FCT Natives Slam Amnesty International Over Kuje Political Dispute

Indigenous residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), under the aegis of the Abuja Original Inhabitants Youths Empowerment Organisation (AOIYEO), have launched a scathing criticism of Amnesty International over its intervention in the political controversy surrounding the Chairman of Kuje Area Council, Hon. Samuel Danjuma Shekwolo.

The AOIYEO executive director, Commandant Isaac David, described Amnesty International as a respected global human rights organisation but questioned what he called its “selective intervention” in human rights issues affecting residents of the FCT.

David spoke on Friday in Abuja at a press briefing convened in response to Amnesty International’s reaction to a viral video purportedly showing the Kuje council chairman making threatening political remarks.

The Kuje chairman had reportedly been heard in the video saying, “It’s either you are doing APC or leave the Area Council,” a statement that has generated controversy and attracted condemnation.

But David said while AOIYEO was not defending any alleged threat by the council chairman, the organisation was concerned about Amnesty International’s decision to intervene in the matter without, in his view, demonstrating comparable attention to longstanding grievances of indigenous communities in the FCT.

He said Amnesty International’s international reputation came with an obligation to consistently confront systemic violations of human rights, irrespective of the political identity of those involved.

“Amnesty International is a globally respected organisation. The weight and credibility of that name carries the expectation of focus on systemic injustices, human rights violations, freedom from discrimination, dignity of original inhabitants and political and administrative marginalisation,” he said.

David asked why the organisation had allegedly not been as vocal over years of demolitions, displacement, land disputes, insecurity and other challenges confronting indigenous communities in the FCT.

He argued that these issues were not isolated incidents but part of what he described as a longstanding struggle affecting indigenous people across the territory’s 858 communities.

The AOIYEO boss repeatedly questioned the organisation’s absence from previous controversies involving indigenous residents.

He cited alleged demolitions of indigenous homes, displacement without adequate compensation and protests over land and other rights, asking why such incidents did not attract the same level of attention.

According to him, indigenous residents had, over the years, raised concerns about their rights to land, property, security and political participation without receiving what he considered adequate support from international rights organisations.

David said the sudden intervention in a local political dispute could create the impression that Amnesty International was shifting attention away from more fundamental human rights questions.