Falana Faults Badenoch Over Nigerian Citizenship Claim
Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), has faulted UK Conservative Party leader, Kemi Badenoch, over her claim that she cannot transfer Nigerian citizenship to her children due to her gender.
Badenoch, during an interview with CNN’s Fareed Zakaria on Sunday, had said, “It’s virtually impossible, for example, to get Nigerian citizenship. I have that citizenship by virtue of my parents. I can’t give it to my children because I’m a woman. Yet loads of Nigerians come to the UK and stay for a relatively free period of time, acquire British citizenship. We need to stop being naive.”
In a statement issued on Monday, Falana described her comments as a “display of utter ignorance” and accused her of misinforming the British public to gain political points.
“In her desperate attempt to impress the British electorate, Kemi Badenoch keeps running down Nigeria.
“Contrary to her misleading claim, her children are Nigerians because she is a Nigerian. Her assertion that she cannot give Nigerian citizenship to her children because she is a woman is not in consonance with Section 25(b) and (c) of the Nigerian Constitution which provides that every person born in Nigeria after independence, either of whose parents or grandparents is a citizen of Nigeria, or any person born outside Nigeria to a Nigerian parent, is a citizen.
Furthermore, by virtue of Section 42(2) of the Constitution, no citizen shall be subjected to any disability or deprivation merely by reason of circumstances of birth, gender, or class.
“Therefore, her two children are Nigerian citizens. The fact that she may not want them to claim it is irrelevant. For now, they are dual citizens of Britain and Nigeria.”
He also addressed her claim on foreign access to Nigerian citizenship:
“Sections 26 and 27 of the Constitution clearly state that foreigners can acquire Nigerian citizenship through naturalisation or registration once they meet the legal conditions.”
While acknowledging an existing legal gap, Falana added, “A woman married to a Nigerian man can be registered as a citizen, but the same privilege is not extended to a man married to a Nigerian woman, which reflects the patriarchal nature of the law. This should be urgently amended.”
Titilope Adako is a talented and intrepid journalist, dedicated to shedding light on the untold stories of Osun State and Nigeria. Through incisive reporting, she tackles a broad spectrum of topics, from politics and social justice to culture and entertainment, with a commitment to accuracy, empathy, and inspiring positive change.
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