A civil society group, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, i(SERAP) has developed a five-point anti-corruption commitments for presidential candidates ahead of the Feb. 16 Presidential Election.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Mr Adetokunbo Mumuni, Executive Director, SERAP, unveiled the document at a Pre-Election Public and Enlightenment Session on Anti-corruption on Monday in Lagos.
The contestants in the presidential poll include the incumbent, President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Mr Omoyele Sowore of the African Action Congress (AAC).
Others are Prof. Kingsley Moghalu (Young Progressive Party), Mr Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim (Alliance for New Nigeria), Mr Tope Fasua (Abundant Nigeria Renewal Party) and Mr Ade Byron (Kowa Party).
Mumuni said Nigeria’s leadership in the next dispensation must demonstrate sufficient will to tackle corruption, which had been the bane of the country’s underdevelopment and wide spread misery among its populace.
He said to this end, SERAP had developed the five-point anti-corruption commitments for presidential candidates in respect of security votes and power sector corruption.
According to him, the other commitments include, judicial corruption, establishment of special anti-corruption courts and removal of immunity for president, vice -president, state governors and deputy governors.
Mumuni said: “We expect that the electorate will demand their candidate’s commitment to these as part of the focal point of their campaign agenda.
“It is fortuitous in that it is coming at a time when corruption has assumed alarming dimensions in the public and private space.
“Most importantly so, at a time that we have political gladiators seeking in earnest for attention from the electorate.”
He said the document was part of SERAP’s contribution to not only guide the political leaders in their delivery of the social contract, but also to hold them accountable for their actions when they attain power.
Also speaking, Dr. Dele Seteolu, Lecturer, Department of Political Science, Lagos State University (LASU), said the commitments developed by SERAP were capable of setting Nigeria on the right path.
Seteolu noted that SERAP scheme of security, power, judicial based corruption, removal of immunity clause and creation of special courts were concise and meaningful attempts to engage state officials on the challenge of corruption.
According to him, the removal of immunity clause and the creation of special courts to adjudicate on corruption related offences were long overdue.
“There should be political pressure on the political class, especially the presidential candidates to foster legal processes that would lead to the creation of special courts and the extensive reforms of the judicial organ.
“The allegation of corrupt practices in the judiciary is mind boggling and creates fear in the public space on the prospect of earning justice at the courts.
“It is imperative to expose every corrupt judicial official for trial with a view to redeeming the bruised image of this organ,” he said
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, (SERAP) has asked Dr Muhammad Isah Acting Chairman of the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) and Professor Bolaji Owasanoye Acting Chairman of Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to “jointly investigate allegations of incompatibility and/or apparent conflict of interest situation, and abuse of office involving Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State in connection with the exercise of his public functions and leadership of the Rochas Okorocha Foundation, and to collaborate with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in any such investigation.”
The organization said that “Such investigation would help to improve public confidence in public authorities, and minimize the risks of bad government by public officials.”
In the petition dated 10 November 2017 and signed by SERAP executive director Adetokunbo Mumuni, the organization expressed “serious concern that Governor Okorocha may have spent over N1 billion of public funds to build statues of South African President Jacob Zuma and Liberian President Mrs Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf.”
According to the organization, “the spending on statues and apparent misuse of public resources may have violated constitutional provisions and international standards on code of conduct for public officers. The initiatives cannot be justified under any circumstances whatsoever, especially at a time when Imo state is unable or unwilling to pay teachers’ salaries and pensioners’ entitlements.”
The petition copied to Ibrahim Magu Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) read in part: “Inviting Zuma and Johnson-Sirleaf to attend the opening of his Foundation and then ‘honouring’ them with statues suggests abuse of office and apparent conflict of interest situation, as such acts were undertaken by Governor Okorocha in the exercise of his public functions to presumably promote and advance the commercial and other interests of the Foundation.
“SERAP believes that rather than serving the common interest of the public, spending over N1 billion possibly of public funds on Zuma and Johnson-Sirleaf in the context of their participation in the opening of the Rochas Okorocha Foundation would seem to put Governor Okorocha in a conflict of interest situation.
“SERAP notes that the Nigerian Constitution 1999 (as amended) and UN Convention against Corruption to which Nigeria is a state party prohibit conflict of interests and set ethical standards for public officers. Indeed, both the Constitution and the Convention require public officers to abstain from all acts that may compromise the exercise of their public office and functions, or are inconsistent with their entrusted positions.
“Public officers also must discharge their public duties truthfully and faithfully, abide by the constitutional code of conduct, observe the primacy of public interest, and not allow their personal interest to influence their official conduct.”
“The CCB and ICPC should carry out a joint investigation in collaboration with the EFCC of the allegations of conflict of interest, abuse of office and apparent misuse of public funds by Governor Okorocha. SERAP also urges the CCB and ICPC to prosecute Governor Okorocha after leaving office if there is relevant and sufficient admissible evidence of abuse of public office against him.
“Conflict of interest represents a situation where the person exercising a public function has a personal interest of patrimonial or commercial nature, which could influence the objective fulfilment of the duties incumbent on public officers under the Constitution and international standards.
“Conflict of interest arises from a situation in which a public official has a private interest which is such as to influence or appear to influence the impartial and objective nature of his or her official duties in order to promote private interests, which would be contrary to the public interest.
“According to reports, Governor Okorocha recently hosted two African presidents—South African President Jacob Zuma and Liberian President Mrs Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf and built statues in Owerri to ‘honour’ them. The statues reportedly cost over N1 billion to build. Further, a Memorandum of Understanding between the Zuma Foundation and the Rochas Foundation was signed, while Mrs Johnson-Sirleaf visited the newly established Rochas Foundation College of Africa (ROFOCA).”
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has sent an appeal to three UN Special Rapporteurs over the National Assembly’s plan to establish a commission that would “crackdown and monitor civil society organisations”.
A statement signed by the executive director of the group Adetokunbo Mumuni on Sunday said SERAP was seriously concerned that the bill was by far the most dangerous piece of legislation in the country.
Mumuni said this was in terms of its reach and devastating consequences not only for the work of civil society but the effective enjoyment of constitutionally and internationally recognised human rights of Nigerians.
He said the bill would adversely affect the country’s civil societies for generations to come and turn them into a government puppets.
He said the urgent appeal was sent to Ms Annalisa Ciampi, Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association.
Mumuni said the others were, Mr Michel Forst, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders and Mr David Kaye, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression.
He urged the rapporteurs to put pressure on the leadership of the National Assembly particularly the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Yakubu Dogara, to immediately withdraw the repressive bill to establish the commission.
He said the bill sought to monitor, supervise, de-register, and pre-approve all activities by civil society, labour, community based organisations, and the media, in the country.
SERAP called on the Special Rapporteurs to prevail on the Acting President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, to decline to sign the bill into law.
Mumuni also wants the House of Representatives and the Senate to exercise their legislative powers for good governance and ensure a safe and enabling environment for civil society organizations both in practice and rhetoric.
He urged them to do this in line with the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria as amended and the government’s international human rights obligations and commitments.
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“The sole objective of the House of Representatives is to weaken and delegitimise the work of independent and credible civil society.
““If adopted, the bill which is copied from repressive countries, would have a chilling effect not only on expressions of peaceful dissent by the citizens but also on the legitimate work of NGOs.
““It will also affect individual human rights defenders and activists scrutinising corruption in the National Assembly and exposing human rights violations by the government.
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“The bill if passed by the National and signed into law by Osinbajo would severely curtail the rights of all Nigerians to freedom of expression and freedom of peaceful assembly and association in the country.’’
Mumuni said the bill was a further path of closing civic space in the country, something witnessed only under military regimes, and has no place in a democratic Nigeria.
He said the bill was entirely unnecessary, as the work of civil society was already sufficiently regulated under existing legislation.
He said the legislations included the Companies and Allied Matters Act, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Act, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) Act and other similar legislation.
He said SERAP was also concerned that the proposed bill was coming at a time the members of the National Assembly were proposing amnesty and immunity for themselves.
He said the quest for immunity was against prosecution for corruption and other economic crimes.
He said the bill would also undermine both section 22 of the 1999 Nigerian constitution and article 13 of the UN Convention against Corruption.
He said these laws gave the media a critical role to ensure that the government, at all levels, is accountable to the citizenry.
Mumuni said the bill would subject Nigerians and civil society to extensive government control and interference negating the very essence of constitutionally and internationally recognized rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly.
He said SERAP believed that independent groups and activists should have space to carry out their human rights and anticorruption work without fear of reprisals, such as losing their registration or being sent prison.
“SERAP is concerned that by proposing this bill, Nigeria’s parliament is trying to immune itself from public criticism and scrutiny.
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“If this bill is passed into law, good governance, the rule of law and respect for human rights of Nigerians would become a farce in the country.
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“By gagging civil society from criticising the National Assembly and the government, the bill will undercut the rule of law, shrink civic space, and expose vulnerable Nigerians to greater level of injustice and repression.”
Mumuni said without a strong civil society in Nigeria, the problem of high-level official corruption and other cases of violations of human rights would go unaddressed, and perpetrators would continue to enjoy impunity.
He urged the authorities to rely on existing legislation which already regulate the work of these groups and to urge the National Assembly not to criminalise Nigerians for exercising their rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly.
The bill, which is sponsored by Umar Jibril Deputy Leader, (PDP-Kogi) seeks to establish a commission responsible only to the president and the senate to regulate the activities of CSOs. (NAN)
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged the Federal Government to recover the more than N40 billion so far received by ex-governors currently serving as senators and ministers.
A statement by Executive Director, SERAP, Mr Adetokunbo Mumuni, on Sunday said the politicians were already enjoying pensions and other privileges and ought not to receive further emoluments from the Federal Government.
It said that it had dispatched a letter to the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubakar Malami, to initiate steps toward the recovery of the funds.
“We urged Malami to urgently institute appropriate legal actions to challenge the legality of states’ laws permitting former governors currently serving as senators and ministers to enjoy serving governors’ emoluments as pensions.”
The organization expressed concern that many serving senators and ministers were receiving salaries and life pensions running into billions of naira from states that were currently unwilling or unable to pay workers’ salaries.
It said that double emolument and large severance benefits for former governors now serving public officials constituted a blatant betrayal of public trust.
It listed the beneficiaries as Dr Bukola Saraki (Kwara), Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano), Kabiru Gaya (Kano), Godswill Akpabio (Akwa Ibom), Theodore Orji (Abia),Abdullahi Adamu (Nasarawa), Sam Egwu (Ebonyi).
Also on the list are Shaaba Lafiagi (Kwara), Joshua Dariye (Plateau), Jonah Jang (Plateau), Ahmed Yerima (Zamfara), Danjuma Goje (Gombe), Bukar Ibrahim (Yobe), Adamu Aliero (Kebbi) and George Akume (Benue).
Others are Biodun Olujimi (Ekiti), Enyinaya Abaribe (Abia), Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers), Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti), Chris Ngige (Anambra) and Babatunde Fashola (Lagos).
“We are urging you to use your good offices as a defender of public interest, and exercise your powers under Section 174(1) of the Constitution of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).
“This is for you to urgently institute appropriate legal actions to challenge the legality of states’ laws permitting former governors, who are now senators and ministers to enjoy governors’ emoluments while drawing normal salaries and allowances in their new political offices.
“SERAP is also asking you to seek full recovery of over N40bn of public funds that have so far been received from those involved.
“We want you to begin to take these steps within seven days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter.’’
The group said failure to do this would make SERAP to institute legal proceedings to compel the discharge of constitutional duty and full compliance with Nigeria’s international anticorruption obligations and commitments.
SERAP noted that under the Lagos Pension Law a former governor would enjoy the following benefits for life: Two houses, one in Lagos and another in Abuja estimated to cost between N500m and N700m.
It said they also enjoy six brand new cars, furniture allowance of 300 per cent of annual salary to be paid every two years, and a close to N2.5m monthly as pension (about N30m pension annually).
It said he was also entitled free medicals with his immediate families as well as house maintenance, car maintenance, entertainment and utility allowances inadditon to several domestic staff.
It said in Rivers, the law provided 100 per cent of annual basic salaries for ex-governor and deputy, one residential house for former governor anywhere of his choice and one residential house for the deputy.
It said three cars were given to the ex-governor every four years; two cars for the deputy, 300 per cent of annual basic salary for furniture; and 10 per cent of annual basic salary for house maintenance.
It said Akwa Ibom law provided N200m annual pay to ex governors, deputies; pension for life at a rate equivalent to the salary of the incumbent governor/deputy governor respectively.
It said a new official car and utility-vehicle , one personal aide and provision of adequate security; a cook, chauffeurs and security guards were provided for the governor.
Others benefits include free medical services for governor and spouse at an amount not exceeding N100m for the governor per annum and N50m for the deputy governor.
It said the law also gave a five-bedroom mansion and allowance of 300 percent of annual basic salary for the deputy governor; 300 percent of annual basic salary and severance gratuity.
It said the Kano State Pension Rights of Governor and Deputy Governor provided for 100 percent of annual basic salaries for former governor and deputy as well as furnished and equipped office.
It said it also provided for a 6-bedroom house; well-furnished 4-bedroom for deputy, plus an office; free medical treatment for self and immediate families, two drivers; and a provision for a 30- day vacation within and outside Nigeria.
It said Gombe law gave N300 million executive pension benefits for the ex-governors while Kwara law gave a former governor two cars and a security car replaceable every three years.
The act also provided for a well-furnished 5-bedroom duplex, 300 per cent of his salary as furniture allowance and five personal staff.
The ex-governor and his deputy are also entitled to free medical care, 30 per cent of salary for car maintenance, 20 per cent for utility, 10 per cent for entertainment; 10 per cent for house maintenance.
SERAP said in Zamfara , former governors received pension for life, two personal staff, two vehicles replaceable, two drivers and free medical treatment for them and their immediate families in Nigeria or abroad.
Ex-governors in the state are also entitled to a 4-bedroom house in Zamfara, an office, free telephone and 30 days paid vacation outside Nigeria.
It said the Sokoto State law gave former governors and deputy governors N200 million and N180million respectively being monetisation for other entitlements which included domestic aides, residence and vehicles that could be renewed after every four years.
Mr. Adetokunbo Mumuni, Executive Director, Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), says the anti-corruption war of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration is on track.
Mumuni spoke in Lagos on Wednesday at the launch of SERAP’s latest report titled, “Combating Grand Corruption: An Agenda for Institutional Reforms in Anti-corruption Strategies”.
He faulted claims in some quarters that the anti-graft campaign was selective, saying anyone who flouted the nation’s laws was supposed to face the music.
Mumuni said: “This is my professional opinion as a lawyer and social rights campaigner. I believe that the war against corruption by this administration is on track.
“Until Buhari came along, nobody knew how much of our money was being stolen, especially in the guise of buying weapons to combat insurgency.
“So, it does not really matter if you belong to the All Progressives Congress or the Peoples Democratic Party; if you cannot account for over 2 billion dollars, then you deserve to face prosecution.”
He explained that corruption eroded confidence in, and respect for democratic institutions, and was as an obstacle to social, economic and human development.
Mumuni said the anti-corruption agencies in Nigeria, however, face challenges of inadequate legal framework and resources.
As part of SERAP’s recommendations, he urged government at all levels to provide stronger and more concerted approach to tackling grand corruption in Nigeria.
Mumuni urged the Attorney General of the Federation and those of the states to seek stiffer penalties for convicted corrupt officials and to minimise the use of plea bargaining to serve as deterrent.
Also speaking, Dr. Olajumoke Akiode, Director, Centre for Ethics and Sustainable Development, called for attitudinal change in the fight against corruption.
“Until the citizens come together and say `enough is enough`, we cannot win this fight against corruption,” she said.
On his part, Mr. Babatunde Ogala, a former member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, noted that undue pressure placed on politicians by their constituents had also contributed to widespread corruption in the country.
Ogala said, “Nigerian politicians are not measured by what they contribute to good governance but the assistance rendered to various individuals in their constituencies.
“So, the society itself invests in corruption and that it why a collective effort is required to address this issue.”
Some eminent Nigerians have urged President Muhammadu Buhari to heed the advice of his personal physicians by taking another medical leave immediately to attend to his health.
They gave the advice in a statement jointly issued on Monday and titled: “President Buhari Should Take Medical Leave Immediately.”
Those that made the call included lawyer and activists, Femi Falana (SAN); Senior Fellow at the Centre for Democracy and Development, Abuja, Prof. Jibrin Ibrahim; Executive Chairman, Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders (CACOL), Mr. Debo Adeniran; Senior Lecturer / Researcher, Centre for Peace and Security Studies, Modibbo Adama; lecturer at the University of Technology, Yola, Adamawa State, Dr. Chris Kwaja; Executive Director at Centre for Information Technology and Development CITAD), Dr. Y. Z. Ya’u and Country Director, Search for Common Ground, Mr. Chom Bagu.
Others are the Chairman, Human and Environmental Development Agenda, (HEDA), Mr. Olanrewaju Suraju; Chairman, Partners for Electoral Reform (PER), Ezenwa Nwagwu; Executive Director of Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), Mr. Anwal Musa Rafsanjani; Executive Director of African Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ), Rev. David Ugolor; a Senior Communication Officer (Policy) in the World Bank Group. Dr. Sina Odugbemi; National Coordinator, Procurement Observation and Advocacy Initiative (PRADIN), Mr. Muhammed Attah, and Executive Secretary, Socio Economic Rights Project (SERAP), Mr. Adetokunbo Mumuni.
The call was made following President Buhari’s absence at the last Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting and other state functions.
The statement reads: “When President Muhammadu Buhari was recently in the United Kingdom on a medical vacation, which lasted 59 days, many public officers said he was hale and hearty. But upon his return to the country President Buhari disclosed that he had never been that sick in his entire life.
“Even though the President did not disclose the nature of his ailment, he revealed that he went through blood transfusion. While thanking the Nigerian people for their prayers, the President announced that he might soon travel back for further medical treatment.
“A few weeks ago, the Governor of Kaduna State, Mr. Nasir El-Rufai urged Nigerians to give President Buhari time to recover from his sickness. The plea was made after the Governor had visited and presumably assessed the state of the President at the presidential Villa in Abuja.
“However, due to the apparent deterioration in the President’s health condition, he has neither been seen in public in the last one week nor attended the last two meetings of the Federal Executive Council. His absence at the last Jumat service in the Villa has fueled further speculations and rumours on President Buhari’s medical condition.
“But instead of embarking on regular briefing on the actual state of the health of President Buhari, officials of the Federal Government have continued to assure the Nigerian people that the is no need for apprehension over the matter.
“In defending the absence of the President at the last FEC meeting and other state functions, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Garba Shehu stated that the President’s doctors have advised on his taking things slowly, as he fully recovers from the long period of treatment in the United Kingdom some weeks ago.
“As we join the Nigerian people of goodwill to pray for a speedy recovery of President Buhari, we are compelled to advise him to heed the advice of his personal physicians by taking a rest to attend to his health without any further delay.”
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has advised the leadership of the Senate to immediately withdraw the summon it issued for Professor Itse Sagay, Chairman Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption to appear before the Senate committee on ethics, privileges and public petitions.
It described the summon as “unwartanted and unconstitutipnal”.
SERAP in a statement on Thursday signed by its executive director Adetokunbo Mumuni said that, “the Senate’s decision to summon Professor Sagay simply for exercising his right to freedom of expression is arbitrary, a travesty, mala-fide, and cannot withstand constitutional scrutiny.”
It said suppression of freedom of expression and public discussion is inimical to peace, order, good governance and the rule of law, and patently inconsistent with the Senate’s law-making and oversight functions.
The statement read in part: “The Senate is not immune from constitutional control simply because it’s a law-making body. In fact, the Senate has neither special immunity from the operation of the constitution nor special privilege to invade the constitutionally and internationally guaranteed right to freedom of expression of Professor Sagay or other citizens for that matter.
“The framers of the Constitution of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) would never have contemplated a legislative power without responsibility, and the Senate can’t continue to carry on in a manner that implies its law-making and oversight powers are not open to question. Therefore, its powers under the constitution ought to be exercised reasonably and responsibly, consistent with the fundamental notions of peace, order, good governance and the public interest.
“The human rights of Nigerians are secured against not only executive lawlessness but also legislative excesses. To trample on citizens’ freedom of expression is to thwart the ideals of representative democracy and the rule of law.
“The National Assembly is constitutionally empowered to make laws for the peace, order and good governance of Nigeria but recent events in the Senate would seem to stir the public anger. It seems curious that the Senate will be giving a raw deal to the heads of the two leading anti-corruption bodies in the country—Ibrahim Maguof the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and Itse Sagay of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption.
“All public institutions and figures are legitimately subject to criticism and political opposition. The Senate in particular and the National Assembly as a whole would do well to respect the inherent rights of Nigerians that are so fundamental to our constitutional structure. Democracy, constitutional supremacy, and the rule of law require no less. Indeed, no principle is more basic to any proper system of law than the maintenance of the rule of law itself”, it stated.
It recalled that Professor Sagay’s comment was a reaction to the Senate’s refusal to proceed with confirmation of 27 persons President Muhammadu Buhari nominated as Resident Electoral Commissioners.
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has condemned the N300 million mansion retirement benefits for immediate past governor of Edo State, Adams Oshiomhole, and his former deputy, Dr Pius Odubu, and called on governorGodwin Obaseki to “immediately withdraw the bill, and use the funds to clear the backlog of pension arrears spanning between seven and 45 months.”
This is contained in a statement by the right group on Thursday, following reports of amendment of Law for Pension Rights of the Governor and Deputy Governor by the Edo State House of Assembly, with the immediate past governor and deputy governor expected to be some of the beneficiaries.
The new amendment contains the provision of residential buildings worth N200m and N100m for the governor and his deputy at the expiration of their tenures. The bill also provides that the buildings could be sited in any location of their choice.
In the statement dated 17 November 2016, SERAP executive director Adetokunbo Mumuni said: “Coming at a time the Edo State government can’t even pay its pensioners and salaries of workers, the amendment by the Edo State House of Assembly is immoral, unfair, unconstitutional, unreasonable, and a rip-off on a massive scale. Governor Obasaki must reject this grotesque bill if he’s to fulfil his election promises and lift millions of Edo State pensioners out of extreme poverty.
“This so-called proposed legislation means that millions of Edo pensioners and workers will have to fund the massive and unjust pensions for former governor Oshiomhole and his deputy and others that will come after them.”
The statement reads in part: “Many of the retirees whose pensions have not been paid have been evicted from their apartments due to their inability to pay their rents. According to SERAP’s information, one of such retirees is Ihama Friday who at 60 is now squatting with friends. Another pensioner Osa-Aighobarueghia who retired as a headteacher continues to live a life of debts because the Edo State government has refused to pay her 30 months’ pension benefits.
“SERAP is aware that the Edo State government is not the only state passing such obnoxious pension laws to provide outrageous retirement benefits to former governors and deputy governors and that many of them are already in the National Assembly receiving multiple benefits and putting their personal bank accounts ahead of the common good. SERAP is finalising a comprehensive legal strategy to challenge these unjust laws and to name and shame those who continue to benefit from such laws.
“Nigerians should not be made to subsidise these bloated pensions and clearly undeserved perks. Governor Obaseki should not see disadvantaged Nigerians and poor pensioners according to Orwell’s Animal Farm dictum: ‘All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others’. Approving the amendment by the Edo State House of Assembly will amount to a fundamental breach of the governor’s constitutional oath declaration to serve the interest of justice, common good, transparency and accountability.
“SERAP is appalled by this apparently unfair and discriminatory law. There is absolutely no justification for such law at a time the pensions systems across the country are in poor shape, and pensioners continue to be denied the fruit of their labour. Former governors and their deputies can’t lawfully give to themselves a steady stream of public funds for life at a time millions of pensioners including in Edo State face cut to their pension schemes and remain in poverty without any state support.”
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has been sued over alleged “campaign of calumny against Mrs Dame Patience Jonathan using online, print and electronic media to publish to the public, unfounded and malicious allegations that she stole $15m and ought to be prosecuted.”
In a statement dated 20 October 2016 and signed by SERAP executive director Adetokunbo Mumuni, the organisation said: “On 18th October 2016 at about 3:00pm we received court papers dated 6th October 2016 from a bailiff. The papers indicate that one Union of Niger Delta Youth Organization for Equity, Justice and Good Governance suing for themselves and on behalf of Mrs Dame Patience Jonathan filed a suit number FHC/L/CS/1349/2016 before a Federal High Court in Lagos against SERAP.”
According to Mumuni, “the court papers also indicate a prayer for an order of interim injunction restraining SERAP from taking any further steps in further vilification, condemnation and conviction of the Former First Lady Mrs Dame Patience Jonathan, in all public media and in the use of the judicial process for that purpose by the extremely publicized pursuit of any application for the coercion of the Attorney General of the Federation to prosecute the Plaintiff/Applicant for owning legitimate private property, pending the hearing and determination of the Originating Summons.”
Mumuni also revealed that “the suit is seeking an order directing SERAP to stay all action and to desist forthwith from proceeding against Mrs Dame Patience Jonathan, with any process whatsoever, pending the hearing and determination of the Originating Summons. SERAP was also served a separate application to be joined in the suit number FHC/L/CS/1318/2016 earlier filed by SERAP against the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, over allegations of $15m unexplained wealth against Mrs Jonathan.”
In reaction to the development, Mumuni said, “SERAP categorically rejects these misleading and entirely unfounded accusations against us by Mrs Patience Jonathan and her group, and we will vigorously oppose the suit in court. SERAP will never, in the discharge of its mandates, succumb to any intimidation, harassment and attacks in any way, shape or form. We are now consulting with our lawyers and will be preparing shortly our defence in court.”
According to Mumuni, “At no time did SERAP suggest or even hint that Mrs Jonathan was guilty of the allegations against her. On the contrary, what SERAP has said is that the fact that the $15m found in the four accounts belonging to Mrs Jonathan, raises serious suspicion or at the very least a prima-facie case of unexplained wealth/illicit enrichment, and imposes an obligation on Mrs Jonathan to explain and justify the source(s) of the $15m.”
Furthermore, he noted that to be sure, SERAP is not engaged in any campaign against Mrs Jonathan or any other politically exposed persons for that matter. “Our suit was filed against the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Mr Abubakar Malami, SAN, and not Mrs Jonathan. It’s a joke to accuse SERAP of trying to coerce the Attorney General to perform his constitutional duty, as this is for the court to decide.
“SERAP consistently strives to ensure that its human rights and accountability work meet international standards and the highest standards of analytical rigor devoid of bias or assumptions as to individual’s guilt. Mrs Jonathan should end her attacks on an NGO simply working to make the government function to improve the conditions of millions of marginalised and disadvantaged Nigerians.
“Our work is driven solely by the fundamental principles of justice, impartiality, solidarity, universality of human rights, transparency and accountability in the management of Nigeria’s resources and wealth. We believe that it is through action that we have taken in this matter that the government can be motivated to live up to its commitments and to meet the expectations of Nigerians for good governance, human rights and the rule of law.”
SERAP quoted the court papers it received from Mrs Jonathan and her group as reading in part: “The campaign by SERAP is in breach of Mrs Jonathan’s right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty under Section 36(5) of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria (as amended). The action by SERAP seeks to coerce the Attorney General of the Federation to embark on a breach of the same right when the Attorney General is in a better position than SERAP and the Court to know whether or not there is any evidence of wrongdoing by Mrs Jonathan.”
“SERAP’s action is a blatant misuse of the processes of this Court. SERAP therefore no longer deserves to continue as an incorporated entity and ought to be dissolved. It is just and equitable to dissolve SERAP in the circumstances of this case. Damages will not be adequate compensation for the irreparable damage Mrs Jonathan will suffer if the application is not granted. The Plaintiff undertakes as to damages in favour of SERAP in the event the instant application ought not to have been granted.
“There has been a running battle between the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Mrs Jonathan with respect to the release of her legitimately earned funds which were deposited in accounts opened in the names of certain companies by one of her husband’s aides without her authorization.
“The funds in question were legitimate gifts from her friends and well-wishers over the last 15 years which she had been saving in order to utilize to upgrade family businesses and concerns which had been somewhat dormant by reason of the long period of her husband service as a public officer in Nigeria.
“The gifts were given in small contributions by several persons some of whom she cannot even now recall over this period of 15 years sometimes in as small a gift as N250,000 Naira. In order to preserve the value of these funds which she did not require for any purpose at the time she changed them into foreign exchange and kept them as cash for a long period in her home safe in Port Harcourt and Abuja.
“It was when the family home in Otuoke was burnt down by hoodlums under the instigation of political adversaries in 2010 that she began to think about banking these gifts which had now grown to large sums in United States Dollars. In 2010 she, therefore, summoned one of her husband’s domestic aids, Waripamo-Owei Emmanuel Dudafa to assist her in opening bank accounts into which the funds could be deposited.
“Unknown to her, the said Dudafa, in a bid to be discreet about the owner of the funds decided to bank the funds in the names of companies owned by him. When she discovered this she was constrained to continue with the names of the companies when she was advised that it did not make any difference as to the ownership of the funds since the director of the company would appoint her as sole signatory to the accounts in question.”
“When in 2016 Dudafa was arrested and detained she had no fear for the funds as she realised that the funds could not be attributable to him once it was discovered that she was the sole signatory to the said accounts. It was, therefore, a rude shock to her when she discovered that a no transaction order had been placed on the accounts by the EFCC in the belief that the funds belonged to Dudafa.
“She instructed her solicitors to further write to the EFCC to inform them that the funds belong to her and that they formed a part of her legitimate earnings over the last 15 years. It was this letter that was leaked by the EFCC to the media that became sensationalised and led to the plaintiff’s vilification and attack by ignorant persons who had no information about the matter.
“SERAP is playing to the public gallery in order to gain the notoriety it has achieved over the past years. SERAP has done this mostly by intervening in high profile issues without regard to the rights of persons it claims to protect. SERAP jumped into the fray of ignorant accusations being made against Mrs Dame Patience Jonathan in the public media and has begun a campaign of calumny against her using online, print and electronic media to publish to the public unfounded and malicious allegations that she stole the funds in question and ought to be prosecuted.
“SERAP has maintained this position, notwithstanding the fact that there is no evidence whatsoever by which Mrs Jonathan could be prosecuted for obtaining the funds through unlawful means. In furtherance of this campaign, SERAP, being in breach of its own objects for which it was incorporated, has continued to proclaim the guilt of Mrs Jonathan in the media and recently was widely reported in the news media to have commenced a self-serving action to attempt to coerce the Attorney General of the Federation to prosecute her.”
Sad fate of Nigerians suffering human rights abuses in South Africa
Pictures 1-5: Surging crowds of Africans seeking assylum in South Africa
On a chilly Thursday morning in October 2015, Emmanuel Okechukwu Osita, 56, stirred from the warmth of his bed around 4.15 am to brave the cold and fierce security detail at the South African Ministry of Home Affairs Refugee Reception Centre. Located in Johannes Ramokhoase Street in Marabstad, Pretoria, the country’s political capital, the refugee centre represented his only hope and access to his South African dream.
Hence, clad in a black sweater, faded blue jeans and worn-out trainers, Osita, a Nigerian seeking asylum in South Africa, set out of his Johannesburg residence to keep his appointment at the refugee centre.
At precisely 4:30am, Osita joined a host of other Nigerians in chartered buses, leaving for Pretoria for the same purpose. They left in a convoy and 45 minutes later, the motorcade revved to a stop in Marabastad, Pretoria. Osita and fellow asylum seekers arrived into a larger crowd of asylum seekers, who had queued up 30 minutes earlier for the same purpose.
However, because he could not have the patience to queue at the tail end of the crowd, Osita jumped queue and went straight to the entrance seeking preferential treatment. He hoped his graying beard and moustache would attract the sympathy of the guards manning the centre and controlling the crowd.
To his chagrin, Osita was not only embarrassed by his action, he received hot slaps from the South African guards manning the gates of the refugee centre. Afterwards, he was dragged through the crowd by two hefty security guards to the tail end of the queue.
By the time Osita was hurled to the ground by the guards, he was dizzy and weak from their assault. Few minutes after he was assaulted and dumped on the ground, the 56-year-old
rose to a sitting position; he rubbed his cheeks miserably, thereby smearing his face with the tears streaming down from his eyes. When this reporter approached him to speak to him, Osita stared emptily into the distance and sobbed disconsolately. By the time he gathered his wits together, he muttered: “How can Africans treat their fellow Africans in this manner?”
Osita’s fate symbolises a familiar narrative of the abuses suffered by thousands of Africans, including Nigerians, applying for asylum and residence permit at the South African Ministry of Home Affairs Refugee Reception Centre.
Every day, asylum seekers in South Africa are forced to endure the kind of rough treatment meted out to Osita by the South African guards at the Refugee Reception Centre after the expiration of their visas. The asylum seekers, who are usually between 18 and 60 years of age, arrive in South Africa from their native countries, including Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Zimbabwe and Cameroon.
For the foreigners, it is a weekly exercise meant for the fittest. When The Nation first visited the Refugee Reception Centre, a crowd of Nigerians besieged the building, seeking to gain entrance in order to legitimise their refugee status and obtain residence permit.
As the crowd surged like an ocean tide, a set of stern-looking security officers, employed by the Home Affairs Ministry to guard the Refugee Reception Centre, used electric batons and seven-foot long horsewhips to beat back the crowd. Some of the applicants fell out of the queue in fear of being flogged by the security guards; others determinedly stuck to their positions and braved the lashes in their desperation to legitimise their stay in South Africa.
Visibly clueless on how they could control the chaotic crowd, the security guards ordered the refugees to squat and sit on the bare ground. Some of them, who defied the order to sit on the ground, were slapped and flogged by the security officers before they were thrown out of the line. Others complied without the courage to protest.
Aduro, the war for refugee status
Like Osita, Moses Adeyinka, 24, is an uneducated artisan and had little means of sustenance while he was in Nigeria. He left for South Africa last December in search of the proverbial greener pasture. On arrival in Johannesburg, he found the city to be greener than Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, where he was based before he travelled.
His visitor’s visa was useful for only three months without work permit. Adeyinka however, does not intend to return to Nigeria soon having started to eke out a living as an apprentice at a barber’s shop in Yeoville Municipal.
Adeyinka is paying R1,000 ($69.4, N13,809.57) monthly for a room sublet to him by his friends, who rented a three-bedroom apartment in Yeoville Municipal. Although, he seems to be comfortable living with his friends at the moment, Adeyinka plans to rent a new apartment in order to have his privacy.
However, he needs to change his visa status and become a refugee to achieve his dream of staying in South Africa, which is why he applied for asylum in the country. After his bid to gain access into the office and personally apply for the asylum failed, Adeyinka became desperate. This is because he faces deportation, except he can get the permit in time in order to guarantee his continuous stay in his host country.
Adeyinka was among the crowd of Nigerian youths that besieged the gates of the refugee centre on October 22, 2015 struggling to gain access into the building to obtain the residence permit. Eventually, he managed to enter the building but he suffered bodily harm after he received lashes of horsewhip from the security guards at the gate.
By the time he came out of the asylum office around 4pm, Adeyinka had scars on different parts of his body. Sadly, despite his struggle to get into the building to file his asylum application, Adeyinka left without accomplishing the task. He left the refugee centre heart-broken. He was told to check back on another date for a fresh application because he could not afford the tip (bribe) requested by the officials to fast-track his application.
For him, coming back is not the problem; but, the accessibility to the Refugee Reception Centre remains his greatest challenge. “The struggle continues,” said Adeyinka as he moved westward the refugee centre in company of his friends whose asylum applications were turned down. “We don’t have other options; we have to come back for another round of beating and struggle,” he said.
Aduro, the legal permit
Although it is officially known as S22 Permit in South Africa, Nigerian asylum seekers call it Aduro – in Yoruba parlance, this literally translates to “We will stay.” With the permit, foreigners have legal rights to move freely in South Africa after the expiration of their visas. But, the document does not guarantee them an access to decent employment and other essential social services.
Without the permit, free movement within South Africa becomes difficult for foreigners. Besides, refugees who do not have the document are tagged Mulungu, a Zulu word which simply means “unwelcome foreigners” (although, Mulungu is also an offensive word used to call the white South Africans).
To get the stay permit, asylum seekers pay as high as R2,500 ($155, N30,700) to agents, who are mostly South Africans. Although the permit is given free of charge to asylum seekers who do not engage agents to assist them in getting it, it may take such applicants longer time to see the immigration officials for interview.
The agents pay R500 ($31) or higher as bribe to their contact immigration officers to hasten the process. This will facilitate stress-free interviews and accelerate the issuance of the permit.
Asylum seekers who pay for the permit are granted a three or six-month stay depending on the discretion of each immigration officer. The permit is renewable after its expiration but the immigration officers reserve the rights to grant extension of stay or terminate it.
Reasons for seeking Aduro
For most Nigerians residing in South Africa, socio-economic factors are major reasons why they leave the country. The abundance of basic infrastructure and better living conditions in South Africa are the major reasons why many Nigerian asylum seekers do not want to return after their visit to South Africa.
After exceeding the legitimate period granted them for their visit, most Nigerians in South Africa apply to become refugees. The Nation findings showed that 85 per cent of Nigerians seeking asylum in South Africa gave Boko Haram insurgency as alibi for their refugee status. They cited family problems, economic hardship and religious persecution as reasons for seeking asylum.
But even though the South African government grants asylum seekers temporary permit to reside in the country, the document prohibits the refugees from enjoying any decent employment.
Many of the Nigerians seeking asylum in South Africa engage in menial jobs, including street trading to survive. A few others resort to illicit businesses such as drug peddling and Internet fraud for their livelihood.
Revolt by the refugees
On Thursday, November 5, 2015, hell was let loose at the Refugee Reception Centre following hot arguments between some frustrated Nigerian asylum seekers and South African immigration officers. The confusion was caused by the preferential treatment accorded some applicants, who allegedly bribed the officials.
This reporter, who went undercover into the centre, watched as security guards and immigration officials led different groups of asylum applicants who paid bribe, to quicken their interviews.
Hundreds of applicants who could not afford to bribe the officials to hasten their interviews were ordered to sit on the ground in an open space. They watched helplessly as the guards and immigration officials led those who were able to do so into the interview section.
After sitting in the sun for four hours without doing anything, the asylum seekers rose in protest against the preferential treatment accorded their fellow refugees by officials. Arguments ensued and pandemonium broke out. The asylum seekers engaged the security guards and immigration officials in a free-for-all, leaving scores injured.
The situation was brought under control by dozens of policemen, who moved to the scene with about 100 vans and 10 helicopters. Some of the troublemakers were arrested by the police at the scene and whisked away.
An immigration officer, who identified himself as Japheth, said the riot was started by asylum seekers whose applications were refused based on unbelievable stories. He said many of the rejected asylum seekers cited Boko Haram insurgency as reason to become refugees. The South African government, he said, has a plan to deport more than 50,000 Nigerians who used Boko Haram insurgency as excuse to live in South Africa.
He said: “We don’t need this crowd to come here every week to renew or apply for asylum permit. We know what is going on in Nigeria. The Boko Haram is limited to the Northern part, but majority of Nigerians asylum seekers, who want to become refugees here did not live in the Northern part. We have started to reject people who are using Boko Haram as reason for becoming a refugee here.”
‘Make a plan’ the South African police parlance
“We don’t deserve this bad treatment,” said Caroline, a 26-year-old nursing mother, as she watched security guards whip fellow asylum seekers from Nigeria into line to control the crowd.
Caroline’s permit had just been extended for three months but she sat opposite the building with a baby strapped to her chest. She was waiting for her boyfriend, identified as Dennis, who was still struggling to get into the refugee centre.
Her four-month-old baby boy cried continuously in apparent discomfort after the struggle his mother just put him through. As Caroline made efforts to lull her baby to sleep, she spotted Dennis being whisked to a waiting police van. She screamed as her boyfriend received slaps from two hefty security guards, who held Dennis’ trouser firmly by the waistline. Before Dennis was hurled into the police van, Caroline ran to the scene to intercede but she was snubbed by the policemen, who quickly locked up Dennis in the mini-cell attached to the vehicle.
Dennis’ offence was that he attempted to shunt his way into the long queue of asylum seekers. The security guards picked him up when he was pushed out of the line by others in the queue and whisked him away. Few minutes later, he returned to the scene to force his way into the refugee centre. He was released after he “made a plan” with the police.
“Make a plan” is a simple expression used by the South African police to ask for a bribe from the asylum seekers. The “plan” starts from R300 and can go as high as R500 depending on the gravity of the offence and discretion of the policemen.
Aduro as a goldmine for South African officials
Investigation by The Nation showed that the refugees’ predicament has become a goldmine for some South African police and immigration officers who smile to the bank daily, as they profit from indiscriminate arrest of migrants living without refugee permits.
“There has been increase in street raid of foreigners by the police in recent times,” Jubril Mustapha, a Nigerian migrant living in Randburg, Johannesburg, said. The police, he said, engage in mass arrest of foreigners and ask for their permits. According to Jubril, immigrants whose visas and permits have expired are arrested by corrupt officers of the South African police and taken to quiet destinations to “make a plan.”
He said: “My house has been raided several times by different sets of the policemen, who usually raid foreigners with expired permit. Each time they arrest us, they would take us to quiet locations to negotiate our freedom. On each occasion, we pay money to get ourselves freed. I personally pay R300 to regain my freedom the last time I was arrested, because I did not want them take me to the deportation camp.
Foreigners, who refuse to bribe South African police after their arrest, risk being detained for long hours at the police station. The extreme punishment for failing to “make a plan” is deportation, which many migrants always want to avoid.
But Adeleke Moshood, 25, was not so lucky. He was arrested in Sunnyside area of Pretoria in March by two policemen, who raided the two-bedroom apartment in which he stayed with five other Nigerians. Having over-stayed his visit for four months and without plans to return to Nigeria, Adeleke could not get opportunity to apply for menial work, because he had no legal work permit.
However, he sought a livelihood by selling local herbs and gins, which he ordered from Nigeria. His profit from the business, which ranged between R600 and R800 monthly, was spent on rent and feeding. In a sweep of his residence, Adeleke was arrested and asked to “make a plan” of R1,500 for his release. His inability to make the payment led to his detention for two months at Lindela, South Africa’s deportation camp, before his family in Nigeria eventually sent flight ticket for his return.
The road to Lindela
Lindela is South Africa’s Repatriation Centre, where undocumented migrants of both gender are camped before deportation. It is located in Krugersdorp in Johannesburg and filled with asylum seekers who have lost their bid for asylum. The camp is packed with more than 6,000 detainees in a day, which makes it congested all the time. The bulk of the inmates are Africans from countries such as Nigeria, Zimbabwe, DR Congo, Liberia and Mozambique, among others.
After registration, the inmates are corralled into rooms fitted with iron bunks, with some having tattered mattresses and pillows. The deportees are welcomed by drooling dogs and unfriendly armed security guards, who yell orders as the inmates are marshalled to the admissions desk.
Despite its modern design, inmates say bed space is a privilege in Lindela, especially in the male wing of the camp, which is possibly occupied by about 5,000 inmates at a time. A single room can contain up to 18 inmates but some deportees, who spoke to this reporter, said there could be more than 60 inmates cramped in a single room at a time whenever there was mass arrest.
A former Nigerian detainee, Daniel Oladepo, said: “We were almost 60 in the room I stayed. Nobody had a permanent bed space; the first set of people who returned to the room early would sleep properly. Anyone who returned late would manage the little space left on the floor.”
The Nation gathered that most of toilets in the camp do not have functioning flushing systems that could make the inmates use them with ease. This poses health challenges to the detainees, who prefer to ease themselves indiscriminately. With inadequate health services in the camp, the inmates usually face dire health conditions and unhygienic problems.”
Dining time is irregular in the camp, with the first meal being served late in the morning. For most of the inmates, Lindela is their last location before being deported from South Africa. But, right inside the camp, The Nation gathered that some of the detainees can negotiate their freedom with immigration officials and security guards.
“When I was there, I knew people who were asked to pay R500 for their freedom,” said Adeagbo, who was deported last year.
Abuse of human rights of the refugees and asylum seekers
Article 1(A)(2) of the United Nations Refugee Convention of 1951 classifies a refugee as any person who, “owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or who, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence as a result of such events, is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it.”
The human rights abuse by South African officials is not a recent phenomenon, according to the former chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Diaspora, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa. To the ex-legislator, cases of human rights abuses in South Africa seem to have become norm, which Nigerian officials are afraid to confront.
“If we know how many Nigerians have died in the hands of South African officials in the last three years, you would know that these cases of human rights abuse are not new. As long as Nigeria does not intervene in cases like these on behalf of its citizens, South Africa will continue to have freedom to infringe on our citizens’ rights. Just a week ago, another Nigerian was gruesomely murdered in broad daylight by yet to be identified South Africans. We have heard no word from the Nigerian embassy there and that is how the matter would just die down like that.”
Dabiri-Erewa said Nigerians must respect the law of their host countries, but she described as “pathetic and inhuman” the maltreatment of Nigerians outside the country. She urged the Federal Government to take decisive action and intervene, adding that the “immoral action” would continue if the Nigerian officials do not take up the responsibility.
“We urge non-governmental organisations (NGOs) on human rights issues and African Union (AU) to intervene. I hope this will provoke necessary action from our officials to look into the matter,” she said.
Adetokunbo Mumuni, Executive Director, Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), a non-governmental organisation (NGO), told The Nation that South African authorities have failed to comply with international human rights obligations by blatantly refusing to address the refugees’ plight.
“SERAP strongly condemns the continuous unjustified abuse of migrants by South African policemen. SERAP is reminding South African authorities that all persons in South Africa share a certain set of basic human rights under international law, regardless of their immigration status. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights confers the great majority of the rights they enumerate to everyone. The declaration enjoins countries, including South Africa, to respect and ensure the rights they set out to all the individuals within their territory without discrimination,” he said. SERAP urged President Muhammadu Buhari to engage the South African government on human rights violations against Nigerians, while calling on the African Union to reprimand South Africa for maltreating asylum seekers.
South Africa’s silent response
Last month, The Nation contacted the South African government through its embassy in Nigeria for comment on the allegations by the asylum seekers. To this end, a letter dated December 11, 2015 was sent to the South African High Commission in Lagos.
The letter was physically delivered at the embassy by our reporter. It was acknowledged and received on behalf of the High Commissioner by a top officer of the embassy, who declined to give her name.
Two days after, the embassy called our reporter and re-confirmed receipt of the letter. The caller explained that the letter had been dispatched to Abuja for the High Commissioner’s response.
It’s over seven weeks since The Nation requested for the embassy’s response but there has been no comment from the High Commissioner or any official of the South African embassy.
Subsequent efforts by The Nation to reach the Nigerian authorities in South Africa have been unsuccessful. When The Nation called the Nigerian High Commission in Johannesburg last November, an official told our reporter to send the complaint via email to the High Commissioner. The email was sent to the High Commissioner on November 19, 2015, but there has been no response to the message.
