The Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has ordered the Nigerian government to pay a German national, N53,650,925 as special damages for various losses suffered and costs incurred while under unlawful arrest and detention by the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS).
The costs, the court said, relate mainly to hotel expenses incurred by the German, Martin Gegenheimer, while under forced detention by the Nigerian government.
The court further ordered the Nigerian government to pay him another N10m in general damages as reparation for all violations and moral prejudice suffered for the violation of his rights, and addition $10,000 being the expenditure incurred by the applicant to secure his bail.
In the judgment delivered by a panel of three judges, headed by the court’s President, Justice Edward Amoako Asante, the court equally ordered the Nigerian government to remove the German 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.
The court however ruled that it found no evidence of the violation of the plaintiff’s right to freedom from torture.
The court rejected the counter-arguments and preliminary objection filed against the suit by the Nigerian government, through its lawyer, Mallam J.A, Adamu.
The judgment was on the suit marked: ECW/CCJ/APP/23/20, filed for the German by his Nigerian lawyers, Festus Ogwuche and Daniel Makolo.
The German, who is married to a Nigerian citizen but based in Nairobi, Kenya, stated that he legally entered Nigeria for business purposes, on the invitation of a firm, SAT Swiss Aviation Nigeria Ltd.
He contended that he was wrongfully arrested and detained while on his way back to Kenya resulting in the violation of his rights to fair hearing, freedom of movement and dignity of his human person.
The applicant added that he had lived in and outside Nigeria and carries on business in Nigeria, Kenya and Africa at large since 1990 and was requested to come to Nigeria for business negotiations so he obtained the necessary approvals for visa on arrival to legally enter Nigeria.