The president of the Africa Regional Institute for Training Research and Development (ARITRD), Prof. Anthony Asiwaju, has called on the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to fully implement the treaty on free movement of persons to enable the sub-region to benefit maximally from the policy. Article 59(1) of the ECOWAS treaty stipulates that citizens of the community shall have the right of entry, residence and establishment. Prof. Anthony Asiwaju made the call at an interactive media, civil society and private sector workshop on Tuesday in Abuja.
He said members of the bloc were not benefiting maximally from the treaty which states that members undertake “these rights of community citizen in their territories in accordance with the provisions of the protocol relating thereto’’.
The workshop was organized by the ECOWAS Free Movement Policy Governance (ECOGO) project, with the theme “Seme border must be free’’. Seme is located at the border between Nigeria and Benin.
Asiwaju said West African citizens were subjected to harassment, extortion, brutality, threat of deportation and traumatic delays in moving across border.
He also said that there was need for ECOWAS to check the law enforcement agencies at borders in order to prevent unnecessary extortion of money from travelers.
He added that high incidence of extortion which goes un-checked has become the basis for other human rights violation.
ECOWAS should harmonize security at boarders, particularly through joint patrols, and fully implement the treaty in order to ensure free and safe movement of persons within the region,’’ he said.
Asiwaju also said member states should sensitize their citizen to their rights, so that they would know what is needed for traveling, like the special ECOWAS travel documents or passports.
Mohammed Daramy, ECOWAS Commissioner for Trade, Customs, Free movement of persons and Tourism, in his address, said roadside corruption had become so prevalent that most people were resigned to it.
He said ECOWAS was working closely with all stakeholders to develop policy solution that will curb this and expand trade and free movement capacity of West Africa.
Source African Press Agency
