German petitions EU, others over Nigeria’s failure to obey order for his release

By Eric Ikhilae, Abuja

 

A German businessman, Martin Gegenheimer detained by the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) since February 2020 has petitioned the European Union (EU), his country’s embassy in Nigeria and others over Nigeria’s failure to obey a court judgement ordering his immediate release.

According to the petition by his lawyer, Dr. Daniel Makolo, Gegenheimer arrived Nigeria on February 9 last year on a business visit and obtained the necessary approvals for visa on arrival and legally entered the country with his German passport, numbered: C93X6C4L6 via Kenya Airways flight KQ532.

The lawyer added that his client was officially issued with a month’s business visa, numbered: 0014938 by officials of the NIS at the Murtala Mohamed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.

“While returning to his base in Kenya on February 23, 2020 he was stopped at the boarding gate of Kenya Airways aircraft after all necessary departure formalities were completed.

“He was subsequently arrested, his German passport seized without retention receipt issued to him. He was not informed of the reason for his arrest and has been in detention in Nigeria since February 23, 2020,” the lawyer said.

Makolo stated that his client later sued the Nigerian government at the Community Court of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for unlawful detention and violation of his fundamental rights.

In its judgment on March 4, 2021 the court among others, found Gegenheimer’s arrest and detention unlawful and rejected Nigeria’s claim that he was being held in relation to certain criminal activities.

A three-man panel of the court, headd by its President, Justice Edward Amoako Asante ordered the Nigerian government to immediately release him, release his international passport and pay him costs totalling N63.7m and $10000 for the damages he suffered while being held under unlawful detention.

The court equally ordered the Nigerian government to remove the German’s name from its watch list and “to immediately and unconditionally release his German passport, which was arbitrarily and unlawfully seized by agents of the Nigerian government.”

Makolo, in the petition, stated that about two months after the judgment, neither the Nigerian government nor its affected agent, the NIS has taken steps to comply with the orders made by the court.

He prayed the relevant authorities to come to the aid of his client who is being unlawfully held by the Nigerian government despite a subsisting order of a court of competent jurisdiction for his release and the release of his passport.

Copies of the petition were also sent to the ECOWAS Commission, African Union (AU), the Nigerian Justice and Foreign ministers and the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).