Mohammed Shosanya
President of the Nigerian Bar Association,Yakubu Maikyau SAN, has clarifiied on the raging issue that lesbian, gay rights etc are contained in the recently signed SAMOA Agreement entered into by Nigeria.
There has been criticisms in Nigeria that Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ)
protection rights are pre-condition in the agreement before the country will access an alleged loan facility to the tune of $150,000,000, 000.00 (One Hundred and Fifty Billion USD), only.
In a statement on Tuesday,the body’s President said there is nothing like lesbian, gay rights in the agreement.
“Contrary to the narrative being propagated either due to ignorance of the content of the agreement or, a deliberate intention to mislead the public (neither of which is good), I wish to state that there is no provision in the SAMOA agreement which requires Nigeria to accept or in anyway recognise LGBTQ or gay rights, either as a pre-condition for a loan of $150 Billion USD of at all.
“Instead, the agreement was expressly made subject to the local laws and the sovereignty of the contracting Nations.
“That is to say, the SAMOA agreement recognises, for instance, Nigeria’s Same Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act, 2023 and of course, the Supremacy of the Consutution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).
“If this were not the case, the NBA would have since advised the Federal Government not to enter or engage in any form of partnership or agreement that has the ability to undermine the sovereignty of our nation in anyway.
“For avoidance of any doubt, the SAMOA agreement does not, in any way, seek to compromise our existing legislations nor undermine the sovereignty of Nigeria” the NBA President added.
Maikyau implored all stakeholders, who had the opportunity of engaging with Government on the agreement prior to its execution, and others who have read and understood the objective of the agreement to endeavour to educate the public on its true content.
He emphasized the need for caution and proper education of the public on the issue as the negative narratives on the agreement are being pushed and propagated along very sensitive lines of faith, culture and morality.
He said prior to the signing of the SAMOA agreement, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning sought the Association as a major stakeholder in the polity, to look at the agreement.
He stated that a committee was set up by the NBA to vet, evaluate and advise on the agreement accordingly.
The SAMOA Agreement (named after the Central South Pacific Ocean country of Samoa, where the agreement was signed), is a broad legal framework between the European Union (EU) member states and more than half of the 79 members of the Organisation of African, Carribbean, and Pacific States (OACPS).
It is meant to serve as a basis upon which subsequent specific agreements can be negotiated between the European Union and the Federal Government, its sub-nationals and/or the private sector.
The agreement covers six (6) main areas, namely: democracy and human rights, sustainable economic growth and development, climate change, human and social development, peace and security, and migration and mobility.