Gambiaj.com – (ABUJA, Nigeria) – The ECOWAS Court of Justice declared on June 6, 2024, that it lacks jurisdiction in a case brought by Retired Colonel Mohammed Sambo Dasuki. Dasuki had requested the Court to compel the Federal Republic of Nigeria to comply with and implement a judgment delivered by the Court on October 4, 2016, identified as Judgment No. ECW/CCJ/JUD/23/16.

In the judgment delivered by Judge Rapporteur Justice Sengu Mohamed Koroma, the Court ruled that it lacks the jurisdiction to entertain Dasuki’s application and dismissed it without cost.

Dasuki alleged that the 2016 judgment declared his arrest and detention unlawful, deeming it a violation of his rights under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

The Court had ordered the release of his seized properties and the payment of N15,000,000 in damages. He claimed that Nigeria’s failure to comply with this judgment prompted him to seek enforcement from the ECOWAS Court.

In response, the Federal Republic of Nigeria denied the allegations, asserting that Dasuki’s properties were involved in ongoing criminal proceedings within Nigeria, which Dasuki did not disclose. The Respondent argued that it had fulfilled its obligations and that the Court’s Chief Registrar had already issued a Writ of Execution, rendering Dasuki’s application unnecessary.

In its judgment, the Court noted that after thoroughly assessing the claims and the constitutive texts of the Court, it lacked the competence to adjudicate the present claim.

Consequently, the Court dismissed the application and provided a directive on the procedure for enforcement of its judgments, as enshrined in Community Law, and identified the proper party to bring a claim for non-enforcement.

The panel for this judgment included Hon. Justice Edward Amoako Asante, presiding, and Hon. Justice Ricardo Claúdio Monteiro Gonçalves, member.