Suing a State Governor in Nigeria
What should atheists do when they find a State Governor is promoting a project to build an enormous 8,500-seat Christian worship center and is contributing state funding?
This is happening now in Akwa Ibom state in Nigeria, a country with a Federal Constitution that explicitly mandates separation of religion and state. Our affiliate, the Atheist Society of Nigeria, instructed lawyers to write to Governor Udom Emmanuel, to demand the cessation of the project, and for the contributions made by the government to be publicly disclosed.
The Governor has failed to respond to either letter. So what next?
With AAI’s help, the Atheist Society of Nigeria will take the matter to court and let a Judge rule on the legality of the Governor’s involvement in this overtly religious project. This will be the first time in history that atheists have sued a state government in Nigeria and the ruling will be a crucial test case that will clarify the law and is likely to impact many other instances of state-religion entanglement across the country.