The ECOWAS Court has rejected Nigeria’s objection to its jurisdiction, setting the stage for a trial that could have major implications for human rights violations in the country. The case involves Ogueri, a 72-year-old man who has spent 30 years on death row in a Nigerian maximum-security prison. The court’s ruling, issued on Thursday in Abuja, dismissed Nigeria’s argument that the court lacked the authority to hear this case.

Justice Edward Asante delivered the ruling, affirming that the case falls under the ECOWAS Court’s jurisdiction, given that it addresses potential breaches of human rights under the African Charter, which the court oversees. Nigeria had claimed the case was statute-barred, arguing that the ECOWAS Court’s Protocol includes a three-year time limitation. However, the court clarified that this limitation applies only to cases involving the ECOWAS Community, not human rights violations committed by individual Member States.

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The ruling marks a significant moment for human rights protections within the region, with the ECOWAS Court asserting its authority to examine whether Nigeria’s treatment of Ogueri violated its international obligations. However, the court also ruled that the two NGOs involved in the case—Centre for Peace and Conflict Management in Africa and Rethink Africa Foundation—lacked the standing to file the case, removing them from the proceedings. This leaves Ogueri as the sole applicant in the case.

The trial will now proceed to address Ogueri’s allegations of inhumane conditions and mental torture during his long years on death row. He is seeking his release and compensation for the violations he claims to have suffered.