How We Make Our Politics Others’ Business

By Alabi Williams / Posted 25 August 2025

No hiding place for bad behaviour. That is the innocuous message a federal court in Canada, quietly passed to members of Nigeria’s political class, when it upheld the opinion of that country’s Immigration Appeal Division (IAD), that our leading political parties nurture terrorist acts. Perhaps, also embedded in the message is the indication that friendly countries are still interested in democratic stability and growth in Africa’s most populous country.

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Recall that in the decades the military held sway and denied citizens their right to elect leaders in free and fair processes, friendly countries, including Canada, actively supported pro-democracy effortsand campaigns to push the military back to the barracks. Whether that has earned these countries the latitude to comment on our politics is open for debate. Some have wonderedwhether Canada has any legal capacity to poke nose into the internal affairs of political parties in Nigeria, no matter how hopeless.

THE CONTEXT

Let it be understood, that the circumstances that brought up Nigeria’s political parties for opprobrium in Canada was not a direct spat between the two friendly countries. As the story was narrated, a certain Douglass Egharevba, who arrived Canada in September 2017, had initiated an inland refugee claim. In his application, he submitted a Background Declaration Form, where he identified as a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of Nigeria, from December 1999 until December 2007, and a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), of Nigeria, from December 2007 until May 2017.

He was then referred to a Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) officer to determine his admissibility in Canada, in September 2018. He confirmed his membership of PDP and APC in an interview with the CBSA officer. In January 2019, it was declared that the applicant was not admissible to Canada, according to the country’s laws, because he belonged to PDP and APC, organisations that engage in acts of subversion and terrorism.According to the story, Egharevba challenged his rejection before the Immigration Department.

On September 23, 2020, the Department averred that the applicant could not be considered inadmissible because there was no sufficient evidence to prove that the leadership of PDP and APC intended to cause serious bodily harm or subvert the democratic process in Nigeria. Moreover, there needed to be evidence of the internal structures of PDP and APC and the extent to which their alleged terrorist actions affected individual members. The matter was then referred to the country’s Immigration Appeal Division (IAD).

On March 25, 2024, the IAD, according the report, heard the appeal and concluded that the applicant could not be admitted to Canada on security grounds, for being a member of a political organisation, for which there are reasonable grounds to believe had engaged or will engage in acts of subversion and terrorism. The IAD noted that though there was no evidence that Egharevba had personally engaged in terrorism or subversion, but that there were reasonable grounds to believe the PDP engaged in terrorism or subversion. A review was initiated at the Federal Court of Ontario.

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During the review, the court noted that: “The IAD concluded that the PDP engaged in political violence and subversion, including ballot stuffing, ballot box snatching, voter intimidation, violence and murder of opposition supporters and candidates in the 2003 elections… The conduct of individuals who are members of the PDP, including high-ranking officials, and those who committed political violence and intimidation on their behalf is too widespread and persistent over too great a period of time to dissociate the leadership of the party from their actions. The applicant’s membership of PDP was sufficient to link him to these acts for the purpose of inadmissibility…

“The IAD also found that the leadership had a high degree of control over its members as evidenced by the applicant’s testimony before the IAD, that he left the PDP because the leadership imposed their own candidate, overriding the decision of the applicant’s local ward. The IAD declined to make a finding on whether the applicant is also inadmissible for his membership in the APC as the evidence on the PDP was sufficient and determinative.”

To cut the long story short, Judge Phuong T.V. Ngo, ruled that IAD’s conclusions were transparent, intelligible and justifiable. Egharevba’s application for review was therefore dismissed on June 17, 2025, after what was clearly a thorough and fair process that spanned eight years. So, it is not a case of Canadians being jobless they decided to make the mess in PDP and APC their headache.

The Canadian immigration system simply acted on stories narrated by Egharevba, some of which may have been exaggerated to justify his argument of running from political persecution at home. Egharevba must have presented luriddetails of violence, including newspaper clippings and video evidence. But it backfired.

THE REACTIONS

The Federal Government, as expected, frowned on the labelling of political parties in the country as terrorist organisations, apparently without due consideration of the background that led to the development. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the designation is baseless. In a statement by its spokesperson, Kimiebi Ebienfa, the government added that it was reckless and constituted an interference in the internal affairs of the country.

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The statement said: “The larger ramification of the decision is that every member of the mentioned political class is a potential terrorist, and that is completely false and unacceptable. Nigeria is a sovereign nation with a robust legal and constitutional framework governing political activities. Our political parties operate within the ambit of the law and are integral to the country’s vibrant democracy.

“To associate legitimate political entities with terrorism without evidence is a grave misrepresentation that undermines Nigeria’s democratic institutions and could incite unnecessary tension. The Federal Government of Nigeria therefore calls on the Canadian authorities to immediately retract the erroneous designation and refrain from actions that could be misconstrued as endorsing politically motivated narratives against Nigeria.”

The APC, in their response would rather blame the media for amplifying the terrorism tag. The National Publicity Secretary of APC, Mr Felix Morka, said his party was erroneously and mischievously misrepresented as a terrorist organisation.

He said: “The court did not make such a declaration, and could not have done so, as that would be an unjustifiable overreach, and a major breach of fair hearing, among other rights, given that APC was not a party to the proceedings. Such a decision would also have been of absolute irrelevance as being made without jurisdiction, and of no extraterritorial applicability or significance.”

Apparently, Morka had also not settled down to consider the entire story. He has no idea what evidence Egharebva presented to convince the Canadian immigration authorities that violence and subversion are part and parcel of the party system in Nigeria. He was quick to defend his political party, rather than be worried that we do not have good political character to export.

On its part, the PDP, the main culprit in Canada’s terrorism tag has nothing meaningful to say. The party is experiencing internal terrorism and banditry, in the hands of those who are choreographed to scourge it.

Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Femi Falana, has tasked the PDP and APC to prove that they are not terrorist organisations. In a statement, the lawyer urged the parties to address the serious concerns raised, instead of dismissing the Canadian judge’s pronouncements.

He said: “It is common knowledge that APC and PDP rig elections and announce fake results with assistance of armed thugs, police and military personnel… Instead of abusing the Canadian judge, the APC and PDP should urgently adopt legal measures to prove that they are not terrorist organisations.”

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Now, what’s terrorism? The dictionary explains terrorism as the unlawful use of violence and intimidation, especially against civilians in the pursuit of political aims. Nigerians know that preparing for elections is like preparing for war. Ruling parties use the instruments of state to intimidate and threaten voters. Now, they use poverty as a weapon to induce vote-buying, without bothering that the world is taking note.

In 2023 elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said it processed 774 electoral offenders for prosecution. But that is their story. Electoral offenders hardly get prosecuted because they are sponsored. That encourages acts of impunity and disregard for the rule of law, which amounts to acts of terrorism.

After considering the context and reactions to the labelling of APC and PDP as terrorist organisations, can there be a moral basis for Canada and other Western countries to express interest in democratic growth and stability in Nigeria, without appearing as meddlesome interlopers?

Towards the 2023 general elections, the United States, Canada and the European Union, invested sums to support the exercise. Spokesperson of Global Affairs of Canada, James Wanki, noted on that occasion, that his country was committed to supporting the aspirations of Nigerians to strengthen democracy. He said: “We are closely following the preparations for Nigeria’s 2023 elections and hope these elections will serve as a positive example of democracy at work.”

Part of the support was an $8 million contribution to advance women’s participation in the democratic process, including projects such as ADVANCE: Women’s Participation in Nigeria, implemented by UN Women, from 2022 to 2025.

Between 1997 and 1999, Canada’s High Commission in Nigeria was shut down as part of pro-democratic efforts to pressure the Nigerian military rulers to return to the barracks.

After 26 years of democratic rule, instead of electoral stability, politicians have supplanted the process with one-man rule, vote-snatching, vote-buying and violence. Their shenanigans at home have caused economic misery for millions of citizens and their exports now tarnish our reputation abroad.

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Why shouldn’t Canada and those who invest in this democracy not be concerned that things are going South. If the political and economic situation deteriorates, giving the cluelessness and near hopelessness of the moment, more asylum seekers would troop to embassies of Canada and European countries. They too deserve to be worried. We’re hoping this naming and shaming of APC and PDP abroad will provoke a sense of guilt and repentance at home.

Note: This article was first published by The Guardian Newspaper.
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