The Federal High Court in Abuja, led by Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo, has dismissed a lawsuit brought by a Coalition of Northern Groups calling for the expulsion of Igbo people from the Southeast of Nigeria.
The suit, brought by a group of elders and politicians from the North, including Nastura Shariff, Balarabe Rufa’i, Abdul-Aziz Sulaiman, and Aminu Adam, was thrown out because the plaintiffs failed to attend court sessions or have legal representation.
Justice Ekwo noted that the Northern groups had not been attending court sessions since 2022 and lacked legal representation, leading him to conclude that they had abandoned their case.
The lawsuit aimed to compel the Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives to expedite the exit of the Southeastern region from Nigeria before the conclusion of the amendment of Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution.
The Northern group argued that allowing the Igbo to leave Nigeria would prevent violence and destruction in the Southeast, avoiding a repeat of the devastating 1967-1970 Civil War.
They also believed that this action would quell the agitation by members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), led by Nnamdi Kanu.
The plaintiffs requested the court to declare that Nigeria’s Constitution, along with international human rights laws, empowered the Southeastern region to decide on self-determination through a referendum.
They urged the court to instruct the Senate President, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the National Assembly to create a framework for the Southeastern states to achieve self-determination and leave Nigeria.
The plaintiffs argued that further amendments to Nigeria’s Constitution should only occur after resolving the question of self-determination for the Southeast.