigeria.'We in the navy as far back as 1974, insisted that the land belongs to Nigeria and we advised the Federal Government but our advice was not followed. The only Head of State who saw the implication of ceding that place to Cameroun was the late Gen. Sanni Abacha and he remained firm until the civilian administration came. 'The present Jonathan administration should be warned that no government can succeed in Nigeria if they can't defend the corporate existence of this country.Nigerians must prevail on this government to appeal the judgment because the latter generation will never accept the decision.'NAS staged a peaceful march round major streets in Benin City yesterday where they advised the Federal Government not to cede the area but that it should appeal the ruling.Speakingto journalists at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) secretariat in Benin city, the regional coordinator of NAS, representing Edo, Ondo and Ekiti states, Igweagu Ifeanyi, said ceding what is arguably a Nigerian territory, the indigenous people of Bakassi were not only being denied their rights to their ancestral home, but also compelled to live in untold hardship and neglect.'It is against natural law to force a people to suddenly become citizens of a country they have chosen not to belong, it is also unjust to force them out of their ancestral land,' he stated.A statement by the National Chairman and Secretary of the CSN, Philip Ugbodaga and Matthew Edaghese, on the contentious issue said Obasanjo's decision to abide by the ICJ's ruling even without the consent of the National Assembly 'was an unprecedented act in international politics.'It added: 'Emerging new facts suggest that the decision was hasty, unpatriotic, and carefully designed to satisfy the international community at a great and unacceptable price to the people of Bakassi and especially Nigeria. A window of opportunity still exist for Nigeria to reclaim the ceded territory in the light of available new facts by immediately appealing the judgment of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) before the expiration of the time allowable to lodge an appeal. For illegally ceding Nigeria territory to another country without legislative approval, and for his inglorious role in this avoidable international embarrassment to our country, werecommend that former president Olusegun Obasanjo and all his accomplices be charged for treason against the people of Nigeria.
Click here to read full news..
