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The President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Yakubu Maikyau, SAN, has cleared the air on speculation surrounding the SAMOA agreement and its alleged connection to LGBTQ rights.
Maikyau stated on Tuesday, that there is no provision in the agreement that requires Nigeria to accept or recognize LGBTQ rights as a precondition for a $150 billion loan.
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According to Maikyau, the agreement was made subject to the local laws and sovereignty of the contracting nations, including Nigeria’s Same Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
He stated: “Contrary to the narrative being propagated either due to ignorance of the content of the agreement or, a deliberate intention to mislead the public (neither of which is good), I wish to state that there is no provision in the SAMOA agreement which requires Nigeria to accept or in anyway recognise LGBTQ or gay rights, either as a pre-condition for a loan of $150 Billion USD of at all.
“Instead, the agreement was expressly made subject to the local laws and the sovereignty of the contracting Nations.
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“That is to say, the SAMOA agreement recognises, for instance, Nigeria’s Same Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act, 2023 and of course, the Supremacy of the Consutution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).
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“If this were not the case, the NBA would have since advised the Federal Government not to enter or engage in any form of partnership or agreement that has the ability to undermine the sovereignty of our nation in anyway.
“For avoidance of any doubt, the SAMOA agreement does not, in any way, seek to compromise our existing legislations nor undermine the sovereignty of Nigeria.”
He emphasized that the NBA reviewed the agreement before its signing and found no compromise to Nigeria’s sovereignty.
Maikyau urged the public to verify information through fact-checking before accepting it as true.
He also highlighted the importance of understanding the agreement’s scope, which covers various areas like democracy, human rights, sustainable economic growth, climate change, peace and security, and migration.
