By Uche Onuorah
Falana said Nigeria should move beyond diplomatic protests
and seek legal remedies, arguing that repeated condemnations had not stopped
the reported attacks or produced justice for victims.
His call followed the reported killing of Nigerian cleric
Bishop Michael Taiwo Fakunle, who was shot dead at his home in Johannesburg on
4 September.
According to reports cited by Falana, Fakunle had received
threats before unknown gunmen attacked him at his residence. His killers have
not been identified or brought to justice.
A day later, another Nigerian, James Uchechukwu Nwankwo,
reportedly died following an alleged interrogation by officers of the South
African Police Service.
Falana, citing comments attributed to Nigeria’s High
Commissioner to South Africa, Femi Fani-Kayode, said the two deaths had raised
the number of Nigerians reportedly killed in South Africa this year to eight.
Four of those eight deaths were allegedly linked to South
African security personnel, according to the figures cited by Falana. He said
the wider situation was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.
Falana further claimed that more than 100 Nigerians had been
killed in South Africa between 2022 and 2026, with more than 30 allegedly
killed by members of the South African Police Service and Defence Force.
He said the absence of prosecutions or arrests in connection
with the reported killings raised serious questions about accountability and
the protection available to Nigerians living in South Africa.
“The response from Abuja has so far been limited to condemnation
of the latest killings,” Falana said, arguing that Nigeria had a constitutional
and international responsibility to protect its citizens.
He also pointed to a reported new deadline of 30 September
2026 for African nationals, including Nigerians, to leave South Africa,
describing the development as another reason for urgent government action.
Falana said the Federal Government could consider taking an
interstate case against South Africa before the African Court on Human and
Peoples’ Rights over the alleged failure to protect Nigerian nationals.
He noted that both Nigeria and South Africa were parties to
the African Charter and had ratified the protocol establishing the African
Court, creating a possible regional legal route for Nigeria.
According to Falana, Nigeria could challenge what he
described as the failure to properly investigate the alleged violations,
prosecute those responsible and provide effective remedies for victims and
their families.
He said Nigeria ratified the protocol establishing the
African Court in 2004 but had not made the declaration required under Article
34(6), which allows individuals and non-governmental organisations to bring
cases directly before the court.
Falana therefore urged the Federal Government to move beyond
diplomatic statements and make use of available regional legal mechanisms to
seek accountability and justice for Nigerians affected by the alleged abuses.
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