A Christian cleric, Evangelist Dr. Iwuchukwu Ezenwafor, has called for Nigeria and other African countries to receive compensation for the transatlantic slave trade, insisting that affected nations deserve reparations for centuries of human and economic loss.
Ezenwafor, founder of the Universal Prayer Fellowship (UPF), said African communities continue to bear the consequences of the slave trade carried out between 1480 and 1870.
In February, the cleric wrote to the Chairman of the Board of Peace (BoP) and President of the United States, Donald Trump, urging the convening of a reparation board to address what he described as historical injustices against Africans.
He argued that reparations are necessary to address the indignity, loss of human value and socio-economic setbacks suffered by African societies during the transatlantic slave era.
Speaking with journalists at the weekend, Ezenwafor said history has not adequately confronted what he described as the devastating consequences of the trade, which spanned four centuries and involved the shipment of more than 12 million Africans.
“The perpetration of these heinous transactions first by the Portuguese and the Spaniards, followed by the British, the French, the Dutch, the Irish and other European merchants critically depleted the workforce and human capital necessary for development,” he said.
According to him, the trade entrenched pain, loss of self-worth and widespread poverty across affected regions.
“Till date, various communities, ethnic societies, tribes and kingdoms across West Coast and Central Africa are yet to recover from the ripple effects,” he added.
Ezenwafor maintained that the magnitude of the historical injustice cannot be ignored and should be addressed through structured reparations.
“Going by the principles and values of modern civilisation, it behoves the leadership of all the countries involved to do the needful, and the ideal time is now,” he said.
Calls for reparations for the transatlantic slave trade have gained renewed attention globally in recent years, with activists and some governments advocating formal acknowledgment and compensation for affected nations and descendants.
David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka
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