Senate Rejects Transfer Of Bakassi To Cameroun

I was so happy when I heard the news. couldn't just imagine that you are a Nigerian while your folks say, Father, Grandfather, etc are buried in their ancestral land in another country, and Cameroon of all countries. I sympathize with Bakassians. We have to claim our land back, no for the oil alone but to allow our fellow country to rest in peace and not to be desecrated by some Cameroonians who might really not appreciate Bakassi except for the oil it has.

So what is the next move of the Senate about Bakassi? Bakassi people even wants their own Independent as they said they can not be part of cameroun, since Nigeria has refuse them then they are calling themselves  REPUBLIC OF BAKASSI.

Even Cameroun today is devided over the issue of bakassi people calling for their own independent,some Top Government officials support them while others are against them. So at last we can see that the West has succeded in Using OBJ to creat War in Bakassi,something Mugabe of Zimbabwe can not agree with the West

This is the kind of mindset that cost us Bakasi

When you are going to any negotiation table you don't start showing a lukewarm attitude or develop any kind of cold feet

The priority of those negotiating from Nigeria's point of view was simply to avert war not to keep Bakasi. If your opponents see such fear they will simply capitalize on it hence why Cameroun and France were so quick to deploy war ships at our borders.

Nobody likes wars, trust me Cameroun does not like war anymore than we do.

When diplomats say they will use any means necessary, or that all options are still on the table,  it does not mean they are ready for war, it is just to remind your opponents the consequence of being irrationally disident.

But in our case before we go negotiate with Cameroun we first talk how we are afraid of war with our neighbours and brothers. A brotherhood Cameroun hardly believe's in.

yewa-man,
i have interest in two topics that you have raised here,
1. senate cannot make single decission for nigeria- who will make the single decission? Obj i guess?
2. bakassi does not belong to nigeria- then who is the owner? cameroun? how?

am not challanging your opinions rather i want to know. are there other stories behind bakassi apart from the issue of Gowon giving it to them to block the biafrans from using it as an operational root during the biafran civil war?

did obj seek the consent of the senate when he handed over the land to cammeroun or were u not aware he was doing everything possible to get the consent of the international communities in his inordinate ambition to succeed himself via third term?

what if Ojukwu had accepted china's conditions to help biafra then, will cammeroun stand china? what if biafra happens to get the independent she is struggling for? will cameroun say someone else (nigeria) gave out something(land) belonging to another person(biafra). is it possible that nigeria will take a land belonging to togo and give it to ghana.
it was a war stragtegy used by gowon to get the help of cammeroon but if biafra finally succeeds, i bet u, they will regain bakassi even if the senate fails now.

I think a lot people on this forum are either plain stupid or out of tune with the world politics. I blame that bastard, ugly son of a "biach" OBASANJO(may the wrath of lord be upon him and his family). No nation and i repeat No nation should let her citizen suffer or abandon her obligation in protecting her  borders. WE own bakassi simple and straight and we must do all it takes to get it back. It is more annoying that with our strength and capability, we can't even flex our muscle in Africa.

We should be ready to show the world that we can bite as well, we are laughing stock of all nations.We are 419 of the world, we are the less educated,we are the dirty and corrupt nation.  God when is this going to end?.  For once  lets unite as a nation and fig th for our right, i don't give a sh**it about France, we can give china free oil and promise them some percentage of bakassi and lets see how powerful france is.

I am ready and willing to fight for my dear nation, if i am call up today, i swear i will leave UK and come once. People all over the world stand for what they believe but in Nigeria we call ourself the "big brother of Africa"  big brother my as***s. If this is the only chance to show we can flex our muscle so be it.  in this modern world a great nation is a nation that can show is military and economic power.

I have nothing more to loose if we go to war because my girlfriend who accidentally is from cameron just left me because i am serious and really passionate about this topic. I don't care if goes, infact i have started my own bakassi war.

Chei, Naija bravado is killing me here , being big has nothing to do with flexing muscles and proving any damn point. Did you know that it costs more to wage a war than to implement development projects? Countries like Germany and Japan are still paying world war 2 bills. So what, your cameroonian babe dumped you, is that enough for you to clamour for war? How much more shallow can we get? There are openings in "operation restore hope", send your CVs, I'll make sure you're all drafted, albeit with full Naija army G.I complement.

Thread of a thousand laughs if you ask me , !!

LOL that is the greatest joke of the day


Back to topic

I heard Prince Bola Ajibola saying he spent 22yrs of his life making sure Bakasi is handed over to Cameroun peacefully. He should consider those 22yrs as wasted years.

No one else has the solution to this problem than the Bakasi people, they should be allowed to decide their own Nationality whether Nigeria, Cameroun or Bakasi Republic.

@Debosky
You need to understand Nigeria better. I can boldly say that NO NIGERIAN ETHNICITY WANTS TO SECEDE. If we all understand the clamoring of OPC, MASSOB, MEND etc there is one unifying cry for equity and justice. Even the Biafran war was a fight of survival. The underlying problem is giving every Nigerian a sense of belonging.
I am an Igbo man from the same town as Ikemba (Ojukwu). The Igbos have a greater interest in the continued existence of Nigeria. The Igbos are always the second larget group in most town in Nigeria after the Indigenous people. Even in Gembu, Illela there are large Igbo communities. Igbos are the most intermarried, with numerous business interest outside Igbo land. The Igbos also have majority of their properties outside the SOuth east. A recen newspaper report claimed that the Igbos have most properties in Abuja. We need not mention Lagos. How then does any truthful Nigerian think the Igbos can't be trusted because they want Biafra. Biafra is a name of consolation. It is a rallying point. It is a cry for fairness, equity and justice which is Nigeria's motto. It evokes the same feeling of nostalgia as Jerusalem does for the Jews.
I seem to have digressed a lot, but the issue is that all Nigerians want restructuring. Everyone wants to be in Nigeria because it is the best option for all, including Bakassi. Nigeria is truely a land of freedom or some may call it lawlessness. Bakassi is not about emotions. Bakassi should be a common rallying point for Nigeria. Lets use it as a true foundation for our unity. This is the time Nigeria truely needs to defend its unity unlike the genocide commited in the name of the Nigerian-Biafra war. I believe that most Nigerians are not patriotic because there is absolutely no unifying factor. In the worst scenario, going to war with Cameroon should offer us the opportunity of having true heroes whose death or life would truely be worthwhile, unlike what occured in 1967-70.

who the hell is the ICJ. Why should we actually. listen to them.some white judges telling us what to do. what they hell. i don't know if bakassi actually belongs to nigeria but our decision should not be based on ICJ's ruling. get them off our land man! if they want war, what the hell is the armed forces for? nigeria has to use some sense and not play the weak kid. USA does whatever the see is best for its citizens. they don't take orders so why should we. its a doggy doggy world man! so act like a dog in the jungle.

I have been watching with keen interests what you guys are saying

But i have drawn a line now
I went on camerounian forums to see their response and men they are all in support of the nigerian parliament.

here's a link

http://www.topix.com/world/cameroon/2007/11/nigerian-senate-wants-bakassi-transfer-halted

and on the attack
http://www.topix.com/world/cameroon/2007/11/nigeria-group-claims-responsibility-for-cameroon-killings

So are they taking Bakassi back?

Many of those in the affected area of the country or many of those in areas that are not even close to the affected area??

something is common in this bakassi issue, gowon, obj and ajibola - i think they are all from yoruba.
gowon gave up bakassi to make sure there will not be any form of aid flowing from there into the then biafra. obj made a fool of himself because he wanted the support of the international communities in his third term bid so ajibola a brother to the above two must be traced to something.
if one will look at all these, what is the relationship between the bakassi people and the yourubas? if witnesses are needed in the areas of nigeria's boarders with cameroun, will the yorubas be the ones to testify?
the uttah guru made a lot of mistakes and bakassi is one of them. the senate deserves the support of nigerians on this issue.
someone rightly said that it is expensive to rebuil after a war so that serves good enough reason for us to give up to anyone who shows interests.
we must be reminded that if cameroun succeeds in taking bakassi benin, togo and ghana will soon indicate their interests in part of nigeria and then it maybe lagos or abuja and to avoid war, we will give in to their demand.
it is obvious that most times, war remains that most effective way of getting a lasting peace.

By western standards of democracy the ownership of the land is determined by the inhabitants of the land.

Obasanjo made a massive mistake ceding Bakassi to Cameroun. if I were in his position, as soon as the International court gave the ruling I would have said something like "Nigeria is a democratic and law abiding nation, therefore everything we do much be within the laws and democratic principles of Nigeria. I was elected into office based on the laws and constitution of Nigeria and I derive my presidential powers from them, therefore the laws and constitution of Nigeria take precedence over International law. Bakassi can only be ceded by modifying the Nigeria constitution, if that is what the Indegenes want. I have therefore ordered a referendum be held in Bakassi ASAP and promise to do everything within my powers to persuade the national assembly to change the constitition, if the people of Bakassi decide to join Cameroon.

The Bakassi people would have voted 100% to stay in Nigeria and that would have given Nigeria, in the eyes of the west, the right to Bakassi. The united Kingdom today owns Northern Ireland, which used to be part of, and is still being claimed by, the Republic of Ireland, because the people of Northern Ireland prefer to be within the UK. The UK also owns the Falkland Ireland, which is thousands of miles away from the UK itself and close to Argentina, because the residents of the Falklands see themselves as British. The same applies to the rock of Gilbrataar which is closer to and claimed by Spain.

bibiking1, it is better to ignore and disobey the ICJ than to act illegally against your nations constitution. Where there is a conflict between the ICJ and a nation's constitution, the latter takes precedence. Was it the ICJ that put Obasanjo in power? Was it the ICJ that prevented OBJ from running for third term? Never ignore the hand that feeds the mouth. ICJ only exists because it was setup by nations that where themselves established and governed by constitutions.

It is only in Africa that a President can single handedly hand over a part of their nation with consulting or getting approval from the people or the national assembly. In the developed world Obasanjo would have been tried and probably jailed for that.

In as much as this debate is apparently very serious,I can't but help point out the comic aspects that tend to overshadow all else.

THERE IS NO GLORY IN WAR, ONLY DEATH!! Too many of us have grown up watching FICTION like "Tears from the sun" and "Saving Private Ryan". With all the attendant CGI effects and masterful casting of Jerry Bruckheimer and his ilk, we feel we can just grab an assault rifle and kill off people to UNIFY ourselves? What a barrel of tripe!! How many of u would-be commandos have ever heard the rattle of a machine-gun? Or ever lived with the burden of taking a life? Or seen the suffering of women and children that you all claim we would be fighting to preserve? Forget all the glamour and romance hollywood sells to us as movies.

That we abide by the rule of law, doesn't take away one shred of our sovereignty or debase our nationhood, rather it strengthens it.

Already the Naija factor has already kicked in, with someone apportioning blame to Yoruba, Hausa and Ibo, as if that has ANYTHING to do with ANYTHING. In the event of war, Cameroon doesn't even need to mobilize her entire force, our inner wrangling will create a FIFTH COLUMN and we will self destruct.

War? Kai, I'm still in shock here