The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project Nigeria has urged President Bola Tinubu to direct the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, to withdraw the threat to shut down 34 foreign embassies in Abuja over ground rent debts.
The group’s reaction followed recent revelations by the FCTA that at least 34 embassies in Abuja owe rents for as far back as 2014.
Among the embassies listed are those of Ghana, Thailand, Equatorial Guinea, Côte d’Ivoire, Russia, Philippines, Netherlands, Turkey, Guinea, Ireland, Uganda, Iraq, Zambia, Tanzania, Germany, DR Congo, Venezuela, Korea, Trinidad and Tobago, Egypt, Chad, India, Sudan, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Indonesia, the European Union, Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, China, and South Africa.
SERAP, in a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Monday, warned that allowing Wike to carry out the threat would violate international law and diplomatic conventions.
The group said, “President Tinubu should urgently caution and direct the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, to immediately withdraw the threat to close down 34 embassies in Abuja. Article 22, paragraph 1, of the Vienna Convention states that ‘the premises of the mission shall be inviolable’.
“Article 22, paragraph 3, sets out that ‘the premises of the mission, their furnishings and other property thereon and the means of transport of the mission shall be immune from search, requisition, attachment or execution’”.
In a directive issued on May 26, Wike had ordered enforcement action on 4,794 properties with unpaid rents ranging from 10 to 43 years.
While commenting on the issue, the FCTA’s Director of Land, Chijioke Nwankwoeze, had stated that depending on their location, the defaulting embassies and other defaulters would pay penalty fees of N2 million or N3 million.
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