An ECOWAS court on Thursday dismissed a case by Niger’s military junta that sought to lift a raft of sanctions imposed by the regional ECOWAS bloc on the country after a July coup.
Soldiers from the Nigerien presidential guard detained President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26 and went on to set up what they called a transitional government, one of a series of recent coups in West Africa’s Sahel region.
That transitional government had told the Abuja-based ECOWAS Community Court of Justice that the sanctions, which included border closures by Niger’s neighbours and a cut in power supplies by Nigeria, had led to a shortage of medicines and food, causing hardships.
But the court dismissed the case saying the junta was not qualified to launch a case on Niger’s behalf.
“The military junta is not a recognised government and is not a member of the ECOWAS state and therefore lacks the locus to institute this action. The case is hereby dismissed”, Justice Dupe Atoki ruled.
The government set up by the junta said in October it had cut its planned spending for 2023 by 40% because of sanctions imposed after the July military power grab, further hobbling the economy in one of the world’s poorest countries.
Niger had been a key partner for Western countries, including the United States, in the fight against Islamist insurgents who have killed thousands of people and displaced millions more.
But the junta has since revoked security pacts with the European Union and former colonial power France, and terminated two treaties with France for cooperation and administrative assistance in tax matters.
ECOWAS leaders are set to meet in Abuja on Sunday for an annual summit which is expected to review the situation in Niger.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
