In a significant ruling on Friday, the Community Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), dismissed a case filed against the Federal Government of Nigeria regarding the assassination of Kudirat Abiola, wife of the late Chief M.K.O Abiola, the winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election.
The suit was filed by three members of the Abiola family, Khalifa Abiola, Moriam Abiola, and Hadi Abiola, who alleged that Kudirat Abiola’s rights were violated when she was assassinated in 1996 while advocating for her husband’s release from detention.
According to the applicants, the Nigerian government allegedly breached Kudirat Abiola’s fundamental human rights by neglecting to hold her killers accountable, despite a Commission of Inquiry identifying Sergeant Barnabas Jebila as a key suspect.
In a ruling delivered on Friday, Judge Rapporteur Justice Edward Amoako Asante said the applicants lacked the legal capacity to sue, having failed to establish a direct relationship with Kudirat or present any legal mandate to act on behalf of her estate.
The court rejected Nigeria’s objections regarding its jurisdiction in the case with suit number ECW/CCJ/APP/62/22, affirming its competence to hear cases involving alleged human rights violations by member states.
It further clarified that its mandate does not empower it to act as an appellate court, overturning decisions made by national courts.
The ruling was delivered by a panel of judges, including Hon. Justice Sengu Mohamed Koroma (Presiding), Hon. Justice Gberi-bè Ouattara (Member), and Hon. Justice Edward Amoako Asante (Judge Rapporteur).
Kudirat Abiola, a prominent Nigerian pro-democracy activist, was born in 1951 in Zaria, Kaduna State.
She got married to Abiola in 1973.
After the 1993 presidential election annulment which her husband won, Kudirat became a vocal advocate for democracy and human rights in Nigeria, working tirelessly to promote her husband’s cause and challenge Gen. Sani Abacha’s military regime.
Tragically, Kudirat was assassinated in Lagos on June 4, 1996, sparking international outrage and condemnation.
Persecondnews reported that Nigeria’s former Head of State, retired General Ibrahim Babangida, had on February 20, 2025, at the launch of his memoir in Abuja declared that the late Chief Abiola was the winner of the June 12, 1993, presidential election.
He apologized over the annulment and asked for forgiveness, blaming the unfortunate incident on the late Gen. Sani Abacha, some officers and Northern emirs.
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