By Peter Omopo
The Federal Government has strongly criticized a Canadian Federal Court decision that reportedly classified Nigeria’s All Progressives Congress (APC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as terrorist organisations, describing the ruling as “reckless, baseless, and an unacceptable interference” in the country’s internal affairs.
The ruling, issued on June 17, 2025, came during an immigration case involving Douglas Egharevba, a former member of both parties who sought refugee status in Canada after arriving in 2017. The Canadian court dismissed Egharevba’s judicial review, upholding an earlier tribunal decision that deemed him inadmissible under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, citing his affiliation with the political parties. Justice Phuong Ngo reportedly argued that acts of political violence by party members over time implicated the parties’ leadership.
In response, Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through spokesperson Kimiebi Ebienfa, rejected the ruling, saying it wrongly painted entire political organisations as terrorist entities instead of focusing on individual offenders. The ministry emphasized Nigeria’s legal and constitutional framework governing political activities and called on Canadian authorities to retract the decision, warning against misrepresenting the country’s political landscape.
“The larger ramification of the decision is that every member of the mentioned political parties is a potential terrorist, and that is completely false and unacceptable,” the statement said, urging constructive dialogue through diplomatic channels.
The APC also dismissed claims of being designated a terrorist organisation, with National Publicity Secretary Felix Morka stating the court only referenced the party in background information regarding Egharevba’s membership and never made any determination on terrorism. He noted that the party was not even officially registered at the time cited by the applicant.
Conversely, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) argued that the court’s decision reflected concerns over electoral malpractices and political violence in Nigeria. ADC spokesperson Bolaji Abdullahi suggested the ruling highlighted the seriousness with which other countries treat electoral fraud, while CUPP’s National Secretary Peter Ameh cited instances of violence during recent elections as sufficient grounds for foreign authorities to link the parties to acts of terror.
The controversy has sparked debates over the interpretation of the ruling, with Nigeria’s Federal Government urging citizens and the international community to disregard the purported classification while reaffirming its commitment to global security and combating terrorism.
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