A Canadian Federal Court has rejected the asylum application of Adam Omozakari Ayonote, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), dismissing his claims of persecution as lacking credible evidence.
In a verdict dated November 15, 2024, Justice Whyte Nowak ruled that Mr Ayonote failed to substantiate his allegations of threats and violence linked to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Ayonote had claimed he was shot multiple times in 2005 by an APC member and fled to Canada in 2018 after receiving death threats following his testimony in a corruption trial against a senior APC official in 2014.
However, the court found inconsistencies in his narrative. Justice Nowak noted that the APC, founded in 2013, could not have been involved in the alleged 2005 attack.
Furthermore, the judge stated that Ayonote’s evidence failed to connect the alleged incidents, including an airport attack in 2018, to his political activities or fears of persecution.
“The Applicant failed to connect the 2005 shooting and the 2018 airport attack to the 2014 trial,” the court ruling stated.
“There were significant inconsistencies and omissions in the Applicant’s evidence, which led the RAD (Refugee Appeal Division) to doubt that the three critical events upon which his claim was based had occurred as alleged,” it added.
The court also questioned the applicant’s credibility, citing his vacations in the United States in 2014 and 2015, followed by his return to Nigeria despite claiming his life was in danger.
Justice Nowak emphasized that Ayonote had failed to claim refugee protection at the earliest opportunity, further undermining his case.
The court concluded that Ayonote had not provided sufficient evidence of a forward-facing risk if he were to return to Nigeria, nor had he convincingly demonstrated persecution based on his political opinions.