The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) should not shut down embassies due to non-payment of ground rent, according to activist lawyer Femi Falana.
If the FCTA, headed by Minister Nyesom Wike, were to lock off Nigeria’s embassies in Abuja, a major diplomatic crisis would ensue, Falana said.
The FCTA has begun the process of sealing off premises due to non-payment of ground rent at Wike’s directive.
President Bola Tinubu stepped in after the public was outraged by the process. A two-week grace period for non-payers was subsequently declared by Wike.
“No court of law can order that execution be levied on any embassy, and Nigeria is part of the international community,” Falana added on Monday’s Politics Today on Channels Television.
There will be a major diplomatic crisis for Nigeria if we invade any country’s embassy. It’s against the rules. Actually, it makes no difference what kind of crime is being pursued; if the individual being pursued is capable of climbing the fence of an embassy, the police officer cannot enter the embassy.
The non-payment of ground rent makes it impossible to assault embassies and missions that are covered by the Vienna Convention of Diplomatic Relations. It would cause major diplomatic issues for Nigeria if we invaded the embassy of any country.