President Goodluck Jonathan has set up a committee to look into the
option of appealing the judgement of the International Court of Justice
(ICJ) on the Bakassi peninsula.
The decision was reached at a meeting of the president, the
leadership of the National Assembly and other stakeholders at the State
House in Abuja.
Checks indicate that the meeting which started late Wednesday night ended in the early hours of yesterday.
Cross River State governor Liyel Imoke told State House
correspondents after the meeting that the committee would also consider
how to take care of the displaced people of Bakassi.
Imoke, who did not disclose the composition of the committee, said it would work within a specified time.
Nigeria has an Oct. 9 deadline to appeal the ICJ ruling which ceded
the oil-rich Bakassi peninsula to neighbouring Cameroun that was
delivered on Oct. 10, 2002.
Imoke said Jonathan had shown great leadership quality by convening
the meeting and standing firm on some of the decisions taken.
Also, Senate president David Mark said the executive arm of
government and the lawmakers were now on the same page on the Bakassi
issue.
He said they would work together to achieve results.
A former attorney-general of the federation (AGF), Prince Bola
Ajibola, who was at the meeting, said the federal government had shown
candid concern on the Bakassi issue.
He commended the move by government to follow dialogue, the rule of
law and diplomacy in ensuring that Nigeria gets justice and the people
are not wrongly dealt with.
Ajibola expressed optimism that the committee set up would handle the matter accordingly and in good time.
The meeting was attended by Vice President Namadi Sambo, speaker of
the House of Representatives Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, and some other
principal officers of the National Assembly.
Also in attendance were Akwa Ibom governor Godswill Akpabio,
secretary to the government of the federation Sen. Anyim Pius Anyim, and
the minister of justice and AGF Mohammed Adoke.
Some leaders and representatives of selected groups from Bakassi as well as presidential aides were also in attendance.
The Senate had last week unanimously passed a resolution mandating
the federal government to appeal the ICJ ruling because of the new facts
which had emerged over the matter.
The motion which gave rise to the resolution was sponsored by Sen. Abdul Ningi (PDP, Bauchi Central).
