The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged President Bola Tinubu to intervene in the Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike’s plan to shut down 34 foreign embassies in Abuja over unpaid ground rents.
SERAP warned that such action would violate international law and diplomatic conventions, citing Article 22 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.
SERAP emphasized that Article 22 of the Vienna Convention ensures the inviolability of diplomatic missions, forbidding their premises from being subject to search, requisition, attachment, or execution.
The embassies owe ground rents dating back to 2014, with the total amount standing at over N3.66 million. Some embassies owe as little as N150, while others owe over N1 million.
FCT Minister Nyeasom Wike ordered enforcement action on properties with unpaid rents, including embassies, on May 26. However, President Tinubu intervened, granting a 14-day grace period that expires today.
The FCTA’s Director of Land stated that defaulters would be liable to pay penalty fees of N2 million or N3 million, depending on the property’s location.
While acknowledging the importance of revenue collection, SERAP emphasized that measures must not contravene diplomatic protocols or international agreements
Some of the embassies listed as defaulters include those of Ghana, Thailand, Côte d’Ivoire, Russia, Philippines, Netherlands, Turkey, Guinea, Ireland, Uganda, Iraq, Zambia, Tanzania, Germany, DR Congo, Venezuela, Korea, Trinidad and Tobago, Egypt, Chad, India, Sudan, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Indonesia, the European Union, Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, China, South Africa, and Equatorial Guinea.
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