As the world now knows, Nigeria has forever lost the oil-rich Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon, Nigeria's ever-so loving neighbors. This was the end result of the ruling of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) seating more than 4,000 miles away in The Hague, Netherland. The Court ruled that the disputed territory, over which both countries have variously flexed their military muscles, belongs to Cameroon. This perturbing and seemingly ill-informed verdict was summarily handed down during Obasanjo’s reckless tenure and his 'area-boy' administration wasted no time in declaring that it would abide by the ruling.

This was a very curious position of this renegade regime which never respected verdicts that originated from Nigerian Courts, but was quick to acquiescent to one that commanded him to part with a piece of Nigerian territory.

We know that Obasanjo’s administration has been delinquent on a number of judgments rendered by Nigerian courts so why the rush to implement the World Court's verdict, a court whose decisions are far more worthless than the paper on which they are written.

Lest I be misconstrued, I must state that I do not advocate lawlessness as Nigeria, being a member of the international community must obey and respect the norms of such a community. Having said that, we must put this verdict in perspective and question the jurisdiction and reach of the World Court. This was the same court whose judgment against the US in the case of United States versus Nicaragua was  blatantly ignored by the US as though it did not exist. This was the same court whose opinions on a stay of execution of Jose Medellin, the condemned murderer in Texas was flagrantly ignored as the state on August 5, 2008, proceeded with the execution of the condemned Mexican citizen. This is the same court whose judgments against superpowers and other Western nations have never been reckoned with or heeded.

Therefore, the question looms, why is Nigeria so eager and keen to give away a piece of its territory on the strength of a judgment influenced by France, Britain and the United States, all of whom conspired to ensure that Nigeria cede the territory to Cameroon? If Nigeria has been a law-abiding country before the verdict, one would have understood, but here is a country that constantly violates the rights of its citizens through unprovoked military invasions, extra-judicial murders and total annihilation of villages and towns tripping over itself to heed the verdict of five men in funny robes. It is as if Nigeria was all too glad to part with Bakassi – “Handover is a must, there is no going back”, said Yar’Adua. Should this be the temperament of a president about to lose a rich portion of his territory to another country? Shouldn’t he be remorseful at the very least? Indeed, we can now see the caliber of eaders we are saddled with; visionless, hopeless and utterly self effacing.

It becomes an obnoxiously vexing matter to learn that Cameroon, a nation of less than 30 million citizens, with far less educated citizenry than its more affluent neighbor was able to outwit “big” Nigeria at the World Court reminiscent of the Biblical David-Goliath episode. All this, in spite of the million and one so-called Senior Advocates of Nigeria or is it Naira (SANs) that profusely litter the legal landscape, holding big briefcases that appear to contain law libraries. They walk around in alien colonial robes with white wigs spread on their heads in the hot Nigerian sun. Imagine a black man wearing a white wig wished on him by vestiges of colonialism in a weather that is hotter than hell. Imagine further a black man with natural black hair cascading in white wig like an irredeemable deranged lunatic trying hard to mimic a British Queen Council. They disturb us with their seemingly endless “isms”, big grammar here, and big grammar there.

They say we must address them by their titles, “Michael Aondoakaa, SAN”, “Babatunde Fashola, SAN,” “Richard Akinjide, SAN”, they ensure that their title is clear and in bold, leaving no doubts as to their calling. But when the unique opportunity came for these SANs to prove their worth, their mantle, their intellectual and legal prowess and save the country this confounding humiliation suffered today as a result of the ICJ judgment implementation, they fell woefully and embarrassing short to a less fancied country with no SANs to boast of. It is indeed an aberration, a sad commentary on the dearth of legal luminaries of international standing and competence in that country. Are the SANs only competent within the boundaries of Nigeria?

Today’s handover of this disputed land further underscores the point that Nigeria, though bigger in all regards, would remain subservient like an indentured servant to its tiny neighbors. It’s as if Cameroon has a spell on Nigeria; for it has proven beyond reasonable doubts that Nigeria cannot outwit it no matter the sphere of life be it in the legal realm or in sports. Even in football, that tiny nation has bequeathed Nigerians so much pain, did I say anguish, as it has been lifted to glory at the full expense of Nigeria on three occasions better forgotten and wiped off our collective memories. Lest we forget, it was in the 2000 edition of the African Nation’s Cup that Cameroon lifted it’s 3rd continental trophy at the now defunct National Stadium in Lagos after defeating Nigeria on controversial penalty kicks.

Before that, some of us still remember, albeit quite unfortunately, that the same tiny nation humbled an entire nation, the largest black nation in the world, when it defeated it in far-away Rabat, Morocco in the finals of the 1988 edition of the African Nation’s cup by a 1-0 margin. This came on the heels of a most painful 3-1 defeat four years earlier in Abidjan, Ivory Coast in the finals of the same competition. Now, that tiny nation has extended its winning streak to the court room, serving up a pretty sultry case that the SANs of Nigeria, in spite of the white 'wiggy' magic, could not withstand. Of what use then are these SANs to the nation?

Today’s action by the Federal Government of Nigeria portrays a colossal betrayal of a people, their beliefs and originality. How could a nation turn its back against its people in the name of heeding a verdict rendered 4,000 miles away? Which is the greater moral sin; not to obey a World Court verdict or to forsake its citizens and eject them from their ancestral land? History is replete with instances of nations expanding in territory over time, we cannot go back to redress all claims of land ownership put forth by nations of the world. We must ask some very pertinent questions – has the World Court asked the United States to handover California, Texas, Arizona and New Mexico to Mexico? Has the World Court given Iraq the land that is currently Kuwait because it was once part of Iraq, a claim that precipitated the first Gulf War? And if the World Court sitting comfortably in The Hague in its infinite wisdom renders judgment today that indeed, those four American states belong to Mexico and should be handed over forthwith, would the United States comply?

Today, Nigeria died with the reckless and dispassionate severance of ties with Bakassi. May God forgive our leaders for this unpardonable gaffe.

Robot  Villager

# 1 As the...Read the full article. Posted by Robot| 15.08.2008 07:48

akuluouno  Villager

# 2 Besides UMYA, some parts of Nigeria were indeed happy that Bakassi is being ceded to Cameorun, but the reasons are both political, historical and mischief. Other celebrants are UK, US and France who loathe our corruption and regional power status arguing that we have so far messed the huge reserves we have, why do we ask for another in Bakassi. Then overall elites in Nigeria with their well known knack for mischief (watch the NA and their last minute approval that Bakassi be ceded) which if Nigeria were Israel, they would have happily ceded Jerusalem:mad::mad::mad: Posted by akuluouno| 15.08.2008 08:06

Ewuro  Villager

# 3 I can understand why you are so angry!!!. I can also understand that Bakassi handover would bring a lot of sorrow, tears and blood to those who had always regarded that land to be theirs. Those Nigerians who were living there since ages. However, Bakassi was a bad case right from what has happened at especially Gowon's time as head of state. Some would even argue that Bakassi was a bad case for Nigeria historically. You got one thing right though about SAN - Senior Advocate of Naira. These lawyers would have known that they stood no chance if they are really competent. The motivation for going to the world court to argue a bad case was several billions of Naira or millions of dollars rewards for handling a lost/bad case. The world court had delivered a judgement to favour Cameroon. There is no way that Nigeria could disobey the world court judgement. If we did, there would be far more serious consequences. A multi-lateral action either by UN or a coalition of French, British, US etc action could bring untold hardship on ordinary Nigerians. Obasanjo or Umaru Yar'dua would be afraid for their positions,personal and public safety while in or out of government. Not that I care in the least about these two people, we can at least see some of the reasons behind their actions. US, Russia, and China do have the political, Economic, Technological and military might. They could afford to ignore World Court judgements. Nigeria simply cannot. It is a tough double standard world. I do not condone it, but that is what it is! We cannot afford either a diplomatic or military war with our neigbouring 'tiny' country of Cameroon at this stage. Not on this issue. The West as you recognise in your article will be on their side. All considered, Bakassi is a very good trade off for peace with our neighbours. That is my candid opinion. In this circumstances, while be bite our nails, mourning our loss of Bakassi, we need to start thinking of how to resettle those poor Nigerian Bakassites in order to minimise their sorrow, tears and loss. Yar'dua's goverrment should quickly formulate a welfare package that would compesate and ressettle the Nigerian bakasites. This go-slow gorvernment must wake up to her responsibilities to perform her duties to these set of Nigerians promptly. Posted by Ewuro| 15.08.2008 09:41

akuluouno  Villager

# 4 All considered, Bakassi is a very good trade off for peace with our neighbours. That is my candid opinion. In this circumstances, while be bite our nails, mourning our loss of Bakassi, we need to start thinking of how to resettle those poor Nigerian Bakassites in order to minimise their sorrow, tears and loss. Yar'dua's goverrment should quickly formulate a welfare package that would compesate and ressettle the Nigerian bakasites. This go-slow gorvernment must wake up to her responsibilities to perform her duties to these set of Nigerians promptly. Posted by Ewuro| 15.08.2008 09:41 Dear Bro Ewuro, Let us be careful what we wish because it may come to us soonser than later. My bolded section of yours refers please. So anytime our neigbours make war with us we trade off our territory to make peace, na waooh. Many of us are afraid that Bakassi have set a dangerous precedent. Seeing that Nigeria was formed by the British out of various treaties akin to that that got Bakassi where it was, many groups may want to dust up such treaties and head to the ICJ for them to be ceded away from Nigeria citing the Bakassi success. Ask Eriteria how it settled peace with Ethiopia over a strip of land between them. Ask India and Pakistan how they have sorted themselves out. Let me not talk of Israel, Syria and the Palestinians. Serious nations will never give an inch of their land away, resource or no resurce. Anyway as a crudenationalist and a petropatriot of Nigeria, I am in support that we keep ceding all territories of Nigeria to buy peace with our neighbours. Dear Ewuro, where do you come from, let us start with your village:D:D:D:D As for me I cannot wait for the igbo nation to be ceded out of Nigeria icon showing Aku as the first Igbo nation councillor for Ekwusigo local government of Igboland Posted by akuluouno| 15.08.2008 10:28

bakoso2000  Villager

# 5 I just feel sorry for the displaced people of Bakassi. As for the oil, it has done more harm that good to Nigeria and if Nigeria is desperate to have that oil we know how to get to it...by sinking enough pipes with elbows from Nigerian territory to Bakassi. We can suck it from right under their feet. We are that ingenious. Jokes apart, l want to see how Obasanjo will react if one day Republic of Benin wakes up and starts to lay claim to Abeokuta. It's not impossible with the relative easy with which Cameroon got away with Bakassi. We have proved how vulnerable we are to our neighbors. God forbid one ambitious despot ascends to power in any of those countries and is willing to challenge Nigeria to another territorial contest. Cameroon better beware because what appears to be a victory or a blessing today may be their undoing in the end. France, United States and other western oil interests are on their way to get their share of the coming windfall. And corrupt local politicians will soon start to fantasize about oil fortune. Does Cameroon have enough of its own political wrangling? Nigeria is a good example of what oil does to an African country. So Cameroon, beware of what you wish for. Posted by bakoso2000| 15.08.2008 11:14

Tiger  Villager

# 6 =Ewuro;4295083772>I can understand why you are so angry!!!. I can also understand that Bakassi handover would bring a lot of sorrow, tears and blood to those who had always regarded that land to be theirs. Those Nigerians who were living there since ages. However, Bakassi was a bad case right from what has happened at especially Gowon's time as head of state. Some would even argue that Bakassi was a bad case for Nigeria historically. You got one thing right though about SAN - Senior Advocate of Naira. These lawyers would have known that they stood no chance if they are really competent. The motivation for going to the world court to argue a bad case was several billions of Naira or millions of dollars rewards for handling a lost/bad case. The world court had delivered a judgement to favour Cameroon. There is no way that Nigeria could disobey the world court judgement. If we did, there would be far more serious consequences. A multi-lateral action either by UN or a coalition of French, British, US etc action could bring untold hardship on ordinary Nigerians. Obasanjo or Umaru Yar'dua would be afraid for their positions,personal and public safety while in or out of government. Not that I care in the least about these two people, we can at least see some of the reasons behind their actions. US, Russia, and China do have the political, Economic, Technological and military might. They could afford to ignore World Court judgements. Nigeria simply cannot. It is a tough double standard world. I do not condone it, but that is what it is! We cannot afford either a diplomatic or military war with our neigbouring 'tiny' country of Cameroon at this stage. Not on this issue. The West as you recognise in your article will be on their side. All considered, Bakassi is a very good trade off for peace with our neighbours. That is my candid opinion. In this circumstances, while be bite our nails, mourning our loss of Bakassi, we need to start thinking of how to resettle those poor Nigerian Bakassites in order to minimise their sorrow, tears and loss. Yar'dua's goverrment should quickly formulate a welfare package that would compesate and ressettle the Nigerian bakasites. This go-slow gorvernment must wake up to her responsibilities to perform her duties to these set of Nigerians promptly. I need not say more! May God give us leaders in Nigeria!! Posted by Tiger| 15.08.2008 11:16

allaccess  Villager

# 7 Everyone here is not as knowledgeable about Bakassi as Yakubu Gowan, He has said Bakassi never belonged to Nigeria, so we lost nothing! If indeed we lost something, so be it. Cameroon is probably going to put the region to better use than Nigeria. next topic please. Posted by allaccess| 15.08.2008 11:18

Falconer  JJC

# 8 "The world court had delivered a judgement to favour Cameroon. There is no way that Nigeria could disobey the world court judgement. If we did, there would be far more serious consequences. A multi-lateral action either by UN or a coalition of French, British, US etc action could bring untold hardship on ordinary Nigerians. Obasanjo or Umaru Yar'dua would be afraid for their positions,personal and public safety while in or out of government. Not that I care in the least about these two people, we can at least see some of the reasons behind their actions." Ewuro - Your concerns expressed in this quote are errant rubbish, absolute nonsense! So why should Nigeria be afriad? The world would not have ended if Nigeria held on to Bakassi peninsula! If UMYA wanted to impress the civilized world about his seriousness with his "rule of law" mantra he should have started cleaning house from himself down to all his treasury-thieving governor colleagues, PDP henchmen, OBJ and the past military heads of state to RETURN their goverment treasury LOOTS back to the federal treasury. By handling over the Bakassi pennisula to Cameroon, Nigeria has yet again demonstrated to the civilized world why there is little or no hope of redeeming the country; the country is led by and administered by mercenaries. The plight of generations of Bakassi residents, where all available historical data have affirmed are the original settlers of the pennisula, albeit their anscertrial homeland; yet were still forced by a President of their country to give up and abadon the bones of their ansestors, is repungent, shameless and unprecedented in the anals of world history! Only in Nigeria managed by **** will that happen. The Nigerian government and its errant AG never considered the perpetual psychological and emotional impact of their decision to hand over Bakassi voluntarily on generations of Bakassi people yet unborn. There will never be an adequate walfare package by UMYA or any government entity for that matter that will meet the attendant current and future emotional and psychological conseqeuncies of this naked, unprovoked aggression by UMYA and UN on the defenseless people of Bakassi, even if a bouyant financial/economic package is provided to the current residents. As is typical in Nigeria, we sarcificed a segment of our human beings at the alter of money and greed. Nigerians living outside Bakassi showed little or no interest about the hand over (with the belief that the handing over did not affect them). In parts of the civilized world, the citizenary would have flooded the streets in outrage, daring their president and his men; the Nigerians who even showed interest expressed sympathy for the Bakassi people but were concerned that not handling over the ancenstrial homeland of their fellow citizens would lead to an eventual war with Cameroon that they believed France, UK, and probably USA will support. They justified the hand over of the homeland of a generation of people and their self determination as Peace Offering. Nigerians forget when one part of her hurts all the other parts hurt too; or rather until Nigerians start to act in the interest of all of her various parts, that when one of her part hurts all of her other parts also hurts, there is no moving forward for us as a people. The likes of UMYA and his PDP elites will continue to sell out Nigeria on the alter of money and greed. Furthermore, as long as our decisions and policies are not people-based but rather mercinary, the country will continue to wallow in misery and confusion so pervassive in the society. What happened to Bakassi people on August 14, 2008 is no different from the day activities of Nigeria's political elites and the well contected - a sell out by a privileged few of the hopes and aspirations of the citizenary of Nigeria at the alter of greed and individual pecuniary ambition! Posted by Falconer| 15.08.2008 12:09

Bode Eluyera  In Purgatory

# 9 Thank you very much for this blunt article. You have said it all. My heart BLEEDS. It's really disappointing, but not surprising. In one of my articles titled "Nigeria's 419 constitution: Bakassi, Obasanjo's sacrificial lamb to the west," available on this site, I equally questioned the serious flaw in our fradulent constitution that allows people of other ethnic groups or a president, who came to power through the back-door, the right to give out the land/territory of another ethnic group or groups without their consent. For those who still believe in the fake one Nigeria, definitely, the handing over of Bakassi to Cameroon against the will of the indigenes should now wake you up from your slumber. One Nigeria has robbed the people of Bakassi their land - passed on to them by their ancestors through generations. Our responsibility now is to ensure that the evil creation of the British, to serve their economic interest must be dismantled as soon as possible. Posted by Bode Eluyera| 15.08.2008 13:15

i-go-better  Villager

# 10 Ewu(ro), almost "Iwu", I wish one day your village be ceded to another country WITHOUT YOUR CONCENT! To the main article: Do not blame the SANs, Obasanjo would never use the clever ones among them. He never in the fisrt place planned to win the case at the Hague. Baskassi was a trade off for 3rd Term plot. A scratch-my-back-I-scratch-yours gameplay with France, Britain and America. Also plan B was for him to become UN Secretary General if 3rd term failed and there was no way he was gonna succeed in either plan without the backing of these Countries. However, he was so sure of the Senators that he took the outcome of the debate in the Upper Legislative Chamber for granted just like Liyel Imoke with the Appeal Court Tribunal. So the grand plan was to plant a servile governor in Cross River State (who fits that bill better than Imoke!?) to brutally implement the hand-over, the Senators from that unfortunate State are already unrepentantly Obj apologists and 3rd term militants. It was the collapse of the 3rd term that unraveled all this grand atrocity. That is why I feel like sending a guided slap across the face of that elementary-school-boyish looking Senator (SAN!) called Victor ... Egba whenever he appears on TV pretending to condemn the ceding of part of his State to Cameroon when he actively supported Obj all along. This was not only Obj's worst sin, but all those Senators, particularly those from that State who supported him, will forever live to regret the day the ceding completes. Posted by i-go-better| 15.08.2008 14:03

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